In late 2020, the switch to Apple silicon introduced a major leap in the MacBook Air’s performance, efficiency and battery life. Almost four years later, Microsoft’s Surface Laptop lineup is undergoing a similar transition.
The latest Surface Laptop 7 uses Qualcomm’s newest Arm-based Snapdragon chips, which bring a major leap in performance and efficiency. Do these upgrades make the Surface Laptop 7 better than the M3 MacBook Air?
MacBook Air vs. Surface Laptop 7 comparison
Both Apple and Microsoft offer their super-slim laptops in 13-inch and 15-inch configurations. The MacBook Air is among the world’s most popular laptops, with Apple’s latest-gen M3 chips further improving its performance and battery life.
Microsoft has had little success with its last few Surface Laptops, but the company hopes to change this with the Surface Laptop 7. The switch away from Intel CPUs to Qualcomm’s latest Arm-based Snapdragon chips should bring a notable improvement in performance and efficiency. And the company hopes these upgrades will be enough to sway you away from a MacBook Air.
Read below to find out how the M3 MacBook Air compares to the Surface Laptop 7.
Table of contents: MacBook Air vs. Surface Laptop 7 comparison
Design
Photo: Apple
- 13-inch MacBook Air: 0.44 inches thick x 11.97 inches long x 8.46 inches wide; 2.7 pounds
- 15-inch MacBook Air: 0.45 inches thick x 13.40 inches long x 9.35 inches wide; 3.3 pounds
- 13-inch Surface Laptop 7: 0.69 inches thick x 11.85 inches long x 8.67 inches wide; 2.96 pounds
- 15-inch Surface Laptop 7: 0.72 inches thick x 12.96 inches long x 9.41 inches wide; 3.67 pounds
The Surface Laptop and the MacBook Air are both compact laptops, but Apple trumps its competitor in a big way. The M3 MacBook Air is lighter, thinner and more compact than the Surface Laptop. So, if you are always on the move and want a slim and light laptop, the MacBook Air is the obvious choice.
From a design and build quality viewpoint, you can’t go wrong with either laptop. Thanks to the use of aluminum and glass, they both look and feel premium.
Despite being slimmer and lighter, the 13-inch MacBook Air features an impressive four-speaker sound system. The 15-inch model gets an even better six-speaker sound system. Both Air variants get a three-mic array that can capture audio in studio quality. You need to hear the MacBook Air’s speaker system to know how good it is, producing rich bass and good details without any distortion. While the Surface Laptop 7’s speaker setup is not bad, it pales in comparison to the Air.
Display
Photo: Apple
- M3 MacBook Air: 13.6 or 15.3-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit display with IPS; 2560 x 1664 pixels or 2,880 x 1,864 resolution; 16:10 aspect ratio, 60Hz refresh rate, 500 nits brightness, Wide color, True Tone, 1080p FaceTime camera
- Surface Laptop 7: 13.8-inch or 15-inch PixelSensor Flow display with touch support, 2304 x 1536 or 2496 x 1664 resolution; 3:2 aspect ratio, 120Hz refresh rate, 600 nits brightness, Dolby Vision IQ, HDR support, Gorilla Glass 5, 1080p front camera
On paper, the Surface Laptop 7 seems to possess a much better display than the MacBook Air. Besides touch support, its panels can dynamically adjust their refresh rate at up to 120Hz. Microsoft also says the screens are individually color-calibrated for superior accuracy. Other notable areas where the Surface Laptop’s display outperforms the MacBook Air’s include HDR support, 600 nits peak brightness and Gorilla Glass 5 protection.
In comparison, while the MacBook Air’s 13-inch and 15-inch panels look impressive, they only refresh at 60Hz. Their peak brightness also maxes out at 500 nits, with HDR support also missing. And being a Mac, they lack touch input. Apple’s laptops have a slightly higher resolution and pixel density, but the Surface Laptop 7 should deliver an overall superior experience.
Performance
Photo: Apple
- M3 MacBook Air: 8-core CPU, up to 10-core GPU, 8GB unified memory (upgradeable up to 24GB RAM and 2TB storage)
- Surface Laptop 7: Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus/ X Elite (15-inch model), up to 12-core CPU, Adreno GPU, 16GB RAM, 256GB storage (upgradeable up to 64GB RAM and 1TB removable storage)
The main highlight of Microsoft’s latest Surface Laptop is the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus/Elite SoCs. After a failed attempt in 2019, this is Microsoft’s second big push for Windows on Arm. Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon SoCs pack significant improvements and deliver impressive performance.
