Surface Pro 4 vs. MacBook Air 11” 2015: Full specs comparison

We have comprehensively compared the specifications for the Surface Pro 4 and MacBook Air 11” 2015 models. The report includes detailed information regarding both models' CPU, memory, storage, battery life, display quality, and other features.

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Surface Pro 4

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MacBook Air 11” 2015 image

MacBook Air 11” 2015

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Surface Pro 4 Pros

Reasons that Surface Pro 4 is better than MacBook Air 11” 2015.

Slightly faster CPU performance

Intel Core i7-6650U inside Surface Pro 4 has a 14% better multi-core CPU performance score than the Intel Core i7-5650U inside MacBook Air 11” 2015.

Geekbench 5 multi-core score
Surface Pro 4 - Intel Core i7-6650U
1,757
MacBook Air 11” 2015 - Intel Core i7-5650U
1,538
Surface Pro 4 - Intel Core i5-6300U
1,319
MacBook Air 11” 2015 - Intel Core i5-5250U
1,266
Surface Pro 4 - Intel Core m3-6Y30
1,058
Supports larger memory

Surface Pro 4 supports a larger memory capacity than the MacBook Air 11” 2015. It supports up to 16GB versus 8GB of system memory on the MacBook Air 11” 2015.

Max system memory size
Surface Pro 4
16 GB
MacBook Air 11” 2015
8 GB
Supports faster memory

Surface Pro 4 supports a faster memory speed than the MacBook Air 11” 2015. It supports up to 1866MHz versus 1600MHz of system memory on the MacBook Air 11” 2015.

Memory type and speed
Surface Pro 4 - LPDDR3
1,866 MHz
MacBook Air 11” 2015 - LPDDR3
1,600 MHz
6% larger display

Surface Pro 4 has a 12.3-inch screen size 6% larger than the 11.6-inch MacBook Air 11” 2015.

Display size
Surface Pro 4
12.3-inch
MacBook Air 11” 2015
11.6-inch
About 29% lighter

Surface Pro 4 weighed 1.69 pounds, 29% lighter than the 2.38 pounds MacBook Air 11” 2015.

WeightSurface Pro 4MacBook Air 11” 2015
Pound
1.69 lbs.
2.38 lbs.
Kilogram
0.77 kg
1.08 kg

MacBook Air 11” 2015 Pros

We couldn't find any advantages of MacBook Air 11” 2015 over Surface Pro 4.

Prices

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

Surface Pro 4 Price
Latest Microsoft Surface Pro 4 (2736 x 1824) Tablet 6th Generation (Intel Core i5-6300U, 8GB Ram, 256GB SSD, Bluetooth, Dual Camera) Windows 10 Professional (Renewed)
 Latest Microsoft Surface Pro 4 (2736 x 1824) Tablet 6th Generation (Intel Core i5-6300U, 8GB Ram, 256GB SSD, Bluetooth, Dual Camera) Windows 10 Professional (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$299.00
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Microsoft Surface Pro 4 (Intel Core M, 4GB RAM, 128GB) with Windows 10 Anniversary Update (Renewed)
 Microsoft Surface Pro 4 (Intel Core M, 4GB RAM, 128GB) with Windows 10 Anniversary Update (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$206.99
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Microsoft Surface Pro 4 128 GB, 4 GB RAM, Intel Core i5 (Renewed)
 Microsoft Surface Pro 4 128 GB, 4 GB RAM, Intel Core i5 (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$204.00
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MacBook Air 11” 2015 Price
Apple Macbook Air MJVM2LL/A Intel i5 1.6GHz 8GB 128GB (Renewed)
 Apple Macbook Air MJVM2LL/A Intel i5 1.6GHz 8GB 128GB (Renewed)
By Apple
$219.99
$235.00 6% OFF
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Early 2015 Apple MacBook Air with 1.6GHz Intel Core i5 (13.3 inch, 8GB RAM, 256GB) Silver (Renewed)
 Early 2015 Apple MacBook Air with 1.6GHz Intel Core i5 (13.3 inch, 8GB RAM, 256GB) Silver (Renewed)
By Apple
$228.20
$285.00 20% OFF
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Apple MacBook Air MJVP2LL/A 11.6-Inch 256GB Laptop (Renewed)
 Apple MacBook Air MJVP2LL/A 11.6-Inch 256GB Laptop (Renewed)
By Apple
$239.99
$254.99 6% OFF
See at Amazon

