I really don't want to give this review. The Surface Book 2, on paper, is an incredible achievement. However, Microsoft is currently preying upon the public in their testing and insurance practices. To summarize, the first 15 inch Surface Book 2 I purchased had dead pixels on the screen, which I. Jul 22, 2018 Microsoft has retained the 3:2 ratio screen of the Surface Book design, and also kept roughly the same density of pixels - 260 dpi on the 15-inch machine, 267 dpi on the 13-inch model. That means the resolution steps up to 3240x2160. Jun 16, 2019 The 15-inch MacBook Pro is just 0.61 inches thin (same as its sibling MacBook Air) and weighs four pounds. The 13-inch Pro is even thinner—0.59 inches—and weighs 3.02 pounds. The 12.3-inch Surface.
Best for most
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3
Professional powerhouse
Apple MacBook Pro
The Surface Laptop 3 now comes in two sizes and uses both Intel and AMD hardware inside. Everything that made the first two great remains, except it now has USB-C as well!
Pros
- Stunning touch display
- Digital inking support
- Great battery life
- Two sizes
- Intel and AMD processors
Cons
- No Thunderbolt 3
- Not all colors available in all configurations
The MacBook Pro is packed with hardware to excite the professional market, but all that comes at a high price, though you do also have the option for dedicated graphics.
Pros
- Optional eight-core processors
- Stunning Retina Display
- Can run Windows 10
- Thunderbolt 3
- Dedicated graphics options and eGPU support
The Surface Laptop 3 and MacBook Pro are for very different target audiences. The Surface Laptop 3 is not targeted at the serious power user. The MacBook Pro has the hardware for that type of buyer, with the added bonus of being able to boot into Windows 10 as well.
Surface Laptop 3 vs MacBook Pro basic tech specs
| Category | Surface Laptop 3 (13-inch) | Surface Laptop 3 (15-inch) | MacBook Pro (13-inch) | MacBook Pro (15-inch) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating System | Windows 10 | Windows 10 | macOS | macOS |
| Display | 13.5-inch Pixelsense, 3:2 aspect ratio, 2256x1504 (201 PPI) | 15-inch Pixelsense, 3:2 aspect ratio, 2496x1664 (201 PPI) | 13.3-inch Retina 2560 x 1600 (227 PPI) | 15.4-inch Retina 2880 x 1800 (220 PPI) |
| Processor | Intel 10th Gen | AMD Ryzen 5 or Ryzen 7 custom CPU | Intel Core i5 or i7 (quad-core) | Intel Core i7 (hexa-core) Intel Core i9 (octa-core) |
| GPU | Intel Iris | AMD Vega 9 AMD Vega 11 | Intel Iris Plus Graphics 645 Intel Iris Plus Graphics 655 | Up to Radeon Pro Vega 20 |
| Memory | 8GB or 16GB LPDDR4x | 8GB, 16GB, or 32GB LPDDR4x | 8GB or 16GB LPDDR3 2133 MHz | 16GB or 32GB DDR4 2400 MHz |
| Storage | 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB SSD (replaceable) | 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB SSD (replaceable) | Up to 512GB SSD | Up to 4TB SSD |
| Ports | 1x USB-C, 1x USB-A, 1x Surface Connect, 3.5 mm headphone jack | 1x USB-C, 1x USB-A, 1x Surface Connect, 3.5 mm headphone jack | Up to 4 x USB-C Thunderbolt 3, 3.5mm headphone jack | 4 x USB-C Thunderbolt-3, 3.5mm headphone jack |
| Battery | Up to 11.5 hours | Up to 11.5 hours | Up to 10 hours | Up to 10 hours |
| Weight | Up to 2.79 lbs | Up to 3.4 lbs | 3.02 lbs | 4.02lbs |
Surface Laptop 3 is a great upgrade
The Surface Laptop is one of our absolute favorites and the latest incarnation doesn't change any of that. For the first time, we have a little choice when buying, with both a 13- and a 15-inch model now. The experience of using each is mostly the same, with the biggest change coming underneath. The 15-inch version is exclusively available to consumers with a customized AMD Ryzen Surface Edition APU.
That packs four cores and eight threads on the Ryzen CPU portion, and either a Vega 9 or Vega 11 integrated GPU. Both of these have an additional GPU core over the Vega that AMD would put in other Windows laptops, giving it a little added grunt.
Even on the smaller version, performance takes a serious bump from the Surface Laptop 2, with Intel's 10th Gen processors and all-new Iris Plus graphics on the table. The Surface Laptop 3 isn't targeted at professional applications or creators, but the added horsepower certainly means you can get some good mileage in such areas.
Oh, and it has USB-C now, as well. So you don't need to buy a dongle. Hallelujah!
MacBook Pro has some superior specs
Even though there are no longer any legacy ports on the MacBook Pro, it has one fairly big advantage over the Surface Laptop 3. it has Thunderbolt 3 support on top of USB-C, and Thunderbolt 3 opens up a world of possibilities. You can attach high resolution displays to it, connect fast external storage, and perhaps most interesting of all, hook up an eGPU, putting a full desktop graphics card into your MacBook Pro.
Besides this, the MacBook Pro has six-core processors from Intel right up to a Core i9, options for dedicated graphics that go up to AMD's Radeon Vega Pro, up to 32GB of RAM and up to 4TB of storage. In all cases the AMD graphics options for the MacBook Pro are stronger than the Vega 9 or Vega 11 you're able to get on the 15-inch Surface Laptop 3.
Different laptops for different people
The Surface Laptop 3 is generally a closer match to Apple's MacBook Air in the sense that they're both highly portable yet capable Ultrabooks and they appeal to the same type of laptop buyers.
The MacBook Pro targets a different class of buyer. It's a pro-grade laptop with a ton of powerful options, much better graphics capabilities and if your wallet will go far enough, a ridiculous Core i9 processor.
The Surface Laptop 3 does come in two sizes for the first time, though, and they're both touch-enabled, something you don't get on any MacBook, with pen support for digital inking. The 15-inch model with AMD Ryzen and Vega inside is the better choice there, but the MacBook Pro can still over more outright power.
If you're already looking at the Surface Laptop 3 as something you think you'd like to buy, get it. The MacBook Pro isn't really a direct competitor, and you're going to end up spending a lot of money on the Mac to get anything really worthy.
Best for most
Surface Laptop 3
For most, the Surface Laptop 3 is a better buy
While lacking the ultimate power available in the MacBook Pro, of the two, the Surface Laptop 3 is the better value for most people.
Professional powerhouse
MacBook Pro
Macbook 15 Inch S Microsoft Edge
Stacked with professional power
Macbook 15 Inch S Microsoft Download
The professional buyer looking for massive horsepower and dedicated graphics can get everything they need in the MacBook Pro. Including Windows 10.
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