Surface Laptop 5 Reddit Verdict: Premium Feel, Dated Specs

while they sell millions to businesses because the Basic Laptop is the bread and butter workhorse machine. boo fucking hoo it doesn't tickle your odd fancy for some obscure design feature or move shit around just for the sake of doing it.

Seriously, no slimmer bezels and still only one USB-C port?

Tbh it would have been enough for them to put a slightly bigger 120hz display on it. Nothing really groundbreaking. But they couldn't be bothered…

They focused on streamlining the supply chain and making components easier to repair and replace. Redesign will likely come next year.

It's weird that they made a 15" laptop without increasing the battery size from the 13".

This is exactly why Microsoft hardware doesn't sell all that well — releasing Alder Lake in April 2023.

For me they got the design almost perfect on the first try. I still think the surface laptops are some of the best designed and well built laptops on the market. But they have definitely got complacent.

Meh, just feels like people are whining. They released the SL Go and SL Studio just last year. This is the bread and butter device. A spec bump is all it really needed. After 5 releases an updated design is likely next.

No one complained when ThinkPads looked identical since like 1997.

This basically confirmed I'll be getting a MacBook Air next. Changing from windows to macOS will be a pain but I'll get used to it.

No design changes, they took away the AMD option (Which they were always half-assing anyway), and the same price for that total lack of innovation on a product line that is nearing end of the components' life cycle. The Surface Laptop continues to be the least-interesting thing in the history of Surface, IMO. It's the Macbook of Windows, and not in a good way.

For a $1299 base MSRP 15" thin-and-light laptop, it's sad they stuck with the 47.4 WHr battery size. The HP Spectre 13.5" packs a 66 WHr battery — 40% larger — in a lighter 2.98 lb chassis.

It really is quite ridiculous. Reviewers are complaining that the same design gets used year on year by Microsoft. Fair enough, but ALL other laptop makers do this as well — Dell, Lenovo, HP, Apple. They roll out a design and for 4-5 years it receives only spec bumps. Why is Microsoft expected to come up with radical new designs every year?

There isn't much you can do with these devices. It's a large screen with a keyboard and PC components in it. About the only thing I'd want to see if a surface laptop is more built-in ports. My guess is it's the delay of Intel parts causing the issue and their refusal to add AMD models.

I really just wanted a 1080p camera. That was the one thing that would have swayed me.

Was it amazing? No. But the 5 has Thunderbolt and Wi-Fi 6, and those were features I was personally waiting for. I would have preferred 6E and/or maybe an AMD version, but it's at least an option now.

I use to praise Microsoft to be even a bit more innovative vs Apple. Especially the Surface Book and Pro. Now the Book is replaced by Studio, which isn't as cool as the Book. The pro is just copy paste with no innovation. Guess I will stick to Macs.

No AMD, no sale. Microsoft just aren't trying anymore. The CPU in this is super slow for a 15". It's basically a dual core with some slow cores tacked on that aren't even that efficient. Even Zen 2 smacks this around.

The SL5 seems a little neglected to me — the processor has been updated as well as TB4 connectivity but that's it. Still the same design as years ago. Meanwhile the Surface Pro 8 saw a full redesign last year.

Don't understand the lack of an AMD version unless they're keeping it for some kind of "Pro" laptop next year. I had an SL4 with the Ryzen option for work for a while and the battery life was much better than the i7 alternative. Does seem a bit of a lazy redesign.

After a couple days of use, I returned the Surface Laptop 5 and ordered an Alienware x14 with double the RAM, proper Nvidia graphics card, 14-inch, and even slightly better i7 chip for only $100 more (good sale).

I got mine for $1399 Cyber Monday deal. The Alienware is so loud you can hear it a mile away. It is a better laptop performance wise of course. But usability I prefer the SL5. I've had both — couldn't stand the noise on the x14.

The design is solid. Feels high-quality, gets the basics perfect — sturdy, no screen wobble, an excellent keyboard and an amazing haptic touchpad in the SL5. I honestly would buy an SL5 again if I could.

