Surface 2 vs. Surface Go

Here is a side by side comparison between Surface 2 and Surface Go specs including CPU, RAM, storage, battery, display, and more.

Surface 2 vs. Surface Go

Microsoft has released the Surface 2, a 10.6-inch machine, in late-2013. It is powered by a quad-core NVIDIA Tegra 4 T40 with a boost clock speed up to 1.90 GHz. The laptop has an integrated graphics option up to NVIDIA GeForce ULP graphics (72 Graphics Cores, 672 MHz).

On the other hand, we have the 10-inch Surface Go was introduced by Microsoft about five years later in mid-2018. It comes with a dual-core Intel Pentium Gold 4415Y. It has an integrated graphics option up to Intel® HD Graphics 615 (24 Execution Units, 300 → 850 MHz).

Key Differences

Compare With
Please enter device name or part of it
Surface 2 image

Surface 2

See at Amazon
Compare With
Please enter device name or part of it
Surface Go image

Surface Go

See at Amazon

Surface 2 Pros

Reasons that Surface 2 is better than Surface Go.

6% larger display

Surface 2 has a 10.6-inch screen size 6% larger than the 10-inch Surface Go.

Display size
Surface 2
10.6-inch
Surface Go
10-inch

Surface Go Pros

Reasons that Surface Go is better than Surface 2.

Much newer manufacturing

2018 vs. 2013

Supports larger memory

Surface Go supports a larger memory capacity than the Surface 2. It supports up to 8GB versus 2GB of system memory on the Surface 2.

Max system memory size
Surface Go
8 GB
Surface 2
2 GB
Surface 2 Price
Microsoft Surface Book 2 (Intel Core i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB) - 13.5in (Renewed)
 Microsoft Surface Book 2 (Intel Core i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB) - 13.5in (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$549.99
See at Amazon
New Microsoft Surface Go 2 - 10.5" Touch-Screen - Intel Pentium - 8GB Memory - 128GB SSD - Wifi - Platinum (Latest Model)
 New Microsoft Surface Go 2 - 10.5" Touch-Screen - Intel Pentium - 8GB Memory - 128GB SSD - Wifi - Platinum (Latest Model)
By Microsoft
$360.35
Was: $549.99
See at Amazon
Microsoft Surface Studio 2 (Intel Core i7, 32GB RAM, 1TB) - Newest Version (Renewed)
 Microsoft Surface Studio 2 (Intel Core i7, 32GB RAM, 1TB) - Newest Version (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$3,639.65
See at Amazon
Surface Go Price
Microsoft Surface Go 3 - 10.5" Touchscreen - Intel® Pentium® Gold - 8GB Memory - 128GB SSD - Device Only - Platinum (Latest Model)
 Microsoft Surface Go 3 - 10.5" Touchscreen - Intel® Pentium® Gold - 8GB Memory - 128GB SSD - Device Only - Platinum (Latest Model)
By Microsoft
$499.99
Was: $549.99
See at Amazon
New Microsoft Surface Go 2 - 10.5" Touch-Screen - Intel Pentium - 8GB Memory - 128GB SSD - Wifi - Platinum (Latest Model)
 New Microsoft Surface Go 2 - 10.5" Touch-Screen - Intel Pentium - 8GB Memory - 128GB SSD - Wifi - Platinum (Latest Model)
By Microsoft
$360.43
Was: $549.99
See at Amazon
Microsoft Surface Go 3 - 10.5" Touchscreen - Intel® Core™ i3 - 8GB Memory - 128GB SSD - Device Only - Platinum (Latest Model)
 Microsoft Surface Go 3 - 10.5" Touchscreen - Intel® Core™ i3 - 8GB Memory - 128GB SSD - Device Only - Platinum (Latest Model)
By Microsoft
$599.99
Was: $629.99
See at Amazon

