Surface Duo vs. Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold: Which is better?

Here is a side by side comparison between Surface Duo and Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold specs including CPU, RAM, storage, battery, display, and more.

Surface Duo Pros

Reasons that Surface Duo is better than Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold.

About 75% lighter

Surface Duo weighed 0.55 pounds, 75% lighter than the 2.2 pounds Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold.

WeightSurface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold
Pound
0.55 lbs.
2.2 lbs.
Kilogram
0.25 kg
1.00 kg

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold Pros

Reasons that Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold is better than Surface Duo.

Supports larger memory

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold supports a larger memory capacity than the Surface Duo. It supports up to 8GB versus 6GB of system memory on the Surface Duo.

Max system memory size
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold
8 GB
Surface Duo
6 GB
64% larger display

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold has a 13.3-inch screen size 64% larger than the 8.1-inch Surface Duo.

Display size
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold
13.3-inch
Surface Duo
8.1-inch

Prices

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

Surface Duo Price
Microsoft Surface Duo 256GB (Unlocked) - Glacier
Microsoft Surface Duo 256GB (Unlocked) - Glacier
By Microsoft
$750.00
$1,094.99 32% OFF
Microsoft Surface Duo 128GB AT&T Locked, Glacier
Microsoft Surface Duo 128GB AT&T Locked, Glacier
By Microsoft
$349.99
Microsoft 8WV-00001 Surface Slim Pen 2, Black (8WV00001)
Microsoft 8WV-00001 Surface Slim Pen 2, Black (8WV00001)
By Microsoft
$83.89
$129.99 35% OFF
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold Price
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga Gen 1 20QA005LUS 13.5" Touchscreen Convertible 2 in 1 Notebook - QHD - 2256 x 1504 - Intel Core i7 11th Gen i7-1160G7 Quad-core (4 Core) 2.10 GHz - 16 GB RAM - 512 GB
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga Gen 1 20QA005LUS 13.5" Touchscreen Convertible 2 in 1 Notebook - QHD - 2256 x 1504 - Intel Core i7 11th Gen i7-1160G7 Quad-core (4 Core) 2.10 GHz - 16 GB RAM - 512 GB
By Lenovo
$848.88
$919.00 8% OFF
LENOVO Latest ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 14" FHD+ Ultrabook IPS Touchscreen 400 nits,11th gen i7-1165G7, 16GB DDR4, 1TB SSD, Intel Iris Xe Graphics, Fingerprint Reader, Thunderbolt 4, Win 10 Pro, Black
LENOVO Latest ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 14" FHD+ Ultrabook IPS Touchscreen 400 nits,11th gen i7-1165G7, 16GB DDR4, 1TB SSD, Intel Iris Xe Graphics, Fingerprint Reader, Thunderbolt 4, Win 10 Pro, Black
By LENOVO
$1,159.77
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Nano Business Laptop 13" 2K IPS Touch 100% sRGB 450nits Intel 4-Core i7-1180G7 16GB RAM 512GB SSD Fingerprint Backlit Thunderbolt4 3-yr Warranty Win11Pro Black + HDMI Cable
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Nano Business Laptop 13" 2K IPS Touch 100% sRGB 450nits Intel 4-Core i7-1180G7 16GB RAM 512GB SSD Fingerprint Backlit Thunderbolt4 3-yr Warranty Win11Pro Black + HDMI Cable
By Lenovo
$779.77

Availability

Surface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold
Released20202020
Release Date
  • Introduced: Microsoft October Event (October 2, 2019)
  • Pre-ordered: August 12, 2020
  • Released: September 10, 2020
  • Unveiled at CES 2020
  • Announced on September 29, 2020.
  • Available for order on September 29, 2020.
Pricing
  • $1,399 - 128 GB
  • $1,499 - 256 GB
Starting at $2,499.

Exterior

Surface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold
Dimensions
  • 7.35 x 5.71 x 0.18 (186.9 mm x 145.2 mm x 4.8 mm)
    Open
  • 3.67 x 5.71 x 0.38 (93.3 mm x 145.2 mm x 9.9 mm) 
    Closed
  • Folded: 6.23" x 9.29" x 1.09" (27.8mm x 158.2mm x 236mm)
  • Unfolded: 11.79” x 9.29” x 0.45” (11.5mm x 299.4mm x 236mm)
Weight0.55 lbs (250 g)Starting at 2.2 lbs (0.99 kg)
Colors
Glacier
Authentic black leather folio cover
Keyboard and Trackpad-Optional Lenovo Fold Mini Keyboard
Bluetooth and wirelessly charged.

Display

Surface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold
Size8.1 Inches13.3 Inches
Info
  • Dual PixelSense™ Fusion Displays open: 8.1” AMOLED, 2700x1800 (3:2), 401 PPI
  • Single PixelSense™ Display: 5.6” AMOLED, 1800x1350 (4:3), 401 PPI
  • Display Material: Corning® Gorilla® Glass
  • 13.3” Touch 2K (2048 x 1536)
    Flexible QXGA OLED, 4:3, 300nit, DCI-P3 95% Touch with Dolby® Vision™.

