{"id":10770,"date":"2021-06-25T17:30:00","date_gmt":"2021-06-25T10:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vcgamers.com\/news\/?p=10770"},"modified":"2021-06-25T21:29:53","modified_gmt":"2021-06-25T14:29:53","slug":"best-of-laptops-microsoft-surface-vs-mac-m1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vcgamers.com\/news\/en\/best-of-laptops-microsoft-surface-vs-mac-m1\/","title":{"rendered":"Best of 2021's Laptop: Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 vs. M1MacBook Air+Pro!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hi Vicigers! Apple and Microsoft are arguably the biggest names in technology and their users are always looking forward to their new offerings. Already<\/em> on know<\/em> not yet<\/em> recently, in April to be precise, Microsoft launched their Surface laptop known as the Surface Laptop 4 while Apple introduced the MacBook Air M1, which is chip-powered, to be exact last year. There's no denying that these two powerful and compact laptops are some of the most exciting on the market in 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But how do these two laptops differ from each other and how to choose the better one? Now,<\/em>, in this article, we will take an in-depth look at its features to see how they compare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Specification<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Model<\/th>13-inch MacBook Air<\/th>13-inch MacBook Pros<\/th>13.5-inch Surface Laptop 4<\/th>13.5-inch Surface Laptop 4<\/th>15-inch Surface Laptop 4<\/th>15-inch Surface Laptop 4<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Processor<\/td>8-core M1<\/td>8-core M1<\/td>11th Gen Intel Core i5-1135G7<\/td>AMD Ryzen 5 4680U<\/td>11th Gen Intel Core i7-1185G7<\/td>AMD Ryzen 7 4980U<\/td><\/tr>
GPUs<\/td>7-core Integrated<\/td>8-core Integrated<\/td>Intel Iris Xe<\/td>6-core AMD Ryzen Microsoft Surface Edition<\/td>Intel Iris Xe<\/td>8-core AMD Ryzen Microsoft Surface Edition<\/td><\/tr>
RAM<\/td>8GB<\/td>8GB<\/td>8GB<\/td>8GB<\/td>16GB<\/td>8GB<\/td><\/tr>
Storage Room<\/td>256GB<\/td>256GB<\/td>512GB<\/td>256GB<\/td>512GB<\/td>256GB<\/td><\/tr>
Resolution<\/td>2560 x 1600<\/td>2560 x 1600<\/td>2256 x 1504<\/td>2256 x 1504<\/td>2496 x 1664<\/td>2496 x 1664<\/td><\/tr>
Touch Screen<\/td>There isn't any<\/td>There isn't any<\/td>There is<\/td>There is<\/td>There is<\/td>There is<\/td><\/tr>
plug<\/td>2 USB 4<\/td>2 USB 4<\/td>USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 ports
USB-A port
Surface Connect ports<\/td>		USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 ports
USB-A port
Surface Connect ports<\/td>		USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 ports
USB-A port
Surface Connect ports<\/td>		USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 ports
USB-A port
Surface Connect ports<\/td><\/tr>
networking<\/td>WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5<\/td>WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5<\/td>WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5<\/td>WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5<\/td>WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5<\/td>WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5<\/td><\/tr>
Biometrics<\/td>TouchID<\/td>TouchID<\/td>Windows Hello<\/td>Windows Hello<\/td>Windows Hello<\/td>Windows Hello<\/td><\/tr>
webcams<\/td>720p<\/td>720p<\/td>720p<\/td>720p<\/td>720p<\/td>720p<\/td><\/tr>
Battery Life<\/td>15 Hours<\/td>17 Hours<\/td>17 Hours<\/td>19 Hours<\/td>17.5 Hours<\/td>16.5 Hours<\/td><\/tr>
Dimensions
(inch)<\/td>		11.97 x 8.36 x 0.16-0.63<\/td>11.97 x 8.36 x 0.61<\/td>12.1 x 8.8 x 0.57<\/td>12.1 x 8.8 x 0.57<\/td>13.4 x 9.6 x 0.58<\/td>13.4 x 9.6 x 0.58<\/td><\/tr>
Mass<\/td>2.8 lbs<\/td>3.0 lbs<\/td>2.8 lbs<\/td>2.8 lbs<\/td>3.4 lbs<\/td>3.4 lbs<\/td><\/tr>