Specs Comparison

Key Features

Surface 2Surface Go
At Glance
Released in Late
2013
16:9 FHD
10.6”
1080p 60Hz
Weight
1.15 lb
0.52 kg
Powered By
NVIDIA Tegra 4 T40
4C/1.70 → 1.90 GHz
With integrated
NVIDIA GeForce ULP graphics
72 Graphics Cores, 672 MHz
2GB
DDR3L Memory
Released in Mid
2018
3:2 1.8K
10”
1200p 60Hz
Weight
1.15 lb
0.52 kg
Powered By
Intel Pentium Gold 4415Y
2C/4T, 1.60 GHz
Geekbench 5
356
Single Core
Geekbench 5
855
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® HD Graphics 615
24 Execution Units, 300 → 850 MHz
Configurable up to
8GB
1866 MHz LPDDR3
Surface Go Ports

Availability

Surface 2Surface Go
Released20132018
Release Date
  • Introduced: September 23, 2013
  • Pre-ordered: September 24, 2013
  • Released: October 22, 2013
  • Introduced: July 10, 2018
  • Pre-ordered: July 10, 2018
  • Released: August 2, 2018
PricingSurface 2 Wi-Fi
  • $449 - 2 GB | 32 GB
  • $549 - 2 GB | 64 GB
Surface 2 4G LTE
  • $679 - 2 GB | 64 GB
Surface Go for Consumer
  • $399 - 4 GB | 64 GB | W10 S-mode
  • $549 - 8 GB | 128 GB | W10 S-mode
Surface go for Commercial
  • $449 - 4 GB | 64 GB | W10 Pro
  • $599 - 8 GB | 128 GB | W10 Pro
Generations
Stores

Exterior

Surface 2Surface Go
Size Comparison
Surface 2Surface Go
Dimensions10.81” x 6.79” x 0.35” (275 mm x 172 mm x 8.9 mm)
Width: 10.81” (275 mm)
Height: 6.79” (172 mm)
Thickness: 0.35” (8.9 mm)
9.6” x 6.9” x 0.33” (245 mm x 175  mm x 8.3 mm)
Width: 9.6” (245 mm)
Height: 6.9” (175 mm)
Thickness: 0.33” (8.3 mm)
Weight
  • Surface 2: 1.15 lbs (522 g)
  • Surface 2 with Keyboard: 1.7 lbs (771 g)
  • Surface Go: 1.15 lbs (522 g)
  • Surface Go with LTE: 1.17 lbs. (532 g)
  • Surface Go Keyboard: 0.55 lbs (249 g)
Colors
Silver
Platinum
Keyboard and Trackpad
  • 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:
    • Two-finger multitouch gesture trackpad.
  • Surface Type Cover
    • Not included
  • Keyboard:
    • Full-size mechanical backlit keyset with 1 mm of key travel.
  • Trackpad:
    • Precision glass trackpad.
    • Trackpad size: 101 mm x 56 mm
    • Supports a five-finger multitouch gesture.

Display

Surface 2Surface Go
Size10.6 Inches10 Inches
Info
  • Resolution: 1920 x 1080 (2M Pixels)
  • Density: 208 PPI
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9
  • ClearType Full HD Display
  • Touch: 5 points multi-touch
  • Resolution: 1800 x 1200 (2.1M Pixels)
  • Density: 217 PPI
  • PixelSense™ Display
  • Contrast ratio: 1500:1
  • Aspect ratio: 3:2
  • Inking: designed together with Surface Pen
  • Touch: 10 points multi-touch
  • Corning® Gorilla® Glass 3

Ports

Surface 2Surface Go
Surface 2 image
  • 1 x Full-size USB 3.0
  • 1 x microSD™ card reader
  • 1 x Surface Charging Port
  • 1 x Headset jack
  • 1 x Mini DisplayPort
  • 1 x Cover port
  • 1 x Nano SIM card slot (Surface 2 with LTE only)
Surface Go image
Surface Go Ports
Image Source: Microsoft
  • 1 x USB Type-C 3.1 Gen 1
    Supports Power Delivery and DisplayPort.
  • 1 x Surface Connect™
    Supports charging and docking station.
  • 1 x Headset jack
  • 1 x microSD™ card reader
  • 1 x Type Cover port

