The Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 Review: Surface Essentials
by Brett Howse on March 28, 2019 8:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Laptops
- Microsoft
- Surface
- Surface Laptop
- KBL-R
- Surface Laptop 2
Final Words
Prior to the launch of the Surface Laptop in 2017, every Surface device had a trick up its sleeve. Whether that was the kickstand and removable keyboard of the Pro, the detachable display of the Book, or the amazing display and hinge of the Surface Studio. Surface Laptop offers no tricks. It just wants to be a laptop. Does it succeed? Yes, mostly.
The design of the Surface Laptop 2 is fantastic. Microsoft has achieved the thin-bezel look, while still keeping the webcam and Windows Hello IR camera properly located in the upper bezel. The laptop is thin and light, and very easy to carry around. Although it shares the same display size as the Surface Book 13.5, it’s significantly lighter, making it easier to take on the go. The 3:2 aspect display also provides the laptop with great proportions, and a display that fills the entire space, rather than a large chin on the bottom.
Microsoft makes some of the best laptop keyboards around, and the Surface Laptop 2 is no exception. The keys have a great feel, and the Alcantara keyboard deck provides a really comfortable surface to rest your wrists on. Added to this is the excellent trackpad, which is right-sized and very responsive.
The performance jump from the original Surface Laptop is significant, thanks to the quad-core Kaby Lake Refresh based processor options, and buyers can choose a Core i5 or Core i7 to suit their needs. Microsoft has also dumped the 4 GB RAM option for this generation, which is a welcome change. There’s plenty of storage options available to fit different budgets too, from 128 GB to 1 TB, but make sure you buy enough upfront, since the BGA SSDs are soldered on.
The battery life is likewise excellent, with Microsoft managing to squeeze an incredible amount of runtime out of a relatively small battery.
The new matte black color scheme available with this generation is also a stunner, and looks even better than the matte black did on the Surface Pro 6. The glossy black Microsoft logo on the top adds a touch of character and contrast, and really rounds out the look.
The real controversy with the original Surface Laptop is unfortunately not fixed though. Offering just a single USB port is a strange decision, since it is not very user friendly. It would have been very refreshing to see Microsoft replace the Mini DisplayPort connector with a USB Type-C like they did on the Surface Book 2; but for reasons that are only known to the design team, they’ve chosen to keep this sore spot around with this generation. Microsoft has been slow to adopt this port, which is definitely a mark against this laptop, and precludes being able to charge it with the same charger as a phone, which would be a real benefit while travelling.
The display is also not quite as nice as the other Surface devices in its price category. Both the Surface Pro and Surface Book offer a higher pixel density, along with an Enhanced color option that the Surface Laptop 2 lacks. Considering all of these devices are similar in price at the low end, it would have been nice to see the Surface Book’s excellent 13.5-inch panel used here rather than a unique one for the Surface Laptop 2. It still offers a better display than most notebooks, just not quite as good as other Surface devices.
Overall, the Surface Laptop 2 is an easy laptop to fall for. It offers great styling, a good display, and the Surface touches such as a touch display, great keyboard, and great design. Some people won’t be able to live with a single USB port though, and that decision will knock this laptop out of consideration for those users. But if you don’t need a lot of connectivity, the Surface Laptop 2 is a fantastic device and worthy of consideration. The pricing is generally $100 more than the equivilent Surface Pro though, and that price gap expands significantly at the top end of the range to $400 more for the Surface Laptop for a 1TB Core i7 with 16 GB of RAM. That's a steep price hike over the Surface Pro 6, and is possibly why Microsoft sells far more Surface Pros than anything else in their lineup.
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AsParallel - Thursday, March 28, 2019 - link
Microsoft wants to ensure you can't install Linux on it. The entire surface line is garbage for development, meanwhile windows had been bleeding developers by the thousands. The surface dock staunches that bleed by ensuring 0 compatibility.sbrown23 - Thursday, March 28, 2019 - link
But they do provide several different distros for Windows Services for Linux, easily downloadable from the Store.The Average - Saturday, March 30, 2019 - link
Why? Ubuntu 18 works like a charm in my SP3. And being a software developer I can tell you that Surface Pro is really great for that. The only thing I don't like in my SP is Windows which I still can't remove because I use some windows only applications.smilingcrow - Monday, April 1, 2019 - link
And the majority of us just yawn at your Linux drooling.DigitalFreak - Thursday, March 28, 2019 - link
Won't be buying one since they insist on sticking with their stupid Surface Connect Port instead of USB-C or Thunderbolt 3.id4andrei - Thursday, March 28, 2019 - link
No one in the real world cares about USB-C and even less about TB. The single USB-A port is better than a single USB-C port, for now. The Connect port is brilliant and it's good that it's a mainstay on the Surface line.DigitalFreak - Thursday, March 28, 2019 - link
"No one in the real world cares about USB-C"Keep telling yourself that, buddy.
The Average - Saturday, March 30, 2019 - link
I still haven't find a use for a USB-C. All my peripherals are type A. But no matter what port you have in your device you will find yourself buying a usb hub with several USB-A ports to expand that single USB Type A/C port.c4v3man - Thursday, March 28, 2019 - link
USB-C is required for universal docking. Thunderbolt is a great upgrade, that enhances dock reliability and performance in my experience. The Connect Port is a joke, and the ONLY way such a proprietary port would be deemed acceptable is if it fixed standard port flaws, by being far more capable, or more reliable. The Surface Dock is neither of these things, and is just as reliable as a USB-C dock (aka, reliable enough for most but not 100% reliable), but not as reliable as Thunderbolt. Microsoft needs to get with the program ASAP and adopt USB-C at a minimum, and preferably Thunderbolt on at least some of their models. Strike 1.Then again, Microsoft continues to use garbage Wifi chipsets on ethernet-less systems, so the WiFi needs to be the best in the market if they're playing in the premium space. Strike 2.
Finally, systems should be at least mildly serviceable, or otherwise boast "worlds thinnest/lightest/?". Microsoft doesn't boast these things, so 3 strikes... you're out.
Honestly, if they would fix one of these things, I'd consider it. No machine is 100% perfect. But this "unholy trinity" will prevent me from considering any of their machines, short of a surface book 2 (since it has USB-C), however my experience with a detachable display is that I basically never use the feature (1 day a year maybe), so I'd rather have a traditional hinge. So even the surface book 2 isn't much of a contender, but would at least warrant consideration.
Gunbuster - Friday, March 29, 2019 - link
You had to remind everyone about the Avastar ;) Ugg the worst WiFi/Bluetooth in the business.This is rehash what? 30 now? Thirty products in a row Microsoft has used the most buggy and under performing WiFI chipset in the industry...