Windows Central Verdict
The Surface Laptop Go 3 is Microsoft’s budget-friendly laptop offering.
This laptop is great for traveling and office-based workflows.
1.Pricing & specs2.Display & design3.Camera & audio4.Keyboard & pen5.Performance & battery6.Competition7.Should you buy?
We love the Sage colorway.
But this year, there are some key changes to how the laptop is positioned on the market.
Why is it so much more expensive?
It also now comes with a fingerprint reader, which the original $549 model did not.
Microsoft essentially removed that cheaper entry-level configuration from the lineup.
I’ve been using the laptop over the last week, and this is my full review.
Disclaimer:This review was made possible by a review unit provided by Microsoft.
This laptop’s profile is on the thinner side.
The company did not see the contents of the review before publishing.
This also includes a Windows Hello fingerprint reader embedded into the power button.
This is probably the model your school or work will give you if they order these in bulk.
These bezels are thin enough.
It features an identical design, right down to the selection of ports and display size.
It’s just 2.49lbs.
This thing just feels great to walk around with, and the plastic bottom makes it feel more durable.
96% sRG color gamut.(Image credit: Windows Central)
I’m not afraid of scratching the bottom of this laptop like I might be the Surface Laptop 5.
Microsoft opts for a sub-1080p screen resolution on this rig.
Now, when this laptop started at $549, this was understandable.
(Image credit: Windows Central)
But for $799?
That’s a much tougher ask.
The display is 1536x1024, which equates to 147 pixels per inch.
Looking good.
This means pixels are visible from an average working distance, and text/images don’t look all that sharp.
If the resolution were just a few hundred pixels higher, I’d be happy.
I do think for $799, we need to be meeting that 1080p bar at the very least.
The keyboard and touchpad are great to use.
Now, it’s not all bad news.
The display outside of its resolution is actually pretty good.
The display itself is a 12.4-inch inch panel with thin bezels and rounded display corners.
The lack of a backlit keyboard is frustrating.
From a distance, it looks great, almost flagship level.
Moving onto ports, we’ve got a modest selection on the Surface Laptop Go 3.
On the left, you’ll find nothing but the magnetic Surface Connect charging port.
Battery life on this laptop is shockingly good.
The magnetic attachment for charging should be something all laptops have in addition to USB-C charging.
I’m glad it’s here.
Laptop Go 3 ships with a 720p front-facing camera, and it’s fine.
(Image credit: Windows Central)
Speaker performance is also strong, for the most part.
The speakers are hidden underneath the keyboard and sound good enough for a $799 laptop.
Unfortunately, my review unit seems to be suffering from intermittent popping of the speakers.
(Image credit: Windows Central)
A restart fixes it, but after a few hours, it will return.
I was able to capture it happening on camera, which you’re free to view above.
When it’s happening, it’s incredibly noticeable.
(Image credit: Windows Central)
It’s a nice Windows Precision touchpad that works just as you would expect.
It’s a smooth surface (pun intended again) with a quiet yet satisfying click to it.
The only criticism I could throw at it is that it’s a touch on the small side.
(Image credit: Windows Central)
Moving onto the keyboard, which I have a love-hate relationship with.
We’ll start with the positives, which are that this keyboard feels excellent.
The keyboard itself is also relatively full-sized for a laptop of this size.
HP Pavilion Aero is a close competitor.
Now, why is my relationship with this keyboard a love-hate one?
Surface Laptop Go 3 curiously omits this backlighting on its keyboard.
Now, again, when this laptop was $549, that was something that made sense.
The aluminum lid looks premium.
But at $799?
That reasoning begins to fall apart.
I couldn’t find a laptop on the market for $799 that doesn’t have a backlit keyboard.
For this price, Surface Laptop Go should have one.
But as a night owl myself, this is one part of the laptop that I really noticed.
It’s a lot harder in the dark.
Even with its last-gen Intel Core i5, I was happy with the speed and efficiency of this laptop.
In daily tasks, the Surface Laptop Go 3 didn’t even blink.
So you’re really not going to need to worry about CPU performance on the Surface Laptop Go 3.
In regards to graphics, we have an integrated Intel Iris Xe chip, which is fine.
Moving onto battery life, which I think impressed me the most.
But lo and behold, it does!
To compare, the Surface Laptop Go 2 only lasted 6 hours in our battery test.
For a 12-inch laptop, 12 hours is excellent.
This translates to real-world usage, too.
This is almost Windows on ARM level of battery life.
If you’re looking for similar laptops in size, your options are somewhat limited.
If we’re looking at 13-inch laptops, the HP Pavilion Aero is a great competitor.
In ourHP Pavilion Aero review, we called it the best mid-range laptop with AMD available.
It’s also even lighter than the Surface Laptop Go 3, even with a larger 13.3-inch 1080p display.
It’s also $799, which matches the Laptop Go 3.
Surface Laptop Go 3: Should you buy?
The Surface Laptop Go 3 is an odd beast.
On the one hand, I love it for how compact and simple it is.
It also has one of the better designs on a $800 laptop, in my opinion at least.
I think that’s the Laptop Go 3’s strongest selling point.
Not only that, it’s incredibly lightweight and compact, too.
It’s so easy to throw this laptop around without a care in the world.
I’ve enjoyed my time with it, even if I do wish it was a little cheaper.
My only gripes are the sub 1080p display and the lack of a backlit keyboard.
Be sure to check out our roundup ofbest Windows laptopsto see where all our reviewed laptops rank!
This laptop is great for traveling and office-based workflows.