Internal Specs

Surface 2Surface Go
Processor
  1. NVIDIA Tegra 4 T40
    4 cores, 1.70 → 1.90 GHz, 2MB Cache,
  1. 7th Gen Intel® Pentium® Gold 4415Y
    2 cores, 4 threads, 1.60 GHz, 2MB SmartCache, 6W

Geekbench 5 Single Core

Surface 2Surface Go1
7th Gen Intel® Pentium® Gold 4415Y356100.00%
0356

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

Surface 2Surface Go1
7th Gen Intel® Pentium® Gold 4415Y855100.00%
0855
Integrated Graphics
  1. NVIDIA Tegra 4 T40
    NVIDIA GeForce ULP graphics
    72 Graphics Cores, 672 MHz
  1. 7th Gen Intel® Pentium® Gold 4415Y
    Intel® HD Graphics 615
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 850 MHz
Memory2GB of RAM
4GB 8GB
1866 MHz LPDDR3 RAM
Storage
  • 32GB 64GB
    eMMC
  • 64GB
    eMMC
  • 128GB 256GB
    SSD

Connectivity

Surface 2Surface Go
Wi-Fi
  • Wi-Fi 4: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n compatible.
  • Wi-Fi 5: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac compatible.
Bluetooth
  • Bluetooth 4.0 low energy technology
  • Bluetooth Wireless 4.1 technology
MoreOptional LTE
  • Nano SIM Tray
  • 2G GSM (Quadband: 850/900/1800/1900)
  • 3G UMTS (Bands 1, 2, 5)
  • 4G LTE (Bands 4, 7, 17)
Optional LTE
  • Nano SIM Tray
  • 4G LTE Advanced (22 Bands: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 38, 39, 40, 41, 66)
  • GPS/GLONASS: Standalone and Assiste
  • GNSS, accuracy up to 3 meters

Battery

Surface 2Surface Go
Size31.5 Wh26.12 Wh
Battery LifeUp to 10 hours of video playbackUp to 9 hours of video playback
Power Supply
  • 24W proprietary power supply
  • 24W proprietary Surface Connect power supply

Software

Surface 2Surface Go
OS
  • Windows RT 8.1
  • For Consumer: Windows 10 in S-mode
  • For Commercial: Windows 10 Pro
Built-in AppsMicrosoft Office Home and Student 2013 RT with OutlookMicrosoft Office 365 30-days trial

Camera & Audio

Surface 2Surface Go
Camera
  • 3.5MP front-facing camera with 1080p HD video
  • 8.0MP rear-facing autofocus camera with 1080p HD video
  • Windows Hello face authentication camera (front-facing)
  • 5.0MP front-facing camera with 1080p Skype HD video
  • 8.0MP rear-facing autofocus camera with 1080p full HD video
Audio
  • Dual microphones
  • Stereo speakers with digitally enhanced for fuller sound
  • Single microphone
  • 2W Front-facing stereo speakers with Dolby® Audio™ Premium

Misc

Surface 2Surface Go
Inking-Supports Surface Pen
4096 levels of pressure
Tilt sensing
Best in class latency
Paper feel
magnetic storage
Sensors
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Accelerometer
  • Gyroscope
  • Magnetometer
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Accelerometer
  • Gyroscope
  • Magnetometer
Security-
  • HW TPM 2.0 chip for enterprise security
  • Enterprise-grade protection with Windows Hello face sign-in
In the box
  • Surface 2
  • Power supply
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Safety and warranty documents
  • Surface Go
  • Power supply
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Safety and warranty documents
Warranty
  • One-year limited hardware warranty
  • One-year limited hardware warranty
More
  • Casing: Magnesium
  • Kickstand: 2 positions
  • Physical buttons: volumes, power
  • Mechanical features: Signature unibody magnesium design with hidden perimeter venting
  • Kickstand with a full-friction multiposition hinge to 165 degrees
  • Magnetic attach for keyboard fold stability
  • Physical buttons: volumes, power

