14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has launched the third-generation Surface Book, or as the company describes it, its “most powerful laptop ever.”
The Surface Book has long been Microsoft’s flagship device, and now it comes with upgraded specs and improvements in every key area, including performance and battery life.
Design
The design of the Surface Book 3 isn’t any way different from the one of its predecessor. Microsoft retained the Surface Book’s signature hinge, which powers the 2-in-1 form factor, and the new model is available in the same 13- and 15-inch version.
There’s essentially no cosmetic change versus the previous generation, so if you liked the Surface Book 2, you’ll like the Surface Book 3 as well.
Tech specs
Hardware is all the magic happens this time. Microsoft has specifically improved the Surface Book 3 to deliver improved performance and battery life, so the device is upgraded in all the essential areas.
The company says it delivers 50 percent more performance than the Surface Book 2 and up to 17.5 hours of battery life, which is impressive for a device that’s described as the company’s best laptop ever.
Unsurprisingly, it ships with the Intel 10th Gen processors, and while the 13.5-inch version is available with the Intel Core i5-1035G7 or the i7-1065G7, the 15-inch version is only offered with the latter.
When it comes to GPU, there are several choices here as well, but the top-of-the-range configuration comes with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti. A 2TB SSD option is also offered for the top Surface Book 3, and this is the fastest SSD ever offered with a Surface Book.
The Surface Book 3 ships with a 127W charger, a welcome upgrade from the 102W unit available on the previous generation, which gives some extra power when the device is running at full speed. This means you’re no longer losing battery when playing the latest games or using the full processing power of the device.
As far as the connection options are concerned, there’s no Thunderbolt 3, but you get two USB-A ports, one USB-C, one SD card reader, and the typical Surface port.
Surface Book 13.5-inch
- Quad-core 10th Gen Intel Core i5-1035G7 Processor
- Quad-core 10th Gen Intel Core i7-1065G7 Processor
- 8GB, 16GB, or 32GB 3733Mhz LPDDR4x
- Intel Core i5-1035G7 models: Intel Iris Plus Graphics
- Intel Core i7-1065G7 models: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 with Max-Q Design w/4GB GDDR5 graphics memory
- Solid-state drive (SSD) options: 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB PCIe SSD
- Quad-core 10th Gen Intel Core i7-1065G7 Processor
- 16GB or 32GB 3733Mhz LPDDR4x
- Intel Core i7-1065G7 models: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti with Max-Q Design w/6GB GDDR6 graphics memory
- Solid-state drive (SSD) options: 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, or 2TB PCIe SSD
Pricing and availability
The Surface Book 3 starts at $1,599 for the 13.5-inch version with an Intel Core i5 processor, 8 GB RAM, and 256 GB of storage. On the other hand, the 15-inch version with an Intel Core i7 processor, 32 GB of RAM, and 2 TB of storage, which is top-of-the-range configuration, is sold for $3,399.
The Surface Book 3 is now available for pre-order and ships starting with May 21 in the United States and Canada. The rest of the markets will get it in the coming months.