Price<\/td>$999<\/a><\/td>$1,299<\/a><\/td>$1,299<\/a><\/td>$999<\/a><\/td>$1,799<\/a><\/td>$1,299<\/a><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Design<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Who anyway<\/em> which ga<\/em> familiar with the looks of Apple's MacBook Air and Pro lineup? using a typical aluminum cover. Microsoft is offering a little more customization in its aluminum chassis, with a choice of material that surrounds the keyboard. As for physical size, Apple's notebooks are identical in depth and width at 11.97 inches by 8.36 inches. Microsoft's offerings are both larger, with the 13.5-inch model measuring 12.1 inches long and 8.8 inches wide, while the 15-inch version is 13.4 inches by 9.6 inches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite being physically larger, Microsoft's notebooks are thinner than Apple's at 0.57 inches and 0.58 inches depending on size, compared to the MacBook Pro's 0.61 and MacBook Air's 0.16 to 0.63 inches. The weight is roughly equal for the smaller model, with the 13.5-inch Surface weighing the same 2.8 pounds as the MacBook Air, and slightly lighter than the 3-pound MacBook Pro. The 15-inch surface tipped the scales at 3.4 pounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ports and Connectivity, Yes, you need a lot of plugs right?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Side view of Surface vs. Macbooks<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When talking about ports and connectivity<\/em> this device, Apple seems to be better than Microsoft. This is because the Microsoft Surface 4 is equipped with one USB-A, one USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 port, headphone jack<\/em>, and a Surface Connect port that lets you quickly charge your laptop. On the other hand, the MacBook Air has two USB 4 ports that can function as a 3.5mm headphone jack and Thunderbolt 3 connectivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This seems interesting but keep in mind that the MacBook connection offers up to 40Gbps of bandwidth, while the Surface Laptop 4 can only manage up to 5Gbps on a USB-A connection and 10Gbps on a USB-C connection. Compatibility with USB-A is certainly an advantage for the Surface, but it's only now that USB-C ports have started to gain traction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

performance<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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In terms of performance, the thing to look out for in Microsoft's release is the choice of processors and how they compete with Apple's version. Of course No need<\/em> There's no doubt that the Apple MacBook Air is better than the Microsoft Surface Laptop 4. The MacBook Air is designed with the M1 chip on a 5-nanometer processor and includes 16 billion transistors. The 13.5-inch Surface Laptop 4 can be configured to have an 11th-generation Intel quad-core Core i5-1135G7 processor, an 11th-generation quad-core Core i7-1185G7 processor, or an AMD Ryzen 5 4680U Mobile Processor. On the 15-inch version, the choice is a Core i7-1186G7 or Ryzen 7 4980U mobile processor. In each case, Intel models use Intel Iris Xe graphics, while AMD chips have \u201cMicrosoft Surface Edition\u201d Radeon Graphics, in 6-core and 8-core variants depending on size.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Simply put, the M1's processor packs an insane amount of performance compared to the Surface 4. Also, the MacBook Air's CPU has an 8-core design that delivers up to 3.5x faster performance than an Intel-powered Mac. The M1 chip can render multiple 4K timelines and 4K video.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pricing $$$<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Ok, speaking of price, Apple started its MacBook Air from $999, equipped with 7-core GPU, 8GB memory and 256GB storage. The version equipped with an 8-core GPU and a 512GB storage upgrade costs $1.249. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the MacBook Pro, the base model has an 8-core GPU with 8GB of memory and 256GB of storage for $1.299. In either case, upgrading memory to 16GB will cost you an additional $200, while moving from 512GB to 1TB costs an additional $200, and another $400 to get from 1TB to 2TB. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Microsoft, for starters, there are six configurations available for the 13.5-inch model and five for the 15-inch model. The cheapest model is the 13.5-inch with a Ryzen 5 chip, 8GB of memory and 256GB of storage for $999.99, going up to $1199.99 if you want 16GB of memory. The cheapest Intel, using a Core i5 with 8GB of memory and 512GB of storage, is $1,299.99.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the 15-inch model, the base is a Ryzen 7 with 8GB memory and 256GB storage for $1,299.99, although you can upgrade storage up to 512GB for a total cost of $1,499.99, or 512GB storage and 16GB memory for $1,699, 99.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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