Apple and Microsoft seem to remain two of the biggest names in the tech space so far, and they always seem to come up with impressive new releases. At the last Apple event that was held, we were introduced to the all-new Apple Macbook Pro 2021. Microsoft also came out with its new Surface Laptop 4 earlier this year, boasting an 11th-generation Intel processor and a touchscreen display. The Surface Laptop 4 is an excellent all-around notebook, which packs plenty of power within a thin and attractive design. It also appears to possess some advantages over the Apple Macbook Pro 2021. But what are the key factors that distinguish these two laptops?
Table of Contents
Case
| Surface Laptop 4 13.5 | MacBook Pro 2021 | |
| Weight | 1.28 kg (2.82 lbs) | 1.6 kg (3.53 lbs) |
| Dimensions | 308 x 223 x 14.5 mm 12.13 x 8.78 x 0.57 inches | 312.6 x 221.2 x 15.5 mm 12.31 x 8.71 x 0.61 inches |
| Area | 687 cm2 (106.5 inches2) | 691 cm2 (107.2 inches2) |
| Screen-to-body ratio | ~79% | ~84.6% |
| Side bezels | 11.3 mm | 3.4 mm |
| Colours | Black, Gold, Gray, Blue | Silver, Gray |
| Transformer | No | No |
Display
| Surface Laptop 4 13.5 | MacBook Pro 2021 | |
| Size | 13.5 inches | 14.2 inches |
| Type | IPS LCD | Mini LED |
| Refresh Rate | 60 Hz | 120 Hz |
| Pixels Density | 201 ppi | 254 ppi |
| Aspect Ratio | 3:2 | 16:10 |
| Resolution | 2256 x 1504 pixels | 3024 x 1964 pixels |
| HDR Support | No | Yes, Dolby Vision |
| Touchscreen | Yes | No |
| Coating | Glossy | Glossy (Antireflective) |
The first thing to note is that the MacBook Pro is available on both 14-inch and 16-inch models. Surface Laptop 4 is available in slightly smaller 13.5-inch and 15-inch sizes.
The MacBook Pro comes with ProMotion that has refresh rates up to 120Hz, which means the laptop will be able to adjust the refresh rates depending on the task you are handling. The MacBook Pro also has a liquid retina XDR display with a resolution of 3024×1964, making it the perfect choice for entertainment. The Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 has 2256 x 1504 PixelSense display, which is a great IPS panel with bright color and contrast. The major difference between the two systems is that the Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 has a touchscreen display that also supports Surface Pen while the AppleMacBook Pro 2021 lacks both.
The Surface Laptop 4 is limited to a refresh rate of 60Hz. It also has a lower resolution, displaying 2496 x 1664 pixels on the 15-inch model. The MacBook Pro uses mini LED technology and provides great colour accuracy and brightness than the LCD screen on the Surface Laptop 4.
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MacBook Pro 2021 features Touch ID built into the power button and has 720p FaceTime HD camera right above the screen, which is useful for activities like video calling. Surface Laptop 4 includes an option for facial recognition to unlock the device. It also has a visibly thick bezel.
Battery
| Surface Laptop 4 13.5 | MacBook Pro 2021 | |
| Capacity | 47.4 Wh | 47.4 Wh |
| Battery Type | Li-Po | Li-Po |
| Replaceable | No | No |
| Fast Charging | Yes | Yes |
| USB Power Delivery | Yes | Yes |
| Charging port position | Left | Left, Right |
| Charge power | 65 W | 67 / 96 W |
| Weigh of AC adapter | 306 gramm | – |
One of the biggest advantages of the Apple MacBook Pro 2021 is its amazing battery power. It can last from 17 hours to up to 21 hours of video playback, and 11 hours of wireless web browsing. Microsoft claims about 17 hours of backup on the Intel-powered 13.5-inch model.
CPU/Processor Specifications
| Surface Laptop 4 13.5 | MacBook Pro 2021 | |
| Name | Intel Core i5 1135G7 Intel Core i5 1145G7 Intel Core i7 1185G7 | Apple M1 Pro Apple M1 Max |
| Base Frequency | 0.9-2.4 GHz | 2.0 GHz |
| Turbo frequency | 4.2 GHz | 3.2 GHz |
| Cores | 4 | 10 |
| Threads | 8 | 10 |
| L3 Cache | 8 MB | – |
| Integrated GPU | Iris Xe Graphics G7 80EU | Apple M1 Pro GPU (16-core) |
| Fabrication process | 10 nm | 5 nm |
Apple’s main targets when creating the Apple MacBook Pro are professional creators, those who use a laptop mainly to edit videos and photos and create 3D renderings. All of these tasks are high-intensity and require a lot more power than usual to perform, and this is where M1 Pro and M1 Max Processors come in. Microsoft has also put a lot of effort into their processors in their latest Surface device, the Surface Laptop 4. In that case, the Surface Laptop 4 offers a choice of processors from both Intel and AMD. The Microsoft Surface Laptop 4, however, is targeted at office workers or students so it cannot handle as many tasks as the MacBook processors are capable of handling.
The Surface Laptop 4 runs on Intel’s latest 11th-gen processor, which will allow for a speedy productivity performance during basic office tasks or web browsing. The integrated Intel Xe graphics still allows the Surface Laptop to dabble with the likes of video editing, but the performance is not anywhere near as speedy as the MacBook Pro.
RAM
| Surface Laptop 4 13.5 | MacBook Pro 2021 | |
| RAM Size | 8GB 16GB 32GB | 16GB 32GB 64GB |
| Channels | 2×4 GB | 4×4 GB |
| Clock | 4266 MHz | 6400 MHz |
| Type | LPDDR4X | LPDDR5 |
| Upgradable | No | No |
| Total Slots | 2 | – |
Storage
| Surface Laptop 4 13.5 | MacBook Pro 2021 | |
| Storage Size | 256GB 512GB 1024GB | 512GB 1024GB 2048GB 4096GB 8192GB |
| Bus | PCI-E Gen 3.0 (4x) | Custom |
| Storage Type | SSD (M2) | SSD (M2) |
| Channels | 1×256 GB | 1×512 GB |
| Upgradable | Yes | No |
| Total Slots | 1 | – |
Ports
| Surface Laptop 4 13.5 | MacBook Pro 2021 | |
| USB-A | 1x USB 3.2 | No |
| USB Type-C | 1x USB 3.2 | 3x USB 4.0 |
| Thunderbolt | No | Thunderbolt 4 |
| HDMI | No | 1x HDMI 2.0 |
| DisplayPort | No | No |
| VGA | No | No |
| Audio jack (3.5 mm) | Yes | Yes |
| SD card reader | No | Yes |
| Proprietary charging port | No | Yes |
However, the MacBook Pro outperforms the Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 in terms of ports, offering SDXC card slots, HDMI, 3.5mm headphone jacks, MagSafe 3 and 3x Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C) ports. The Surface Laptop 4 has only 1x USB-A, 3.5mm headphone jack, Surface Connect port and one USB-C, the latter also doesn’t support Thunderbolt.
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Price
In terms of price, the MacBook Pro 2021 is not a cheap system. The starting price of the 14-inch model is $1,999 (N820,090), and the 16-inch version is an even higher $2,799 (1,148,290). The base price for Surface Laptop 4 is $1164 (N477,531). This is a fairly standard price for high-end laptops for the average consumer.
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