Ports

Surface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold
Surface Duo Ports
Image Source: Microsoft
Right (1)
  • 1 x nanoSIM card slot
Bottom (1)
  • 1 x USB-C
  • 2 x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2
    Supports data transfer up to 10Gbps. 1 port can be used as DisplayPort. (1 can be used as DP).
  • Optional nano-SIM slot

Internal Specs

Surface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold
Processor
  1. Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 855
    8 cores, 8 threads, 2.84 GHz, 5MB Cache, 5W
  1. Intel® Core™ i5-L16G7 with Intel® Hybrid Technology
    5 cores, 5 threads, 1.40 → 3.00 GHz, 4MB Cache, 7W
Integrated Graphics
  1. Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 855
    Qualcomm® Adreno™ 640 GPU
    585 MHz
  1. Intel® Core™ i5-L16G7 with Intel® Hybrid Technology
    Intel® UHD Graphics for 10th Gen Intel® Processors
    64 Execution Units, 200 → 500 MHz
Memory6GB DRAM
  • 8GB
    4267 MHz Dual-channel LPDDR4x SRAM.
Storage
  • 128GB 256GB
    UFS 3.0 of internal storage
Up to 1TB PCIe SSD

Connectivity

Surface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold
Wi-FiWiFi-5 802.11ac (2.4/5GHz)
  • Intel® Wi-Fi 6™ 802.11AX (2 x 2)
    Dual band 2.4 GHz/5 GHz, 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax.
BluetoothBluetooth Wireless 5.0 technology
  • Bluetooth 5.1
More
  • LTE: 4x4 MIMO, Cat.18 DL / Cat 5 UL, 5CA, LAA.
    Up to 1.2Gbps Download / Up to 150Mbps Upload
  • Bands Supported:
    • FDD-LTE: 1,2,3,4,5,7,8,12,13,14,19,20,25,26,28,29,30,66
    • TD-LTE: 38,39,40,41,46
    • WCDMA: 1,2,5,8
    • GSM/GPRS: GSM-850, E-GSM-900, DCS-1800, PCS-1900
    • Location: GPS, Galileo, GLONASS, BeiDou, QZSS
  • One eSIM and one Nano SIM
    Note: AT&T locked device will not support eSIM
Optional WWAN: Integrated Global Mobile Broadband CAT20 (5G/LTE).

Battery

Surface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold
Size3577 mAh 50 Wh
Battery Life
  • Up to 15.5 hours of Local Video Playback
  • Up to 10 days of Standby Time
  • Up to 27 hours of Talk Time
  • Up to 8.5 hours
    Tested with MobileMark 2014.
  • Up to 10.4 hours
    Video Playback.
Power Supply
  • 18W USB-C PD charger
Premium Slim 65 W USB (Type-C) power adapter
Supports Rapid Charge.

Software

Surface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold
OSAndroid™ 10
3-years of software updates.
  • Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
  • Windows 10 Home 64-bit
Built-in Apps
  • Microsoft built-in applications:
    • Microsoft Office: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Office Lens, PDF Reader, and more
    • Microsoft Outlook
    • Microsoft Teams
    • Microsoft OneDrive
    • Microsoft Edge
    • Microsoft OneNote
    • Microsoft To Do
    • Microsoft News
    • Microsoft Authenticator
    • Microsoft Bing Search
    • Intune Company Portal
    • LinkedIn
    • Microsoft Solitaire Collection
    • Surface Audio
  • Microsoft Surface Duo UI core features:
    • Dual screen windowing
    • Adaptive modes
    • App Groups
    • Microsoft 365 Feed
    • Dynamic dock
    • Universal Search
    • Adaptive Camera
    • Microsoft SwiftKey Adaptive Keyboard
    • Your Phone Companion - Link to Windows
  • Other preinstalled apps:
    • Google Search
    • Google Assistant
    • Google Calendar
    • Google Drive
    • Google Duo
    • Google Photos
    • Google Play Movies & TV
    • Google Play Store
    • Google Maps
    • Chrome
    • Gmail
    • YouTube
    • YouTube Music
    • Contacts
    • Messages
    • Phone
    • Files
    • Clock
    • Calculator
    • Sound recorder
    • Spotify (Unlocked)
    • HBO MAX (AT&T)
    • AT&T TV (AT&T)
    • My AT&T (AT&T)
    • Call Protect (AT&T)
    • Amazon Shopping (AT&T)
    • NBA (AT&T)
  • Lenovo Vantage

