Surface Laptop 3 vs. Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7: Which is better?

Here is a side by side comparison between Surface Laptop 3 and Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 specs including CPU, RAM, storage, battery, display, and more.

Surface Laptop 3 Pros

Reasons that Surface Laptop 3 is better than Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7.

Supports faster memory

Surface Laptop 3 supports a faster memory speed than the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7. It supports up to 3733MHz versus 2133MHz of system memory on the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7.

Memory type and speed
Surface Laptop 3 - LPDDR4X
3,733 MHz
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 - LPDDR3
2,133 MHz

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 Pros

Reasons that Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 is better than Surface Laptop 3.

Much faster CPU performance

Intel Core i7-10710U inside Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 has a 74% better multi-core CPU performance score than the AMD Ryzen 7-3780U Microsoft Surface Edition inside Surface Laptop 3.

Geekbench 5 multi-core score
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 - Intel Core i7-10710U
4,786
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 - Intel Core i7-8665U
4,209
Surface Laptop 3 - Intel Core i7-1065G7
3,722
Surface Laptop 3 - Intel Core i5-1035G7
3,691
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 - Intel Core i5-8365U
3,442
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 - Intel Core i7-10510U
2,942
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 - Intel Core i5-10210U
2,933
Surface Laptop 3 - AMD Ryzen 7-3780U Microsoft Surface Edition
2,741
Surface Laptop 3 - AMD Ryzen 5-3580U Microsoft Surface Edition
2,438
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 - Intel Core i7-8565U
2,327
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 - Intel Core i5-8265U
2,132
About 14% lighter

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 weighed 2.40 pounds, 14% lighter than the 2.79 pounds Surface Laptop 3.

WeightSurface Laptop 3Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7
Pound
2.79 lbs.
2.40 lbs.
Kilogram
1.27 kg
1.09 kg

Key Similars

Similar characteristics share between Surface Laptop 3 and Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7.

Supports the same maximum memory size of up to 16GB

Both laptops supports up to 16GB of system memory.

Max system memory size
Surface Laptop 3
16 GB
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7
16 GB

Prices

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

Surface Laptop 3 Price
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 13.5" Touch-Screen Intel Core i5-8GB Memory - 256GB Solid State Drive (PKX-00003) Matte Black (Renewed)
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 13.5" Touch-Screen Intel Core i5-8GB Memory - 256GB Solid State Drive (PKX-00003) Matte Black (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$299.00
$319.00 6% OFF
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 – 13.5" Touch-Screen – Intel Core i7 - 16GB Memory - 512GB Solid State Drive (Latest Model) – Platinum with Alcantara (Renewed)
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 – 13.5" Touch-Screen – Intel Core i7 - 16GB Memory - 512GB Solid State Drive (Latest Model) – Platinum with Alcantara (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$449.00
$489.99 8% OFF
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 13.5in Touchscreen Intel i5 8GB RAM 256GB SSD Win 10 (Renewed)
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 13.5in Touchscreen Intel i5 8GB RAM 256GB SSD Win 10 (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$264.00
$382.85 31% OFF
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 Price
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon 7th Generation Ultrabook, 14" FHD(1920x1080) Display, Intel Core i7-8650U, Up to 3.6GHz, 16GB DDR4 RAM, 512GB SSD, Backlit Keyboard, Fingerprint, Windows 10 Pro (Renewed)
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon 7th Generation Ultrabook, 14" FHD(1920x1080) Display, Intel Core i7-8650U, Up to 3.6GHz, 16GB DDR4 RAM, 512GB SSD, Backlit Keyboard, Fingerprint, Windows 10 Pro (Renewed)
By Lenovo
$380.99
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon 7th Gen Business Laptop, 14.0-inch FHD (1920 x 1080), 8th Gen Intel Core i7-8565U, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, Webcam, Fingerprint Reader, Windows 10 Pro (Renewed)
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon 7th Gen Business Laptop, 14.0-inch FHD (1920 x 1080), 8th Gen Intel Core i7-8565U, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, Webcam, Fingerprint Reader, Windows 10 Pro (Renewed)
By Lenovo
$327.99
$349.00 6% OFF
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon 7th Gen : 14-Inch fhd IPS Screen, 16GB RAM, 512GB Nvme SSD, Win 10 Pro, i7-8565U, Black
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon 7th Gen : 14-Inch fhd IPS Screen, 16GB RAM, 512GB Nvme SSD, Win 10 Pro, i7-8565U, Black
By Lenovo
$799.00

