The tech publication The Verge recently reviewed the Surface Laptop 7th Edition, opting to focus on the entry-level model priced at $999 and comparing it to the MacBook Air. The lowest-tier Surface Laptop 7 packs a Snapdragon X Plus processor with 10 cores (not the Elite 12-core version), 16GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, a 13.8-inch display, a non-intrusive 1080p webcam, Windows Hello support, 2 USB-C ports, and Surface-exclusive charging port options.
The Verge noted that the Surface Laptop 7 features slimmer display bezels, a larger touchpad with customizable haptic feedback, an unchanged keyboard, and an unhelpful Copilot button that was recently downgraded to a web app. The Snapdragon X Plus CPU showed good performance for everyday tasks, with ARM64 compiled apps running smoothly, although non-ARM64 apps like Discord running through an emulator experienced better performance than on the Surface Pro X due to the improved Snapdragon X Plus chip. However, applications like Adobe Premier Pro, still lacking ARM64 versions, face installation issues.
A notable drawback of the Surface Laptop 7 lies in certain apps unfamiliar with the Adreno GPU, limiting their operation to the CPU. Benchmarks like 3DMark and Cinebench still lack ARM64 versions, requiring emulation that may provide inaccurate results. Despite adequate battery performance lasting up to 7 hours under heavy load, normal usage sees a 70% battery remaining after a full day and even intermittent usage over a week without needing a charge (charging on Friday and still having 27% battery on Monday morning).
The AI features utilizing the NPU chip show potential with Live Captions instantly translating foreign language clips to English but fall short with Cocreator in generating images compared to using the Dall-E model on a server. In summary, the Surface Laptop 7 emerges as a formidable competitor to the MacBook Air, offering superior RAM capacity (16GB vs 8GB) and comparable battery life at a more affordable price point. With widespread ARM64 app support, it could be considered a Windows-running alternative to the highly anticipated MacBook Air release.
TLDR: The Surface Laptop 7’s entry-level configuration impresses with its Snapdragon X Plus processor, ample RAM, and impressive battery life, positioning itself as a viable competitor to the MacBook Air at a lower cost.
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