Camera & Audio

Surface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold
Camera
  • Adaptive camera 11MP, f/2.0, 1.0 µm, PDAF and 84.0° diagonal FOV optimized with AI for front and rear
  • Photos:
    • Auto mode with low-light & HDR multi-frame photo capture and dynamic range scene detection
    • Super-resolution zoom, and super zoom up to 7x
    • Portrait mode with adjustable depth control
    • Panorama mode
    • Burst mode
  • Video recording:
    • 4K video recording at 30 fps and 60 fps
    • 1080p video recording at 30 fps and 60 fps
    • HEVC and H.264 video recording formats
    • Gyro-based digital video stabilization
  • Video Conferencing
    • Microsoft Teams and Skype video conferencing up to 1080p at 30fps
    • High CRI LED Flash for both front and world facing photo and video scenarios
  • Front-facing camera
    5MP camera.
  • Infrared (IR) Camera for Windows Hello
Audio
  • Mono speaker
  • Dual Mic noise suppression and echo cancellation optimized for productive use in all postures
  • Best-in-class Full Duplex communication for voice calls in hands-free mode
  • Audio formats supported: 3GP, MP3, MP4, MKV, WAV, OGG, M4A, AAC, TS, AMR, FLAC, MID, MIDI, RTTL, RTX, OTA, IMY
  • Qualcomm® aptX™ Adaptive
  • Dolby Atmos™ Speaker System
  • 4 x 360-degree Microphones

Misc

Surface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold
InkingSupports all in market generations of Surface Slim Pen, Surface Pen and Surface Hub 2 Pen
4096 levels of pressure
Tilt sensing
Best in class latency
Paper feel
magnetic storage
-
Sensors
  • Dual Accelerometer
  • Dual Gyroscope
  • Dual Magnetometer
  • Dual Ambient Light Sensor
  • Proximity Sensor
  • Hall Sensor
  • Fingerprint Sensor
  • IR Camera
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Proximity sensor
Security
  • Biometric lock type: Fingerprint reader (1:100K FAR <3% FRR)
  • Lock type: Swipe, PIN, password
  • Security applications pre-loaded on the device: Microsoft Authenticator
  • Discrete Trusted Platform Module (dTPM) 2.0
  • IR camera
In the box
  • Surface Duo
  • Surface Duo Bumper (Color: Glacier)
  • Surface Duo USB-C® Power Supply (18w)
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Warranty and Compliance Guide
  • SIM Ejector tool
  • ThinkPad X1 Fold
  • Premium Slim USB-C 65W AC adapter
  • 50Wh Internal battery
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Lenovo Mod Pen (Optional / Select models)
  • Lenovo Mini Bluetooth Keyboard (Optional / Select models)
Warranty
  • One-year limited hardware warranty
1-year Depot or Carry-in
More
  • Exterior Material: Corning® Gorilla® Glass
-

Key Features

Surface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold
At Glance
Released in
2020
3:2 2.7K
8.1”
1800p 60Hz
Weight
0.55 lb
0.25 kg
Powered By
Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 855
8C/8T, 2.84 GHz
With integrated
Qualcomm® Adreno™ 640 GPU
585 MHz
6GB
Memory
Surface Duo Ports
Released in
2020
4:3 2K
13.3”
1536p 60Hz
Weight
2.2 lb
1.00 kg
Powered By
Intel Core i5-L16G7
5C/5T, 1.40 → 3.00 GHz
Geekbench 5
773
Single Core
Geekbench 5
1,703
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® UHD Graphics for 10th Gen Intel® Processors
64 Execution Units, 200 → 500 MHz
8GB
4267 MHz LPDDR4X

Comparison Summary

Surface Duo vs. Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold

Microsoft has released the Surface Duo, a 8.1-inch machine, in 2020. It is powered by an octa-core Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 855. The laptop has an integrated graphics option up to Qualcomm® Adreno™ 640 GPU (585 MHz).

On the other hand, we have the 13.3-inch ThinkPad X1 Fold was introduced by Lenovo around the same time in 2020. It comes with 5-core Intel Core i5-L16G7 with a boost clock speed up to 3.00 GHz. It has an integrated graphics option up to Intel® UHD Graphics for 10th Gen Intel® Processors (64 Execution Units, 200 → 500 MHz).

Geekbench 5 Single Core

Surface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold1
Intel® Core™ i5-L16G7 with Intel® Hybrid Technology773100.00%
0773

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

Surface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold1
Intel® Core™ i5-L16G7 with Intel® Hybrid Technology1,703100.00%
01,703

The Surface Duo has a 8.1-inch display which is way smaller than the 13.3-inch Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold. In addition, The Surface Duo weighs 0.55 lbs. about 300% lighter than the 2.2 lbs. Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold. Moreover, measured at 7.35” x 5.71” x 0.18”, the Surface Duo is much more portable than the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold at 11.79” x 9.29” x 0.45”.

Surface DuoLenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold

Moving over to upgradability, you can't make any upgrades on both devices. All major components including memory and storage are soldered on to the motherboard. So make sure you get the specs that work best for your current and future workload.

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