Availability

Surface Laptop 3Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7
Released20192019
Release Date
  • Introduced: October 2, 2019 (Microsoft October Event)
  • Pre-ordered: October 2, 2019
  • Released: October 22, 2019
-
Pricing
  • Surface Laptop 3 (13.5”) › Starting at 999$
  • Surface Laptop 3 (15”) › Starting at 1,199$
-

Exterior

Surface Laptop 3Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7
Dimensions
  • Surface Laptop 3 (13.5”)
    12.1” x 8.8” x 0.57” (308 mm x 223 mm x 14.5 mm).
  • Surface Laptop 3 (15”)
    13.4” x 9.6” x 0.57” (339.5 mm x 244 mm x 14.69 mm).
12.71” x 8.54” x 0.58” (323 x 217 x 14.95 mm)
Width: 12.71” (323 mm)
Depth: 8.54” (217 mm)
Height: 0.58” (14.95 mm)
Weight
  • Surface Laptop 3 (13.5”)
    • 2.84 lb (1,288 g)
      Sandstone and Matte Black
    • 2.79 lb (1,265 g)
      Cobalt Blue and Platinum
  • Surface Laptop 3 (15”)
    • 3.40 lb (1,542 g)
Starting at 2.40 lbs (1.08 kg)
Colors
  • Surface Laptop 3 (13.5”)
    • Metal
      Matte Black Sandstone
    • Alcantara
      Matte Black Platinum
  • Surface Laptop 3 (15”)
    • Metal
      Matte Black Platinum
Black
Keyboard and Trackpad
  • 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.
  • Spill-resistant, Backlit with white LED lighting keyboard.
  • Trackpad + TrackPoint® pointing device.

Display

Surface Laptop 3Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7
Size13.5 Inches14 Inches
Info
  • Surface Laptop 3 (13.5”)
    • Resolution: 2256 x 1504 (3.4M Pixels)
    • Pixel Per Inch: 201
  • Surface Laptop 3 (15”)
    • Resolution: 2496 x 1664 (4.15M Pixels)
    • Pixel Per Inch: 201
  • 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
  • 14” UHD (3840 x 2160)
    IPS, glossy, Dolby Vision™ HDR 400, 500 nits.
  • 14” WQHD (2560 x 1440)
    IPS, anti-glare, 300 nits.
  • 14” FHD (1920 x 1080)
    IPS, low power, anti-glare, 400 nits.
  • 14” FHD (1920 x 1080)
    IPS, PrivacyGuard, anti-glare, 400 nits.
  • 14” FHD (1920 x 1080)
    IPS, anti-glare, touchscreen, 300 nits.

Ports

Surface Laptop 3Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7
Surface Laptop 3 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
  • 2 x Thunderbolt™ 3
    Supports Power Delivery & DisplayPort.
  • 2 x USB 3.1 Gen 1
    Full-size USB-A ports always on.
  • 1 x Network extension for Ethernet/side mechanical docking
  • 1 x HDMI 1.4
  • 1 x Headphone / mic combo
  • 1 x WWAN slot
  • 1 x Power button
  • 1 x Kensington lock slot

