Ever since Apple’s MacBooks switched to the company’s proprietary M-series chips, Windows users have been wondering when such a revolution would happen to their machines. To Microsoft’s credit, it’s not for lack of trying. Back in 2012, the company launched with an Arm-based processor, which is the same architecture used in Apple’s silicon. Unfortunately, a small application library, sluggish performance, and limited software compatibility made using one kind of full-time job are disappointing. Then in 2017, Microsoft renewed its efforts with . This led to systems like , which featured wonderful hardware that was once again marred by poor processing power and incomplete software support.
But as the old saying goes: If at first you fail, try, try again. And after more than a decade of startups and stumbles, Microsoft succeeded. By combining Qualcomm’s powerful Oryon cores with its new , Microsoft has turned the Surface Laptop 7 (and its sibling, ) into a near-perfect productivity machine.
Engadget
While some apps still need additional support to run on Windows on Arm, the Surface Laptop 7 and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite chip combine to create a near-perfect platform for everyday productivity.
- Elegant design
- Excellent battery life
- Good performance
- Bright display
- A powerful Prism emulator
- Responsive touchpad
- Some apps and games still don’t work well with Arm-based chips
- There is no OLED display option
$1300 at Microsoft
Design and display: Premium from top to bottom
While the Surface Laptop 7 (or 7th edition as Microsoft likes to call it) has some fancy new silicon inside, not much has changed on the outside. But I do not complain. It has a sleek all-aluminum chassis with clean, minimalist lines, but it doesn’t look like a MacBook. Microsoft also made a few small tweaks like adding rounded corners to its display, a new haptic touchpad (similar to the one on ), and a dedicated Copilot key (more on that later).
As before, the Surface Laptop 7 comes in two sizes. The smaller one features a slightly larger 13.8-inch display than before (up from 13.5), while the larger model has remained at 15 inches. There are also two USB 4 Type-C slots, one USB-A 3.1 jack, a microSD card reader and Microsoft’s Surface Connect magnetic port. So nothing out of the ordinary, but more than enough connectivity to handle most situations. And with the 13-inch model weighing in at just under three pounds (2.96 lbs) and the 15-inch variant weighing in at 3.6 pounds, neither version will add much extra weight to your bag.
As for the display itself, the 15-inch PixelSense LCD on our review Surface Laptop 7 is top-notch. In addition to its 120Hz refresh rate, it’s color calibrated to deliver accurate hues while offering great brightness (over 600 nits on a full white screen) and 10-point touch support. It’s even coated with Gorilla Glass 5 to prevent scratches and scuffs. I just wish there was an option to upgrade to an OLED panel like you can on the Surface Pro 11.
Performance and compatibility: New heights for Windows on Arm
The most impressive thing about the Surface Laptop 7 is how normal it feels. It’s super responsive, has instant wake times, and generally feels extremely fast. But the best part is that you often can’t even tell the difference between running Arm’s own software or when the laptop is using Microsoft’s Prism emulator in the background to seamlessly translate applications originally designed for x86 chips. It really is that smooth.
In benchmarks, the Snapdragon X Elite chip lives up to Qualcomm’s high performance claims. For example, in Geekbench 6, the Surface Laptop 7 posted multi-core results of 14,400, which is higher than a similarly equipped Intel Core Ultra 7 155H chip (11,920). In fact, the Surface X Elite was even able to outperform the Core Ultra 9 processor inside, which maxed out at 12,798.
However, it’s important to note that the performance of the X Elite chip is based on how much juice it gets. On the 15-inch Surface Laptop 7, Microsoft allocates up to 30 watts to the processor. But on the smaller 13-inch model, it’s limited to 20 watts, so while it should still be pretty fast, you’ll get better performance with the larger option. And while the Surface Laptop 7 isn’t fanless like the MacBook Air, even under load the laptop rarely goes above a whisper.
Finally, while most tools and applications just work regardless of the architecture they’re designed for, with Windows PCs still relatively early in the transition (at least it’s happening) to Arm-based systems, there are a handful of great applications that need a little more time. Some of the big ones are Adobe products like Illustrator and InDesign, while updated versions of After Effects and Premier Pro may not arrive until late 2024.