This does not mean Apple’s M3 SoC is a slouch. Despite packing fewer CPU cores and launching in October 2023, Apple’s M3 chip inside the latest MacBook Air packs a bunch. If you want a clear winner between the Surface Laptop 7 and M3 MacBook Air based on performance, the answer is a lot more complicated than that. (Jump to the software section below to find out more.)
From a raw horsepower perspective, the Snapdragon X Elite competes with Apple’s M3 chip. It might not be as efficient as the M3 in some workloads and use cases. Still, almost four years after Apple’s silicon debut, it is good to see a true challenger make its way to the market.
Unlike the MacBook Air, the Surface Laptop 7 incorporates an active cooling system, meaning it uses a fan to cool down its internals. This is not that big of an issue since the Snapdragon X Plus/Elite only ramps up the fan under heavy, sustained load. On the flip side, this allows Microsoft’s laptop to deliver better sustained performance than the M3 MacBook Air. And thanks to more CPU cores, it performs significantly better than the MacBook in multicore benchmarks and workloads.
In other areas, the Surface Laptop 7 also possesses an advantage. The base model ships with twice the RAM as the M3 MacBook Air, and you can upgrade it to a whopping 64GB. In comparison, the MacBook tops out at 24GB of system memory. As for storage, Microsoft’s laptop features a removable SSD drive, which you can bump to a maximum of 1TB. Apple trumps its competition here, as you can buy a MacBook Air with up to 2TB of storage.
Software
Photo: Microsoft
- M3 MacBook Air: macOS Sonoma
- Surface Laptop 7: Windows 11 on Arm
The biggest difference between the M3 MacBook Air and Microsoft’s Surface Laptop 7 is their operating systems. The MacBook runs on macOS, while Microsoft’s laptop runs on Windows … no surprises there. But the Surface Laptop 7 does not run regular Windows. Instead, it runs Windows on Arm.
Remember Apple’s transition from Intel CPUs to Apple silicon in late 2020? It was a huge undertaking, requiring the company to completely rewrite the underlying OS to support the new Arm CPU architecture. The move paid off in a big way, significantly improving Macs’ performance and battery life.
Microsoft tried something similar with Windows on Arm in 2019 and failed miserably. The company did a better job this time, but some problems remain. Since the underlying OS uses a new architecture, developers must rewrite their apps to take advantage of the fresh codebase. The Surface Laptop 7 ships with a Prism emulator to maintain compatibility with existing apps and games.
While you can download the Arm64 version of Chrome and Slack for Windows, many other apps still use the x86 binary. Worse, it is up to developers whether they will let you install that version on your Arm Windows devices. For example, Adobe has not yet updated Premiere Pro for Windows on Arm, and there’s no way to run its x86 version on the Surface Laptop.
As a result, your experience and performance with the Surface Laptop 7 will vary depending on the apps you use. This is not the case with M3 MacBook Air, as Apple silicon’s app ecosystem is more mature. If you want to avoid all app compatibility headaches, the MacBook Air is a more sensible choice.
The Surface Laptop 7 is also a Copilot+-branded PC, packed with several AI features. These include real-time AI image generation and refinement, language translations, and Recall. The latter was going to be the Surface Laptop’s key feature at launch, enabling you to search through a database of your activity in natural language. However, Microsoft delayed the feature’s release due to privacy concerns.
Apple’s M3 MacBook Air lacks such AI-powered features, but this will change with the arrival of macOS Sequoia and Apple Intelligence later this year.
Ports and connectivity
Photo: Microsoft
- M3 MacBook Air: Two Thunderbolt/USB 4 ports, headphone jack, MagSafe 3, Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3, Touch ID
- Surface Laptop: Two USB-4 ports, one USB-A port, headphone jack, microSDXC card reader (only on 15-inch model), Surface Connect, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, Windows Hello
Microsoft’s Surface Laptop 7 offers users a lot more ports than the MacBook Air. Besides two Thunderbolt 4 ports for connecting high-bandwidth accessories and external monitors, the device features a USB-A 3.1 port. It also comes with a microSD card slot, albeit only on the 15-inch model. Still, this is better than the MacBook Air, as both its sizes come with the same ports.
Microsoft’s laptop also features a Surface Connect port, which you can use to charge the laptop or use a Surface Dock for connecting other accessories The flexibility provided by the Surface Laptop with its port selection could make it the go-to choice for many professionals.