Popular Comparisons for Surface Go

Here are the most frequently requested comparisons for Surface Go:

Surface GoDell Latitude 5290VS
Surface Go
vs.
Dell Latitude 5290
Surface GoDell Latitude 5290 2-in-1VS
Surface Go
vs.
Dell Latitude 5290 2-in-1
Surface GoMacBook 12” 2017VS
Surface Go
vs.
MacBook 12” 2017
Surface GoSurface Pro 5VS
Surface Go
vs.
Surface Pro 5
Surface GoDell Latitude 7200 2-in-1VS
Surface Go
vs.
Dell Latitude 7200 2-in-1
Surface GoLenovo ThinkPad X12 Detachable Gen 1VS
Surface Go
vs.
Lenovo ThinkPad X12 Detachable Gen 1

Microsoft Surface Family

Here are all Microsoft Surface devices we’ve covered on our site:

Surface
Surface Go 3 pictureLate 2021 | 10.5” Surface Go 3
Surface Go 2 pictureMid 2020 | 10.5” Surface Go 2
Surface Go pictureMid 2018 | 10” Surface Go
Surface 3 pictureEarly 2015 | 10.8” Surface 3
Surface 2 pictureLate 2013 | 10.6” Surface 2
View All
Surface Book
Surface Book 3 15” pictureMid 2020 | 15” Surface Book 3 15”
Surface Book 3 13.5” pictureMid 2020 | 13.5” Surface Book 3 13.5”
Surface Book 2 15” pictureLate 2017 | 15” Surface Book 2 15”
Surface Book 2 13.5” pictureLate 2017 | 13.5” Surface Book 2 13.5”
Surface Book i7 pictureLate 2016 | 13.5” Surface Book i7
View All
Surface Laptop
Surface Laptop 5 15” pictureLate 2022 | 13.5” Surface Laptop 5 15”
Surface Laptop 5 13.5” pictureLate 2022 | 13.5” Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
Surface Laptop 4 15” pictureEarly 2021 | 15” Surface Laptop 4 15”
Surface Laptop 4 13.5” pictureEarly 2021 | 13.5” Surface Laptop 4 13.5”
Surface Laptop 3 15” pictureLate 2019 | 15” Surface Laptop 3 15”
View All
Surface Laptop Go
Surface Laptop Go 2 pictureMid 2022 | 12.45” Surface Laptop Go 2
Surface Laptop Go pictureLate 2020 | 12.45” Surface Laptop Go
Surface Laptop SE
Surface Laptop SE pictureLate 2021 | 11.6” Surface Laptop SE
Surface Laptop Studio
Surface Laptop Studio pictureLate 2021 | 14.4” Surface Laptop Studio
Surface Pro
Surface Pro 9 5G pictureLate 2022 | 13” Surface Pro 9 5G
Surface Pro 9 pictureLate 2022 | 13” Surface Pro 9
Surface Pro 8 pictureLate 2021 | 13” Surface Pro 8
Surface Pro 7 Plus pictureEarly 2021 | 12.3” Surface Pro 7 Plus
Surface Pro 7 pictureLate 2019 | 12.3” Surface Pro 7
View All
Surface Pro X
SQ2 Surface Pro X pictureLate 2020 | 13” SQ2 Surface Pro X
SQ1 Surface Pro X pictureLate 2019 | 13” SQ1 Surface Pro X
Click here to view all Microsoft Surface devices.

Comments

Ask questions or share your thought and experience about the comparison between Surface 2 and Surface Go.

Loading Comments...