Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 vs. Surface Pro 3: Which is better?

Here is a side by side comparison between Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 and Surface Pro 3 specs including CPU, RAM, storage, battery, display, and more.

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 Pros

Reasons that Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 is better than Surface Pro 3.

Significantly newer manufacturing

2017 vs. 2014

Much faster CPU performance

Intel Core i7-7600U inside Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 has a 52% better multi-core CPU performance score than the Intel Core i7-4650U inside Surface Pro 3.

Geekbench 5 multi-core score
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 - Intel Core i7-7600U
1,883
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 - Intel Core i5-7300U
1,777
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 - Intel Core i7-7500U
1,744
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 - Intel Core i5-7200U
1,611
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 - Intel Core i7-6500U
1,500
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 - Intel Core i5-6200U
1,333
Surface Pro 3 - Intel Core i7-4650U
1,236
Surface Pro 3 - Intel Core i5-4300U
1,234
Surface Pro 3 - Intel Core i3-4020Y
782
Supports larger memory

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 supports a larger memory capacity than the Surface Pro 3. It supports up to 16GB versus 8GB of system memory on the Surface Pro 3.

Max system memory size
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5
16 GB
Surface Pro 3
8 GB
Supports faster memory

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 supports a faster memory speed than the Surface Pro 3. It supports up to 1866MHz versus 1600MHz of system memory on the Surface Pro 3.

Memory type and speed
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 - LPDDR3
1,866 MHz
Surface Pro 3 - LPDDR3
1,600 MHz
16% larger display

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 has a 14-inch screen size 16% larger than the 12-inch Surface Pro 3.

Display size
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5
14-inch
Surface Pro 3
12-inch

Surface Pro 3 Pros

Reasons that Surface Pro 3 is better than Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5.

About 30% lighter

Surface Pro 3 weighed 1.76 pounds, 30% lighter than the 2.49 pounds Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5.

WeightLenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5Surface Pro 3
Pound
2.49 lbs.
1.76 lbs.
Kilogram
1.13 kg
0.80 kg

Prices

Here are the latest price updates and offers for both devices.

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 Price
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (5th Gen) 14-inch Laptop Computer, Intel Core i7-7600U 2.80GHz, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, Backlit Keyboard, Fingerprint, Type-C, Win 10 Pro (Renewed)
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (5th Gen) 14-inch Laptop Computer, Intel Core i7-7600U 2.80GHz, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, Backlit Keyboard, Fingerprint, Type-C, Win 10 Pro (Renewed)
By Lenovo
$399.95
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (5th Gen) - 14" FHD (1920x1080) Display (Intel Core i5-7300U, 16GB Ram, 256GB PCIe SSD, HDMI, Camera, WiFi) Win 10 Pro (Renewed)
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (5th Gen) - 14" FHD (1920x1080) Display (Intel Core i5-7300U, 16GB Ram, 256GB PCIe SSD, HDMI, Camera, WiFi) Win 10 Pro (Renewed)
By Lenovo
$274.99
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Laptop 5th Generation, Intel Core i7-7600U 3.90 GHz, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, 14 WQHD IPS 2560x1440 Display, Fingerprint Reader, Supported Windows 10 Pro, Renewed 2018
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Laptop 5th Generation, Intel Core i7-7600U 3.90 GHz, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, 14 WQHD IPS 2560x1440 Display, Fingerprint Reader, Supported Windows 10 Pro, Renewed 2018
By Lenovo
$359.24
Surface Pro 3 Price
Microsoft Surface Pro 3 (256 GB, Intel Core i5)(Windows 10 Professional 64 bit) (Renewed)
Microsoft Surface Pro 3 (256 GB, Intel Core i5)(Windows 10 Professional 64 bit) (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$229.73
$252.52 9% OFF
Microsoft Surface Pro 3 Tablet (1631) Silver - 256GB, 12in, Windows 8, Intel Core i5 - Renewed
Microsoft Surface Pro 3 Tablet (1631) Silver - 256GB, 12in, Windows 8, Intel Core i5 - Renewed
By Microsoft
$269.00
Microsoft Surface Pro 3 Tablet PC - Intel Core i5-4300U 1.9GHz 4GB 128GB SSD Windows 10.1 (Renewed)
Microsoft Surface Pro 3 Tablet PC - Intel Core i5-4300U 1.9GHz 4GB 128GB SSD Windows 10.1 (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$185.00

Availability

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5Surface Pro 3
Released20172014
Release Date-
  • Introduced: May 20, 2014
  • Pre-ordered: May 20, 2014
  • Released: June 20, 2014
Pricing-Starting at 799$
Generations-

Exterior

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5Surface Pro 3
Dimensions12.73” x 8.54” x 0.62” (323.5 x 217.1 x 15.95 mm)
Width: 12.73” (323.5 mm)
Depth: 8.54” (217.1 mm)
Height: 0.62” (15.95 mm)
11.50” x 7.93” x 0.36” (292 mm x 201.3 mm x 9.1 mm)
Width: 11.50” (292 mm)
Height: 7.93” (201.3 mm)
Thickness: 0.36” (9.1 mm)
WeightStarting at 2.49 lbs (1.13 kg)
  • 1.76 lbs (800 g)
Colors
Black Silver
Silver
Keyboard and Trackpad
  • Spill-resistant, Backlit with white LED lighting keyboard.
  • Trackpad + TrackPoint® pointing device.
  • Surface Type Cover
    • Not included
  • Keyboard:
    • Activation: Moving (mechanical) keys
    • Layout: QWERTY, full row of function keys (F1-F12)
    • 4 directional keys; Windows and Media Controls Keys;
    • LED backlighting
  • Trackpad:
    • Precision glass trackpad.
    • Supports up to three-finger multitouch gesture.