A quick word about the games
Microsoft never said the Surface Laptop 7 was a gaming machine. But considering that the (Electronics Software Association) indicates that 65 percent of Americans play some form of video game on a weekly basis, the laptop’s fragging abilities are probably worth mentioning. Unfortunately, while the Snapdragon X Elite chip boasts decent performance, many titles that might otherwise be suitable for the Laptop 7 just don’t run. Some of them are racing games like Fortnite and League of Legends, which include anti-cheat protocols that have not been updated to work on Arm-based chips. This is doubly disappointing because in the case of lol the game installs normally and doesn’t show any warnings other than Riot’s Vanguard system asking you to reboot your system before starting the game. But no matter how many times you do it, the game never starts.
However, it is not a completely lost cause. I found that random 2D titles like In Proloma and Vampire survivor it works smoothly so you still have some options. And if you want to play more demanding titles, there’s always streaming services like Xbox Cloud Gaming and NVIDIA GeForce Now, which are inherently unaffected by architecture or operating system limitations.
Copilot+ AI Features: More bonus than true essentials
One of the big selling points of this new breed had to be Microsoft’s built-in AI features. But in reality, they are more like sometimes useful bonuses. The tool with the most potential is Recall, which takes screenshots of your desktop so the AI can help you find things later. Unfortunately, due to its security concerns, the feature will initially only be available for before it is officially released sometime in the future.
Meanwhile, other Copilot+ AI tools feel quite limited in scope. The Create Images button in the Photos app lets you generate photos based on word prompts, and it pretty much does the trick. But the results still aren’t as detailed or realistic as what you get from more powerful cloud services like Midjourney. But hey, it’s free. To make things more confusing, there’s another button in Paint, also labeled Image Creator, but it’s actually a completely different function with limited uses and results that aren’t as good as the similar option name in Photos.
Ultimately, the most useful AI features are Live Captions and the Restyle Image tool in Photos. The former uses AI to creatively edit or transform existing photos, allowing you to change the style of a picture into something that looks like an anime or impressionist painting, while the letter provides real-time translation for videos, podcasts and more. And while Microsoft’s captions could be a bit more precise, they’re generally good enough to get the gist of whatever you’re watching or listening to.
Battery Life: More than a full day of longevity
Although emulating apps designed for x86 processors could use a bit more juice, the Surface Laptop 7 has more than enough battery life to run. Although our usual exhaustion test hasn’t yet been updated for Arm-based chips, when I streamed 1080p video over Wi-Fi, the device lasted 17 hours and 38 minutes, which is several hours longer than I usually get from some similarly equipped Intel and AMD rivals. And in general use, it often felt like the Laptop 7 did even better, often ending the day with around 50 percent charge.
Another advantage of the Snapdragon X chips is that there is almost zero battery drain when the system is asleep, which I attribute to Qualcomm’s experience in creating efficient smartphone processors. I’ve noticed that the Surface Laptop 7 will only lose one or two percent of battery overnight, giving you the confidence to leave it unplugged for days.
For charging, you can either use the magnetic Surface Connect port with the included power brick. But another bonus is that the Surface Laptop 7 also supports USB-C charging, so if you want to travel light and use a universal adapter to keep this and a bunch of other gadgets charged, you totally can.
Summary
While the road here was littered with bumps and potholes, the Surface Laptop 7 arrived ready to compete. And it’s not just a great rival to the MacBook Air, it’s blazing a new trail for Windows PCs. It’s fast, quiet, has excellent battery life, and works well with most of your apps. Of course, a few core programs still need additional support, and you may encounter problems when trying to play games or install specialized software. And when you spec it out, it can get a little expensive too. The 15-inch model starts at $1,300, but our review unit with a Snapdragon X Elite chip, 32GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD costs $2,100. Still, for overall performance, the Surface Laptop 7 and its Snapdragon X Elite chip are a revelation and a revolutionary step forward for Windows as we know it.
