Surface Laptop 2 vs. Surface Laptop 3 15”: Full specs comparison

We have comprehensively compared the specifications for the Surface Laptop 2 and Surface Laptop 3 15” models. The report includes detailed information regarding both models' CPU, memory, storage, battery life, display quality, and other features.

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Surface Laptop 2 image

Surface Laptop 2

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Surface Laptop 3 15” image

Surface Laptop 3 15”

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Surface Laptop 2 Pros

Reasons that Surface Laptop 2 is better than Surface Laptop 3 15”.

Significantly faster CPU performance

Intel Core i7-8650U inside Surface Laptop 2 has a 41% better multi-core CPU performance score than the AMD Ryzen 7-3780U Microsoft Surface Edition inside Surface Laptop 3 15”.

Geekbench 5 multi-core score
Surface Laptop 2 - Intel Core i7-8650U
3,879
Surface Laptop 3 15” - Intel Core i7-1065G7
3,722
Surface Laptop 3 15” - Intel Core i5-1035G7
3,691
Surface Laptop 2 - Intel Core i5-8350U
2,982
Surface Laptop 3 15” - AMD Ryzen 7-3780U Microsoft Surface Edition
2,741
Surface Laptop 3 15” - AMD Ryzen 5-3580U Microsoft Surface Edition
2,438
Surface Laptop 2 - Intel Core i5-8250U
1,971
About 19% lighter

Surface Laptop 2 weighed 2.76 pounds, 19% lighter than the 3.40 pounds Surface Laptop 3 15”.

WeightSurface Laptop 2Surface Laptop 3 15”
Pound
2.76 lbs.
3.40 lbs.
Kilogram
1.25 kg
1.54 kg

Surface Laptop 3 15” Pros

Reasons that Surface Laptop 3 15” is better than Surface Laptop 2.

Newer manufacturing

2019 vs. 2018

Supports larger memory

Surface Laptop 3 15” supports a larger memory capacity than the Surface Laptop 2. It supports up to 32GB versus 16GB of system memory on the Surface Laptop 2.

Max system memory size
Surface Laptop 3 15”
32 GB
Surface Laptop 2
16 GB
Supports faster memory

Surface Laptop 3 15” supports a faster memory speed than the Surface Laptop 2. It supports up to 2400MHz versus 1866MHz of system memory on the Surface Laptop 2.

Memory type and speed
Surface Laptop 3 15” - DDR4
2,400 MHz
Surface Laptop 2 - LPDDR3
1,866 MHz
11% larger display

Surface Laptop 3 15” has a 15-inch screen size 11% larger than the 13.5-inch Surface Laptop 2.

Display size
Surface Laptop 3 15”
15-inch
Surface Laptop 2
13.5-inch

Prices

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

Surface Laptop 2 Price
Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 (Intel Core i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB) - Platinum (Renewed)
 Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 (Intel Core i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB) - Platinum (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$279.00
$304.99 9% OFF
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Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 (Intel Core i7, 16GB RAM, 512GB) - Platinum (Renewed)
 Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 (Intel Core i7, 16GB RAM, 512GB) - Platinum (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$366.37
$434.00 16% OFF
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Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 Tablet 13.5" (2256x1504) Touchscreen Laptop Intel Core i5-8350U 1.7GHz, 16GB DDR4 RAM, 256GB SSD, Backlit Keyboard, Wi-Fi, Camera, Silver, Windows 10 Pro (Renewed)
 Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 Tablet 13.5" (2256x1504) Touchscreen Laptop Intel Core i5-8350U 1.7GHz, 16GB DDR4 RAM, 256GB SSD, Backlit Keyboard, Wi-Fi, Camera, Silver, Windows 10 Pro (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$312.00
$331.00 6% OFF
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Surface Laptop 3 15” Price
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3, 15" Touchscreen Notebook, Intel Core i7-1065G7, 16GB RAM, 256 GB SSD, Backlit Keyboard, Display(2496×1664), CAM, WiFi, Platinum, Windows 10 Pro(Renewed)
 Microsoft Surface Laptop 3, 15" Touchscreen Notebook, Intel Core i7-1065G7, 16GB RAM, 256 GB SSD, Backlit Keyboard, Display(2496×1664), CAM, WiFi, Platinum, Windows 10 Pro(Renewed)
By Microsoft
$634.69
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Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 Tablet 15" 2K Touchscreen Laptop, Inter Core i7-1065G7,16GB DDR4 RAM, 256GB SSD, Backlit Keyboard, Type-C, Windows 10 Pro (Renewed)
 Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 Tablet 15" 2K Touchscreen Laptop, Inter Core i7-1065G7,16GB DDR4 RAM, 256GB SSD, Backlit Keyboard, Type-C, Windows 10 Pro (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$459.00
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Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 – 15" Touch-Screen – AMD Ryzen 5 Surface Edition - 8GB Memory - 256GB Solid State Drive – Matte Black
 Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 – 15" Touch-Screen – AMD Ryzen 5 Surface Edition - 8GB Memory - 256GB Solid State Drive – Matte Black
By Microsoft
$390.00
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Specs Comparison