We've bought Surface Laptops for our business since the first version. They have been wildly popular and I've been told more than once that it's the best laptop we've provided (being a former Dell customer).

Still hilarious they still went with Intel.

Honestly, I really want to buy one of these. I am torn though. I honestly like the classic design, and the keyboards and screens are super high quality. But I am disappointed to not see an option with a better GPU, a 144hz screen, or even slimmer bezels. These things are enough to make me look elsewhere for a laptop.

The issue with the SL5 even at sale prices is that the CPU is a class below other premium ultraportables, other laptops have caught up on quality and design (although 3:2 is still not common enough), and the MacBook Air sets a value bar that is too hard to compete with.

Thoroughly underwhelming update. I had really wanted to want one, but the same years-old design, the late-in-cycle 12th gen release, no AMD options when they were both more efficient and had just brought RDNA 2 to IGPs… spec for spec you're matching the price of the M2 from Apple, which has a decently faster CPU and much faster IGP.

IMO, the SL7 is a better laptop than the SL5 in ways that count. I bought an SL5 for my wife last year, and an SL7 for myself this year, so I know from experience. For most of us, Windows on ARM and the Snapdragon X are the real deal.

They should have honestly just called Laptop 5 as Laptop 4+ because that is exactly what it is: just a spec bump like Studio 2+.

I just wish I could get 32 Gb Ram on the 13". Sure I can get it on the 15" but also comes with 1TB of storage, 512 is more than enough for most people, so paying a premium for storage I don't need. I feel like 32 should be the standard for most people if they want their device to last 4+ years.

I'd get the Copilot+ over the SL5. The main reason is that it'll last the full day on battery.

I wouldn't get a Surface Laptop for any kind of gaming. I swear it throttles too much. It can do everything else you listed though.

The event was so boring — no 120Hz screen, no haptic touchpad, no slimmer bezels, no AMD CPU. They spent so much time talking about pointless things instead of hardware, because it turns out the hardware is basically still the same.

I was in the same position trying to decide between the Surface Laptop 5 and the LG Gram. I returned my Surface and purchased the Gram. Without a doubt the Surface felt like a premium, higher quality product with a MUCH better screen — but portability and ports mattered more to me.

Since even a USB Wi-Fi adapter drops after a few minutes, this probably isn't just a driver thing. First thing I'd check is power management: Device Manager → Network Adapter → Properties → Power Management → uncheck 'Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.' Also try disabling Fast Startup / Modern Standby in Windows power settings.

The design of the Surface Laptop is one of its strengths, honestly. It's always been one of the best handling and best built thin and lights on the market. I'm not sure much change was needed here. SL5 gets a faster, more modern processor, Thunderbolt 4, and Wi-Fi 6 — all worthwhile upgrades.

Once you match up the storage and RAM, the SL5 is right there in price with the M2, which is still decently more powerful on the CPU and much more powerful on the IGP, with longer real world battery life. That plus the years-old Surface Laptop design staying the same... I really can't justify it.

Get the Laptop 5. Microsoft's x64 to ARM64 translation software is AWFUL in comparison to Apple's and most Windows software doesn't run on ARM. If you want an ARM device, get a used/refurbished M2 MacBook Air. Otherwise, Surface Laptop 5.

My advice is DO NOT buy an ultrabook for 3D gaming, especially recent titles. The Surface Laptops are designed to be lightweight, ultra-portable, productivity-oriented devices with good battery life. They aren't designed to be powerhouses.

With the relative age of the Surface Laptop 5, if you're considering one, maybe look at pre-owned. I picked up an SL5 i5/16GB/512GB for £495 in excellent condition and I'm really enjoying it. Wouldn't pay twice that for the same but unused.

Had the Surface Laptop 3 — horrible battery performance, less than 1 hour after 2 years of use. Had a warranty replacement after 2 months due to screen dying. Now I got the top-spec Surface Laptop 5 15" and they still have not figured out how to improve the battery life. They advertise 17h — I tried my best and only got half that.