Internal Specs

Surface Laptop 3Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7
Processor
  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
  1. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-8265U
    4 cores, 8 threads, 1.60 → 3.90 GHz, 6MB SmartCache, 15W
  2. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-8365U
    4 cores, 8 threads, 1.60 → 4.10 GHz, 6MB SmartCache, 15W
  3. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-8565U
    4 cores, 8 threads, 1.80 → 4.60 GHz, 8MB SmartCache, 15W
  4. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-8665U
    4 cores, 8 threads, 1.90 → 4.80 GHz, 8MB SmartCache, 15W
  5. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-10210U
    4 cores, 8 threads, 1.60 → 4.20 GHz, 6MB SmartCache, 15W
  6. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-10510U
    4 cores, 8 threads, 1.80 → 4.90 GHz, 8MB SmartCache, 15W
  7. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-10710U
    6 cores, 12 threads, 1.10 → 4.70 GHz, 12MB SmartCache, 15W
Integrated Graphics
  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
  1. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-8265U
    Intel® UHD Graphics 620
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1100 MHz
  2. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-8365U
    Intel® UHD Graphics 620
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1100 MHz
  3. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-8565U
    Intel® UHD Graphics 620
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1150 MHz
  4. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-8665U
    Intel® UHD Graphics 620
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1150 MHz
  5. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-10210U
    Intel® UHD Graphics
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1100 MHz
  6. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-10510U
    Intel® UHD Graphics
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1150 MHz
  7. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-10710U
    Intel® UHD Graphics
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1150 MHz
Memory
  • Surface Laptop 3 (13.5”)
    • 8GB 16GB
      3733 MHz LPDDR4X RAM
  • Surface Laptop 3 (15”)
    • 8GB 16GB
      2400 MHz DDR4 RAM
  • 8GB 16GB
    2133 MHz Dual-channel LPDDR3 SRAM.
Storage
128 GB 256 GB 512 GB 1 TB
Removable M.2 NVMe SSD
  • 256 GB 512 GB 1 TB
    M.2 2280 PCIe NVMe (Replaceable).

Connectivity

Surface Laptop 3Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7
Wi-Fi
  • Surface Laptop 3 (13.5”) Wi-Fi 6: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax compatible.
  • Surface Laptop 3 (15”) Wi-Fi 5: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac compatible.
  • Intel Wireless-AC 9560 2x2 AC
    Up to 867 Mbps, Dual band 2.4 GHz/5 GHz, 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac.
Bluetooth
  • Bluetooth Wireless 5.0 technology
  • Bluetooth 5.0

Battery

Surface Laptop 3Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7
Size45.8 Wh
  • 4-cell smart lithium-ion
  • Battery Capacity: 51 Wh
Battery LifeUp to 11.5 hours of typical device usage
  • Up to 18.3 hours
* Tested with MobileMark 2014
Power Supply
  • 60W power supply with USB-A (5W) (65W total)
  • Supports Fast Charge (0-80% in about one hour)
65 W USB (Type-C) power adapter
Supports Rapid Charge.

Software

Surface Laptop 3Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7
OS
  • For Consumer: Windows 10 Home
  • For Commercial: Windows 10 Pro
Free upgrade to Windows 11
  • Windows 10 Home 64-bit
Built-in AppsMicrosoft Office 365 30-days trial
  • Lenovo Vantage

Camera & Audio

Surface Laptop 3Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7
Camera
  • Windows Hello face authentication camera (front-facing)
  • 720p HD front-facing video camera
  • Front-facing camera
    720p (1280 x 720 HD) camera.
  • IR & 720p HD Camera with microphone
Audio
  • Dual far-field Studio Mics
  • OmniSonic stereo speakers with Dolby® Audio™ Premium
  • Dolby Atmos™ Speaker System
  • 4 x 360-degree far-field microphones