Display

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5Surface Pro 3
Size14 Inches12 Inches
Info
  • 14” FHD
    1920 x 1080, IPS, 60Hz, anti-glare, non-touch.
  • 14” WQHD
    2560 x 1440, IPS, 60Hz, anti-glare, non-touch.
  • Resolution: 2160 x 1440 (3.1M Pixels)
  • Density: 216 PPI
  • ClearType Display
  • Aspect ratio: 3:2
  • Touch: 10 point multi-touch
  • Surface Pen support

Ports

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5Surface Pro 3
  • 2 x Thunderbolt™ 3
    Supports Power Delivery & DisplayPort.
  • 1 x USB 3.0
    Full-size USB-A ports.
  • 1 x Native Network RJ45
  • 1 x HDMI
  • 1 x Headphone / mic combo
  • 1 x MicroSD card reader
  • 1 x Micro SIM slot
  • 1 x Power button
  • 1 x Kensington lock slot
Surface Pro 3 Ports
Image Source: Microsoft
Left (1)
  • 1 x headphone jack
    Headphone/Microphone
Right (3)
  • 1 x Mini DisplayPort
  • 1 x USB-A
    USB 3.0 (5 Gbps)
  • 1 x Surface Connect
    Charging, Docking Station
Bottom (1)
  • 1 x Type Cover port
Under Kickstand (1)
  • 1 x microSD card slot

Internal Specs

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5Surface Pro 3
Processor
  1. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-6200U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 2.30 → 2.80 GHz, 3MB SmartCache, 15W
  2. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-6500U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 2.50 → 3.10 GHz, 4MB SmartCache, 15W
  3. 7th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-7200U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 2.50 → 3.10 GHz, 3MB SmartCache, 15W
  4. 7th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-7300U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 2.60 → 3.50 GHz, 3MB SmartCache, 15W
  5. 7th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-7500U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 2.70 → 3.50 GHz, 4MB SmartCache, 15W
  6. 7th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-7600U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 2.80 → 3.90 GHz, 4MB SmartCache, 15W
  1. 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i3-4020Y
    2 cores, 4 threads, 1.50 GHz, 3MB SmartCache, 11.5W
  2. 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-4300U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 1.90 → 2.90 GHz, 3MB SmartCache, 15W
  3. 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-4650U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 1.70 → 3.30 GHz, 4MB SmartCache, 15W
Integrated Graphics
  1. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-6200U
    Intel® HD Graphics 520
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1000 MHz
  2. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-6500U
    Intel® HD Graphics 520
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1050 MHz
  3. 7th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-7200U
    Intel® HD Graphics 620
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1000 MHz
  4. 7th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-7300U
    Intel® HD Graphics 620
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1100 MHz
  5. 7th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-7500U
    Intel® HD Graphics 620
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1050 MHz
  6. 7th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-7600U
    Intel® HD Graphics 620
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1150 MHz
  1. 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i3-4020Y
    Intel® HD Graphics 4200
    20 Execution Units, 200 → 850 MHz
  2. 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-4300U
    Intel® HD Graphics 4200
    20 Execution Units, 200 → 1100 MHz
  3. 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-4650U
    Intel® HD Graphics 5000
    40 Execution Units, 200 → 1100 MHz
Memory
  • 8GB 16GB
    1866 MHz Dual-channel LPDDR3 SRAM.
4GB 8GB
1600 MHz LPDDR3 RAM
Storage
  • 256 GB 512 GB 1 TB
    M.2 2280 PCIe NVMe (Replaceable).
64 GB 128 GB 256 GB 512 GB
SSD

Connectivity

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5Surface Pro 3
Wi-Fi
  • Intel® Dual-Band Wireless-AC(2x2) 8265
    Up to 867 Mbps, Dual band 2.4 GHz/5 GHz, 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac.
  • Intel® Dual-Band Wireless-AC(2x2) 8260
    Up to 867 Mbps, Dual band 2.4 GHz/5 GHz, 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac.
  • Wi-Fi 5: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac compatible.
Bluetooth
  • Bluetooth 4.1
  • Bluetooth Wireless 4.0 technology
Ethernet
  • RJ-45 Gigabit Ethernet port (10/100/1000)
-
More
  • WWAN: Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ X7 LTE-A
-

