Regardless, I can’t ignore the fact that, as a Mac guy, getting used to Windows again hasn’t been the most enjoyable experience. I’m not going to labour the point here, because I really don’t want the comments thread of this blog to deteriorate into the platform wars. These laptops will breeze through a normal day’s work without a murmur (and with only the occasional fan spin-up on the Surface Laptop’s part). I can’t get excited about the performance but, then, that speaks more of my use case than the capabilities of the laptop itself. It’s not as ‘snappy’ as the M1 MacBook Air, but that only results in a barely noticeable delay in waiting for apps to open. I have the base spec, which features an AMD Ryzen 5 468U processor, 8GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD.Īs a do-it-all office laptop, it’s a great performer. It’s my writing device, email companion, and the do-it-all office laptop I’ve always dreamed of – but that’s as far as it goes. I therefore don’t push the M1 chip at all in that particular machine. Winner: M1 MacBook Air ( but the Surface Laptop’s keyboard ensures it remains on its feet until the final round). Easily the best I’ve used on a laptop, it even benefits from the curious amount of flex within the chassis beneath it.Īnd that Alcantara finish? I really like it – but I will report back in a few months regarding its wear! However, special mention must be made of the keyboard, because it’s the crowning glory for the Surface Laptop 4. There’s just a tangible lightness and hollowness to Microsoft’s machine which reduces the premium feel somewhat. Defining why that’s the case isn’t easy they weigh roughly the same and both feature a tapered design. The Surface Laptop 4 feels a smidgen below the MacBook Air in terms of build quality. But I’d never held one in my hands until now.

This is entirely unfair I’m aware that there are many lovely Windows laptops out there that benefit from the same fit and finish and attention to detail that Apple lavishes on the MacBook. I was pleasantly surprised when I retrieved the Surface Laptop 4 from its MacBook-like packaging.

Windows vs mac laptop