Misc

Surface Laptop 3Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7
InkingSupports Surface Pen
4096 levels of pressure
Tilt sensing
Best in class latency
-
Sensors
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Windows Hello compliant fingerprint reader on the palm rest
  • Optional IR Camera
  • Ambient light sensor
Security
  • HW TPM 2.0 chip for enterprise security
  • Enterprise-grade protection with Windows Hello face sign-in
  • Fast Identity Online (FIDO) authentication capabilities
  • Match-on-Chip Fingerprint Reader
  • dTPM 2.0 chip
  • ThinkShutter camera cover
  • Optional: ThinkPad PrivacyGuard
  • Optional: ThinkPad PrivacyAlert*
  • Optional IR Camera
  • Kensington lock slot
In the box
  • Surface Laptop 3
  • Power supply
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Safety and warranty documents
-
Warranty
  • One-year limited hardware warranty
  • Commercial: Advanced Exchange warranty service with expedited device replacement
-
MoreSupports Surface Dial
Supports off-screen interaction only
-

Key Features

Surface Laptop 3Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7
At Glance
Released in
2019
3:2 2.5K
13.5”
1664p 60Hz
Weight
2.79 lb
1.27 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
16GB
3733 MHz LPDDR4X
Surface Laptop 3 Ports
Released in
2019
16:9 4K UHD
14”
2160p 60Hz
Weight
2.40 lb
1.09 kg
Up to
Intel Core i7-10710U
6C/12T, 1.10 → 4.70 GHz
Geekbench 5
1,051
Single Core
Geekbench 5
4,786
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® UHD Graphics
24 Execution Units, 300 → 1150 MHz
Configurable up to
16GB
2133 MHz LPDDR3

Comparison Summary

Surface Laptop 3 vs. Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7

Microsoft has released the Surface Laptop 3, a 13.5-inch machine, in 2019. It is powered by up to a quad-core AMD Ryzen 7-3780U Microsoft Surface Edition with a boost clock speed up to 4.00 GHz. The laptop has an integrated graphics option up to Radeon™ RX Vega 11 Graphics (11 Graphics Cores, 1400 MHz).

On the other hand, we have the 14-inch ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 was introduced by Lenovo around the same time in 2019. It comes with up to a hexa-core Intel Core i7-10710U with a boost clock speed up to 4.70 GHz. It has an integrated graphics option up to Intel® UHD Graphics (24 Execution Units, 300 → 1150 MHz).

Geekbench 5 Single Core

Surface Laptop 31
10th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1035G71,00288.36%
2
10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1065G71,08895.94%
3
AMD Ryzen™ 5 3580U Microsoft Surface® Edition70361.99%
4
AMD Ryzen™ 7 3780U Microsoft Surface® Edition72163.58%
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 71
8th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-8265U64556.88%
2
8th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-8365U1,04992.50%
3
8th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-8565U80470.90%
4
8th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-8665U1,134100.00%
5
10th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-10210U94483.25%
6
10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-10510U95784.39%
7
10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-10710U1,05192.68%
01,134

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

Surface Laptop 31
10th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1035G73,69177.12%
2
10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1065G73,72277.77%
3
AMD Ryzen™ 5 3580U Microsoft Surface® Edition2,43850.94%
4
AMD Ryzen™ 7 3780U Microsoft Surface® Edition2,74157.27%
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 71
8th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-8265U2,13244.55%
2
8th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-8365U3,44271.92%
3
8th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-8565U2,32748.62%
4
8th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-8665U4,20987.94%
5
10th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-10210U2,93361.28%
6
10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-10510U2,94261.47%
7
10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-10710U4,786100.00%
04,786

The Surface Laptop 3 has a 13.5-inch display which is slightly smaller than the 14-inch Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7. In addition, the Surface Laptop 3 weighs 2.79 lbs. about 16% heavier than the 2.40 lbs. Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7. Moreover, measured at 12.13” x 8.79” x 0.57”, the Surface Laptop 3 is slightly more portable than the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7 at 12.71” x 8.54” x 0.58”.

Surface Laptop 3Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7

Moving over to upgradability, Microsoft claims that the Surface Laptop 3 supports up to 16GB 3733 MHz LPDDR4X 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 Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 7, it supports up to 16GB 2133 MHz LPDDR3 memory. Like Surface Laptop 3, it has an onboard memory module that is not upgradable by the users. Luckily, it has a single removable M.2 SSD slot that users can replace or upgrade when needed.

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