Battery

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5Surface Pro 3
Size
  • 3-cell smart lithium-ion
  • Battery Capacity: 57 Wh
42.2 Wh
Battery Life
  • Up to 15 hours
* Tested with MobileMark 2014
Up to 9 hours of web browsing
Power Supply65 W USB (Type-C) power adapter
Supports Rapid Charge.
  • 36W proprietary power supply
    • USB-A output: 5W
    • Surface Connect: 31W

Software

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5Surface Pro 3
OS
  • Windows 10 Home 64-bit
  • Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
Windows 8.1 Pro
Free upgrade to Windows 10
Built-in Apps-Microsoft Office 30-days trial

Camera & Audio

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5Surface Pro 3
Camera
  • Front-facing camera
    720p (1280 x 720 HD) camera.
  • 5.0MP front-facing camera with 1080p Skype HD video
  • 5.0MP rear-facing camera with 1080p Skype HD video
Audio
  • Dolby Audio™ Premium
  •  Microphones
  • Front and rear-facing microphones
  • Front-facing stereo speakers with Dolby® Audio enhanced sound

Misc

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5Surface Pro 3
Inking-Supports Surface Pen
256 levels of pressure
N-trig Active Pen technology
Sensors
  • Optional dedicated Windows Hello compliant fingerprint reader.​​
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Accelerometer
  • Gyroscope
  • Magnetometer
Security
  • Fingerprint Reader
  • dTPM 2.0 chip
  • Kensington lock slot
  • HW TPM 2.0 chip for enterprise security
In the box-
  • Surface Pro 3
  • Surface Pen
  • Power supply
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Safety and warranty documents
Warranty-
  • One-year limited hardware warranty
More-
  • Mechanical features: Signature unibody magnesium design with hidden perimeter venting
  • Kickstand with a full-friction multiposition hinge to 150 degrees
  • Magnetic attach for keyboard fold stability
  • Physical buttons: volumes, power

Key Features

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5Surface Pro 3
At Glance
Released in
2017
16:9 WQHD
14”
1440p 60Hz
Weight
2.49 lb
1.13 kg
Up to
Intel Core i7-7600U
2C/4T, 2.80 → 3.90 GHz
Geekbench 5
885
Single Core
Geekbench 5
1,883
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® HD Graphics 620
24 Execution Units, 300 → 1150 MHz
Configurable up to
16GB
1866 MHz LPDDR3
Released in Mid
2014
3:2 2.1K
12”
1440p 60Hz
Weight
1.76 lb
0.80 kg
Up to
Intel Core i7-4650U
2C/4T, 1.70 → 3.30 GHz
Geekbench 5
632
Single Core
Geekbench 5
1,236
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® HD Graphics 5000
40 Execution Units, 200 → 1100 MHz
Configurable up to
8GB
1600 MHz LPDDR3
Surface Pro 3 Ports

Comparison Summary

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 vs. Surface Pro 3

Lenovo has released the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5, a 14-inch machine, in 2017. It is powered by up to a dual-core Intel Core i7-7600U with a boost clock speed up to 3.90 GHz. The laptop has an integrated graphics option up to Intel® HD Graphics 620 (24 Execution Units, 300 → 1150 MHz).

On the other hand, we have the 12-inch Surface Pro 3 was introduced by Microsoft about three years earlier in mid-2014. It comes with up to a dual-core Intel Core i7-4650U with a boost clock speed up to 3.30 GHz. It has an integrated graphics option up to Intel® HD Graphics 5000 (40 Execution Units, 200 → 1100 MHz).

Geekbench 5 Single Core

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 51
6th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-6200U55863.05%
2
6th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-6500U67976.72%
3
7th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-7200U72181.47%
4
7th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-7300U81592.09%
5
7th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-7500U76686.55%
6
7th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-7600U885100.00%
Surface Pro 31
4th Gen Intel® Core™ i3-4020Y33637.97%
2
4th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-4300U58265.76%
3
4th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-4650U63271.41%
0885

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 51
6th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-6200U1,33370.79%
2
6th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-6500U1,50079.66%
3
7th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-7200U1,61185.55%
4
7th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-7300U1,77794.37%
5
7th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-7500U1,74492.62%
6
7th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-7600U1,883100.00%
Surface Pro 31
4th Gen Intel® Core™ i3-4020Y78241.53%
2
4th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-4300U1,23465.53%
3
4th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-4650U1,23665.64%
01,883

The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 has a 14-inch display which is considerably larger than the 12-inch Surface Pro 3. In addition, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 weighs 2.49 lbs. about 41% heavier than the 1.76 lbs. Surface Pro 3. Moreover, measured at 12.73” x 8.54” x 0.62”, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 is much bulkier than the Surface Pro 3 at 11.5” x 7.93” x 0.36”.

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5Surface Pro 3

Moving over to upgradability, Lenovo claims that the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5 supports up to 16GB 1866 MHz LPDDR3 memory. However, it has an onboard memory module that is not upgradable by the users. Fortunately, it comes with a single removable M.2 SSD slot that users can replace and upgrade in the future.

For Surface Pro 3, it supports up to 8GB 1600 MHz LPDDR3 memory. Like Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 5, it has an onboard memory module that is not upgradable by the users.

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