Availability

Surface Laptop 2Surface Laptop 3 15”
Released20182019
Release Date
  • Introduced: October 2, 2018
  • Pre-ordered: October 2, 2018
  • Released: October 16 2018
  • Introduced: October 2, 2019 (Microsoft October Event)
  • Pre-ordered: October 2, 2019
  • Released: October 22, 2019
PricingStarting at 999$Starting at 1,199$
Generations

Exterior

Surface Laptop 2Surface Laptop 3 15”
Dimensions12.13” x 8.79” x 0.39-0.57” (308.02 mm x 223.2 mm x 9.93 mm-14.47 mm)
Width: 12.13” (308.02 mm)
Depth: 8.79” (223.2 mm)
Height: 0.39 - 0.57” (9.93 - 14.47 mm)
13.4” x 9.6” x 0.57” (339.5 mm x 244 mm x 14.69 mm)
Width: 13.4” (339.5 mm)
Depth: 9.6” (244 mm)
Height: 0.57” (14.69 mm)
Weight
  • Intel Core i5 › 2.76 lbs (1.26 kg)
  • Intel Core i7 › 2.83 lbs (1.28 kg)
3.40 lb (1,542 g)
Colors
Black Platinum Burgundy Cobalt Blue
  • Metal
    Matte Black Platinum
Keyboard and Trackpad
  • Keyboard:
    • Full-size backlit keyboard with the soft-touch feel and full 1.5mm travel.
    • Large palm rest with premium Alcantara® material for maximized typing comfort.
  • Trackpad:
    • Larger size 105 mm x 70 mm, glass.
    • Supports up to Five-finger multitouch gesture.
  • Keyboard:
    • Full-size backlit keyboard with the soft-touch feel and full 1.3mm travel.
    • Large palm rest with premium Alcantara® material for maximized typing comfort.
  • Trackpad:
    • Larger size 115 mm x 76.66 mm, glass.
    • Supports up to Five-finger multitouch gesture.

Display

Surface Laptop 2Surface Laptop 3 15”
Size13.5 Inches15 Inches
Info
  • Display Resolution: 2256 x 1504 (3.4M Pixels)
  • Display Density: 201 PPI
  • PixelSense™ Display
  • Aspect ratio: 3:2
  • Inking: designed together with Surface Pen
  • Touch: 10 points multi-touch
  • Corning® Gorilla® Glass 3
  • 10nm Oleophobic Coating
  • 100% sRGB color, individually calibrated
  • PixelSense™ Display
  • Aspect ratio: 3:2
  • Inking: designed together with Surface Pen
  • Touch: 10 points multi-touch
  • Corning® Gorilla® Glass 3
  • 10nm Oleophobic Coating
  • 100% sRGB color, individually calibrated

Ports

Surface Laptop 2Surface Laptop 3 15”
Surface Laptop 2 Ports
Image Source: Microsoft
  • 1 x Full-size USB 3.0
  • 1 x Surface Connect™
    Supports charging and docking station.
  • 1 x Mini DisplayPort
  • 1 x Headset jack
Surface Laptop 3 15” Ports
Image Source: Microsoft
  • 1 x Full-size USB 3.0
  • 1 x USB Type-C 3.1 Gen 2
    Supports Power Delivery and DisplayPort.
  • 1 x Surface Connect™
    Supports charging and docking station.
  • 1 x Headset jack

Internal Specs

Surface Laptop 2Surface Laptop 3 15”
Processor
  1. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-8250U
    4 cores, 8 threads, 1.60 → 3.40 GHz, 6MB SmartCache, 15W
  2. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-8350U
    4 cores, 8 threads, 1.70 → 3.60 GHz, 6MB SmartCache, 15W
  3. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-8650U
    4 cores, 8 threads, 1.90 → 4.20 GHz, 8MB SmartCache, 15W
  1. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1035G7
    4 cores, 8 threads, 1.20 → 3.70 GHz, 6MB SmartCache, 15W
  2. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1065G7
    4 cores, 8 threads, 1.30 → 3.90 GHz, 8MB SmartCache, 15W
  3. AMD Ryzen™ 5 3580U Microsoft Surface® Edition
    4 cores, 8 threads, 2.10 → 3.70 GHz, 2MB L2 Cache, 4MB L3 Cache, 15W
  4. AMD Ryzen™ 7 3780U Microsoft Surface® Edition
    4 cores, 8 threads, 2.30 → 4.00 GHz, 2MB L2 Cache, 4MB L3 Cache, 15W
Integrated Graphics
  1. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-8250U
    Intel® UHD Graphics 620
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1100 MHz
  2. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-8350U
    Intel® UHD Graphics 620
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1100 MHz
  3. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-8650U
    Intel® UHD Graphics 620
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1150 MHz
  1. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1035G7
    Intel® Iris® Plus Graphics
    64 Execution Units, 300 → 1050 MHz
  2. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1065G7
    Intel® Iris® Plus Graphics
    64 Execution Units, 300 → 1100 MHz
  3. AMD Ryzen™ 5 3580U Microsoft Surface® Edition
    Radeon™ Vega 9 Graphics
    9 Graphics Cores, 1300 MHz
  4. AMD Ryzen™ 7 3780U Microsoft Surface® Edition
    Radeon™ RX Vega 11 Graphics
    11 Graphics Cores, 1400 MHz
Memory
8GB 16GB
1866 MHz LPDDR3 RAM
8GB 16GB 32 GB
2400 MHz DDR4 RAM
Storage
128 GB 256 GB 512 GB 1 TB
Soldered BGA PCIe SSD
128 GB 256 GB 512 GB
Removable M.2 NVMe SSD