Specs Comparison

Availability

Surface Pro 4MacBook Air 11” 2015
Released20152015
Release Date
  • Introduced: October 7, 2015
  • Pre-ordered: October 7, 2015
  • Released: October 26, 2015
  • Available on March 10, 2015
PricingStarting at 899$
  • $899
    Intel Core i5 5250U | 4GB RAM | 128GB SSD
  • $1,099
    Intel Core i5 5250U | 4GB RAM | 256GB SSD
Generations-

Exterior

Surface Pro 4MacBook Air 11” 2015
Dimensions11.50” x 7.93” x 0.33” (292 mm x 201.42 mm x 8.4 mm)
Width: 11.50” (292 mm)
Height: 7.93” (201.42 mm)
Thickness: 0.33” (8.4 mm)
11.8” x 7.56” x 0.11 - 0.68” (300 mm x 192 mm x 3 - 17 mm)
Weight
  • Intel Core m3: 1.69 lbs (766 g)
  • Intel Core i5 and i7: 1.73 lbs (786 g)
Starting at 2.38 pounds (1.08 kg)
Colors
Silver
Silver
Keyboard and Trackpad
  • Surface Type Cover
    • Not included
    • Weight: 0.68 lb (310 g)
    • Dimension: 11.61 x 8.54 x 0.19 inches (295 mm x 216 mm x 5mm)
  • Keyboard:
    • Activation: Moving (mechanical) keys
    • Layout: QWERTY, full row of function keys (F1-F12)
    • 4 directional keys; Windows, Brightness and Media Controls Keys;
    • LED backlighting
  • Trackpad:
    • Precision glass trackpad.
    • Trackpad size: 4 x 2 inches (101.6 mm x 50.8 mm)
    • Supports a five-finger multitouch gesture.
Full-size backlit keyboard with:
  • 78 (U.S.) or 79 (ISO) keys, including 12 function keys and 4 arrow keys (inverted “T” arrangement) with ambient light sensor
  • Multi-Touch trackpad for precise cursor control; supports inertial scrolling, pinch, rotate, swipe, three-finger swipe, four-finger swipe, tap, double-tap, and drag capabilities

Display

Surface Pro 4MacBook Air 11” 2015
Size12.3 Inches11.6 Inches
Info
  • Resolution: 2736 x 1824 (5M Pixels)
  • Density: 267 PPI
  • PixelSense™ Display
  • Contrast ratio: 1300:1
  • Aspect ratio: 3:2
  • Inking: designed together with Surface Pen
  • Touch: 10 points multi-touch with GPU-based processing
  • 100 percent sRGB color, individually calibrated
  • 11.6-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit glossy widescreen display with support for millions of colors
  • Supported resolutions: 1366 by 768 (native), 1344 by 756, and 1280 by 720 pixels at 16:9 aspect ratio; 1152 by 720 and 1024 by 640 pixels at 16:10 aspect ratio; 1024 by 768 and 800 by 600 pixels at 4:3 aspect ratio

Ports

Surface Pro 4MacBook Air 11” 2015
Surface Pro 4 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
  • 1 x Thunderbolt 2 port
    Supports data transfers up to 20 Gbps.
  • 2 x USB 3.0 ports
    Supports data transfers up to 5 Gbps.
  • 1 x 3.5 mm headphone jack
  • 1 x MagSafe 2 power port

