The 2025 Surface Laptop 13 is here, featuring the new Snapdragon X Plus CPU, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB of storage. This platinum Windows laptop has a 13-inch touchscreen display, with violet and ocean color options also available. This article covers the unboxing, setup, and initial impressions of this new device, including comparisons, benchmarks, and app performance.
Unboxing and First Impressions
Opening up the 2025 Surface Laptop 13 for the first time, you'll find a standard neutral color. The box includes some paperwork, a quick start guide, and a warranty guide. It also comes with a USB-C to USB-C cable and a 45-watt USB-PD Surface charger, which is a nice addition, unlike the new Surface Pro.
This laptop is Microsoft's thinnest and lightest Surface laptop yet. It's made from anodized aluminum and uses 100% recycled cobalt in its battery cells. It weighs in at 2.7 pounds (1.22 kg).
On the left side, you'll find a USB-A port and a headphone jack. The right side has two USB-C 3.2 ports. The back has a rubberized texture and rubberized feet. The laptop turns on automatically when opened.
Display and Setup
The 13-inch PixelSense display is quite reflective. It has a resolution of 1920x1280, which is close to 1080p, with 178 pixels per inch. It's a 60Hz display, not OLED, but it is sRGB and color calibrated from the factory, offering 400 nits of brightness. There's no mention of Gorilla Glass. It supports up to two 4K 60Hz displays using the side ports.
Setting up the laptop involves connecting to a network and installing updates. The process is similar to other Windows devices, with options to restore from a backup and customize your experience. The device also features a fingerprint reader on the power button for quick sign-in.
Performance and Thermals
Running Geekbench on the Surface Laptop 13 shows a single-core score of 2,252 and a multi-core score of 10,680. These scores are a bit better than the Surface Pro, likely due to the fans helping to keep things cooler.
Using a thermal camera, the hottest point on the laptop reaches about 100°F (38°C). When closed and unplugged, the back of the laptop is not very warm, making it comfortable to use on your lap.
Audio and Keyboard
The speakers on the Surface Laptop 13 are decent. At their highest volume, they reach around 90 dB, but they can sound a bit distorted and tinny, lacking strong bass. However, they are definitely usable, and you always have the option of using the headphone jack or wireless earbuds.
The keyboard is what you'd expect from a Surface device. Typing feels good, and the trackpad offers good feedback. The keyboard is backlit with multiple brightness options, which is a nice feature for low-light conditions.
Camera and Connectivity
The laptop has a front-facing camera that works well for video calls and recording. However, it does not support Windows Hello for facial recognition; that's limited to the fingerprint sensor. The microphones are generally good for calls.
Since the display is an LCD, there's no PWM (Pulse Width Modulation), which is good news for those sensitive to screen flickering. The laptop supports Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4.
Battery Life and App Performance
The Surface Laptop 13 offers impressive battery life: up to 23 hours of video playback and 16 hours of active web usage. It supports 65-watt fast charging, and the included charger can handle this.
While the laptop can run some games like City Skylines natively, it's not really designed for heavy gaming. Apps like Xbox can be slow to load. However, for productivity apps like Figma, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, it performs perfectly. It's ideal as a work laptop, especially with Copilot features.
Key Takeaways
- Price: Starts at $899, going up to $999.
- Processor: Snapdragon X Plus CPU.
- Memory/Storage: 16GB RAM, 256GB or 512GB storage.
- Display: 13-inch PixelSense, 1920x1280 resolution, 60Hz.
- Ports: USB-A, headphone jack, two USB-C 3.2 ports.
- Battery: Up to 23 hours video playback, 16 hours web usage, 65W fast charging.
- Features: Fingerprint reader, backlit keyboard, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4.
Should You Buy the Surface Laptop 13?
For everyday work, school, or general productivity, the Surface Laptop 13 is a solid choice. It's great for students and those who need a reliable machine for tasks like word processing, spreadsheets, and web browsing. However, if you're looking for a gaming PC, you might want to consider other options with more powerful processors and dedicated graphics cards.
While the Surface Laptop 13 is a good device, especially if you can find it on discount, some might prefer the slightly more expensive Surface Elite processors for better performance with regular Windows apps. The lack of Windows Hello facial recognition is a minor drawback, but the fingerprint sensor works well.
Overall, the 2025 Surface Laptop 13 is a capable and portable device, well-suited for productivity and everyday use.
