Launched earlier this year, the Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 is the tech giant's most advanced portable PC with a classic clamshell design. I've been testing it out over the last couple of weeks and while it does have its flaws, it's still a computer that I would consider buying for myself.
The best laptops cost upwards of $1,000 / £1,000 / AU$1,700 - that's a given, especially if you're looking to buy a PC with the most up-to-date hardware under the hood.
It's still quite a pricey PC so not everyone will be willing to splash out on it. There will be some people for whom it will definitely be worth it though - students in particular sit at the top of that list - but there are also some people that it won't work for at all, for example, it can't compete with any of the best gaming laptops.
There are a few things that I really liked about this laptop when I was testing it out, and it all started with the design. The smooth aluminium body makes this look like a premium laptop. In the review, I called it 'modern and minimalist with sharp corners and straight lines' that's helped along by the new Sage colourway which looks very smart in my opinion.
What's more, is that the speaker system is hidden under the keyboard which helps to keep everything neat and tidy on the inside.
In terms of ports, things are kept minimal but it does have a USB-C which supports Thunderbolt 4 so you'll be able to get faster data transfers, connect to external displays and deliver power through that.
What I find really convincing about the Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 is that it's compact and lightweight (only 1.3kg) meaning it'll be a good option for anyone who plans to carry it around with them, be that back and forth from the office or to university for seminars and lectures. You'll get a good amount of battery life here too, it would last me for just over half of the workday before I needed to hook it up to power and then it would only take about an hour and a half for a full charge.