Connectivity

Surface Laptop 2Surface Laptop 3 15”
Wi-Fi
  • Wi-Fi 5: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac compatible.
  • Wi-Fi 5: 2x2 MIMO IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac compatible
Bluetooth
  • Bluetooth Wireless 4.1 technology
  • Bluetooth Wireless 5.0 technology

Battery

Surface Laptop 2Surface Laptop 3 15”
Size45.2 Wh45.8 Wh
Battery LifeUp to 14.5 hours of typical device usageUp to 11.5 hours of typical device usage
Power Supply
  • 44W proprietary power supply
    USB-A output: 5W
    Surface Connect output: 39W
  • 60W power supply with USB-A (5W) (65W total)
  • Supports Fast Charge (0-80% in about one hour)

Software

Surface Laptop 2Surface Laptop 3 15”
OS
  • For Consumer: Windows 10 Home
  • For Commercial: Windows 10 Pro
Free upgrade to Windows 11
  • For Consumer: Windows 10 Home
  • For Commercial: Windows 10 Pro
Free upgrade to Windows 11
Built-in AppsMicrosoft Office 365 30-days trialMicrosoft Office 365 30-days trial

Camera & Audio

Surface Laptop 2Surface Laptop 3 15”
Camera
  • Windows Hello face authentication camera (front-facing)
  • 720p HD front-facing video camera
  • Windows Hello face authentication camera (front-facing)
  • 720p HD front-facing video camera
Audio
  • Dual microphones
  • OmniSonic stereo speakers with Dolby® Audio™ Premium
  • Dual far-field Studio Mics
  • OmniSonic stereo speakers with Dolby® Audio™ Premium

Misc

Surface Laptop 2Surface Laptop 3 15”
InkingSupports Surface Pen
4096 levels of pressure
Tilt sensing
Best in class latency
Supports Surface Pen
4096 levels of pressure
Tilt sensing
Best in class latency
Sensors
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Ambient light sensor
Security
  • HW TPM 2.0 chip for enterprise security
  • Enterprise-grade protection with Windows Hello face sign-in
  • HW TPM 2.0 chip for enterprise security
  • Enterprise-grade protection with Windows Hello face sign-in
In the box
  • Surface Laptop 2
  • Power supply
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Safety and warranty documents
  • Surface Laptop 3 15”
  • Power supply
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Safety and warranty documents
Warranty
  • One-year limited hardware warranty
  • Commercial: Advanced Exchange warranty service with expedited device replacement
  • One-year limited hardware warranty
  • Commercial: Advanced Exchange warranty service with expedited device replacement
MoreSupports Surface Dial
Supports off-screen interaction only
Supports Surface Dial
Supports off-screen interaction only

Key Features

Surface Laptop 2Surface Laptop 3 15”
At Glance
Released in Late
2018
3:2 2.2K
13.5”
1504p 60Hz
Weight
2.76 lb
1.25 kg
Up to
Intel Core i7-8650U
4C/8T, 1.90 → 4.20 GHz
Geekbench 5
1,106
Single Core
Geekbench 5
3,879
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® UHD Graphics 620
24 Execution Units, 300 → 1150 MHz
Configurable up to
16GB
1866 MHz LPDDR3
Surface Laptop 2 Ports
Released in Late
2019
3:2 2.5K
15”
1664p 60Hz
Weight
3.40 lb
1.54 kg
Up to
AMD Ryzen 7-3780U Microsoft Surface Edition
4C/8T, 2.30 → 4.00 GHz
Geekbench 5
721
Single Core
Geekbench 5
2,741
Multi-Core
With integrated
Radeon™ RX Vega 11 Graphics
11 Graphics Cores, 1400 MHz
Configurable up to
32GB
2400 MHz DDR4
Surface Laptop 3 15” Ports

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