In wireless connectivity, the Surface Laptop 7 trumps Apple, too. Microsoft’s laptop comes with Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4, while the MacBook Air supports Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3. This should not make any noticeable difference in daily use. However, the Surface Laptop 7 is a better choice if you want your laptop to have cutting-edge connectivity options.
The M3 MacBook Air features a Touch ID sensor integrated into its power button for biometric authentication. Microsoft relies on the front 1080p camera for Windows Hello facial authentication.
Battery life
Photo: Microsoft
- M3 MacBook Air: Up to 15 hours of wireless web browsing; up to 18 hours of Apple TV movie playback
- Surface Laptop 7: 13-inch: Up to 13 hours of web browsing, 20 hours of local video playback; 15-inch: Up to 15 hours of web browsing, 22 hours of local video playback
Both Apple and Microsoft claim seriously impressive battery runtime for their laptops. With the MacBook, Apple says you can get up to 18 hours of Apple TV movie playback. Microsoft claims its Surface Laptop can provide up to 22 hours of local video playback.
Irrespective of which laptop you pick, they should easily provide you with all-day battery life. If you push the laptops hard, your runtime will vary, but a working day should be no challenge for these devices. This is largely due to their more efficient Arm chips and other less-power-hungry components.
As for battery capacity, the 13-inch MacBook Air houses a 52.6-watt-hour cell, while its 15-inch sibling packs a 66.5-watt-hour battery. The 13-inch Surface Laptop 7 comes with a 55-watt-hour battery, while the 15-inch model houses a 66-watt-hour cell.
Both laptops support fast charging over USB-C. While Apple’s 15-inch laptop needs at least a 70W USB-C power brick to fast charge, the 13-inch model only needs a 67W charger. Meanwhile, Microsoft’s Surface Laptop needs a 65W adapter. You can also charge them through their proprietary MagSafe 3 and Surface Connect ports.
Pricing
Photo: Microsoft
- M3 MacBook Air: Starts at $1,099 (13-inch) and $1,299 (15-inch)
- Surface Laptop 7: Starts at $999 (13.8-inch) and $1,299 (15-inch)
The base 13-inch Surface Laptop 7 benefits from a lower starting price than the M3 MacBook Air. This model ships with a 10-core Snapdragon X Plus chip, 256GB base storage and 16GB RAM — twice that of the M3 MacBook Air. Upgrading the storage to 512GB bumps the machine’s price to $1,200.
In comparison, the 13-inch MacBook Air ships with 8GB system memory and 256GB storage and still costs $100 more than Microsoft’s laptop. This model also ships with an 8-core CPU instead of the 10-core one found in other variants.
The 15-inch MacBook Air and Surface Laptop 7 carry the same $1,299 price tag. But like its smaller sibling, the Microsoft laptop ships with 16GB RAM, double that of the 15-inch M3 MacBook Air. Upgrading the latter’s memory to 16GB will set you back an additional $200. And despite what Apple or anyone claims, you should get a Mac with 16GB memory for futureproofing.
Microsoft is also less stingy with its storage and RAM upgrades. A maxed-out Surface Laptop 15 with a Snapdragon X Elite SoC, 64GB RAM and 1TB SSD will cost $2,499. A maxed-out 15-inch MacBook Air with 24GB unified memory and 2TB storage also will cost $2,499. The Air will ship with less than half the RAM (but twice the physical storage) of its Windows competitor.
From a price perspective, Microsoft’s Surface Laptop 7 provides more bang for the buck. You can upgrade the machine with more storage or RAM based on your usage without emptying your wallet.
MacBook Air vs. Surface Laptop 7: Which laptop should you buy?
The MacBook Air costs more than the Surface Laptop 7, packs fewer ports, and comes with an inferior display. And yet, it is the smarter choice between the two.
It’s true that the Surface Laptop 7 represents a big jump for Microsoft’s laptop lineup, finally delivering on the vision the company promised a few years back. But while the hardware lives up to the promise, the software still needs work.
Plus, the Windows on Arm app ecosystem is still in its infancy and requires a considerable push to catch up to Apple’s. While Windows 11’s Prism emulator allows you to run x86 apps on the Surface Laptop 7, it won’t work for games or other complex apps. With the hardware finally here, Windows developers should soon update their apps for Arm devices, delivering better performance and efficiency. Until that happens, though, the M3 MacBook Air remains a better buy.
Buy: MacBook Air | Surface Laptop 7
