Microsoft unveiled the Surface Laptop 3 in two flavors here at an event in New York: a 13.5-inch Intel Ice Lake model and a 15-inch version with custom AMD silicon. The former will start at $999 and the latter at $1,199 when they release on October 22.
The 15-inch is new to the family, as previously the Surface Laptop only came in a 13.5-inch size. This model on display at Microsoft's press event had an AMD Ryzen 5 3850U with Vega 9 graphics, though there's also a Ryzen 7 3780U.
The new display will please holdouts who went for the heftier Surface Book but didn't require a graphics card. It's still quite light, but the display feels much larger, especially with the 3:2 ratio.
Perhaps my favorite part of both devices is the keyboard, with 1.3mm of travel. In my short time with both models, I found the keys clicky and extremely satisfying to type on. The touchpad is now 20% larger, and it feels more in line with what you see on other high-end notebooks.
The 15-inch version ditches Alcantara for a new all aluminum design, as do professional versions of the 13-inch model. I was always fond of how Alcantara looks, but this feels much better and you don't have to worry about staining it.
Oh, and both models finally have USB Type-C. Neither have Thunderbolt 3, including the Intel model, which is slightly disappointing.
The colors, including cobalt and the new sandstone design, look beautiful as ever, though I suspect many will still get the Surface Laptop 3 in an ever popular black.
We hope to review these when they release later this month.
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 Specs
| - | Surface Laptop 3 (13-inch) | Surface Laptop 3 (15-inch) |
| CPU | Up to 10th Gen Intel Core i7-1065G7 | Up to AMD Ryzen 7 3780U (Up to Intel Core i7-1065G7 in commercial models) |
| GPU | Intel Iris Plus 950 | Up to Radeon RX Vega 11 Graphics |
| RAM | Up to 16GB LPDDR4X, 3733MHz | Up to 32GB DDR4 2400MHz (Up to 16GB LPPDR4X, 3733MHz on commercial models) |
| Display | 13.5-inch PixelSense, 2256 x 1504 | 15-inch PixelSense Touchscreen, 2496 x 1664 |
| Storage | Up to 1TB removable M.2 NVMe SSD | Up to 512GB removable m.2 NVMe SSD |
These are the hard questions that need answered.