Internal Specs

Surface Pro 4MacBook Air 11” 2015
Processor
  1. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ m3-6Y30
    2 cores, 4 threads, 0.90 → 2.20 GHz, 4MB SmartCache, 4.5W
  2. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-6300U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 2.40 → 3.00 GHz, 3MB SmartCache, 15W
  3. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-6650U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 2.20 → 3.40 GHz, 4MB SmartCache, 15W
  1. 5th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-5250U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 1.60 → 2.70 GHz, 3MB Cache, 15W
  2. 5th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-5350U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 2.20 → 3.10 GHz, 4MB Cache, 15W
Integrated Graphics
  1. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ m3-6Y30
    Intel® HD Graphics 515
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 850 MHz
  2. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-6300U
    Intel® HD Graphics 520
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1000 MHz
  3. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-6650U
    Intel® Iris® Graphics 540
    48 Execution Units with 64 MB eDRAM side cache, 300 → 1050 MHz
  1. 5th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-5250U
    Intel® HD Graphics 6000
    48 Execution Units, 300 → 950 MHz
  2. 5th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-5350U
    Intel® HD Graphics 6000
    48 Execution Units, 300 → 1000 MHz
Memory
4GB 8GB 16GB
1866 MHz LPDDR3 RAM
4GB
Configurable to 8GB 1600MHz LPDDR3 onboard memory
Storage
128 GB 256 GB 512 GB 1 TB
PCIe NVMe SSD
128GB 256GB
Configurable to 512GB flash storage.

Connectivity

Surface Pro 4MacBook Air 11” 2015
Wi-Fi
  • Wi-Fi 5: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac compatible.
  • 802.11ac Wi‑Fi wireless networking
  • IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n compatible
Bluetooth
  • Bluetooth Wireless 4.0 technology
Bluetooth 4.0 wireless technology

Battery

Surface Pro 4MacBook Air 11” 2015
Size38.2 Wh38 Wh lithium‑polymer battery
Battery LifeUp to 9 hours of video playback
  • Up to 9 hours of wireless web
  • Up to 10 hours of iTunes movie playback
  • Up to 30 days of standby time
Power Supply
  • 36W proprietary power supply
    • USB-A output: 5W
    • Surface Connect: 31W
45W MagSafe 2 Power Adapter
With cable management system; MagSafe 2 power port.

Software

Surface Pro 4MacBook Air 11” 2015
OSWindows 10 ProShipped with OS X El Capitan
Built-in AppsMicrosoft Office 30-days trial
Photos iMovie GarageBand Pages Numbers Keynote Safari Mail Messages FaceTime Calendar Notes App Store iTunes iBooks Maps Contacts Reminders

Camera & Audio

Surface Pro 4MacBook Air 11” 2015
Camera
  • 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
720p FaceTime HD camera
Audio
  • Dual microphones
  • Front-facing stereo speakers with Dolby® Audio
  • Stereo speakers
  • Dual microphones
  • Headphone port
  • Support for Apple iPhone headset with remote and microphone

Misc

Surface Pro 4MacBook Air 11” 2015
InkingSupports Surface Pen
1024 levels of pressure
magnetic storage
-
Sensors
  • 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 Pro 4
  • Surface Pen
  • Power supply
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Safety and warranty documents
  • MacBook Air 11″
  • Power adapter
  • AC wall plug
  • Power cord
Warranty
  • One-year limited hardware warranty
Limited Warranty and ServiceYour MacBook Air comes with 90 days of free telephone support and a one-year limited warranty. Purchase the AppleCare Protection Plan to extend your service and support to three years from your computer’s purchase date. Only the AppleCare Protection Plan provides you with direct telephone support from Apple technical experts and the assurance that repairs will be handled by Apple-authorized technicians using genuine Apple parts. For more information, visit Apple Support or call 800-823-2775.
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
Video Support
  • Dual display and video mirroring: Simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display and up to 3840 by 2160 pixels on an external display, both at millions of colors
  • Thunderbolt digital video output
    • Native Mini DisplayPort output
    • DVI output using Mini DisplayPort to DVI Adapter (sold separately)
    • VGA output using Mini DisplayPort to VGA Adapter (sold separately)
    • Dual-link DVI output using Mini DisplayPort to Dual-Link DVI Adapter (sold separately)
    • HDMI audio and video output using third-party Mini DisplayPort to HDMI Adapter (sold separately)

Key Features

Surface Pro 4MacBook Air 11” 2015
At Glance
Released in Mid
2015
3:2 2.7K
12.3”
1824p 60Hz
Weight
1.69 lb
0.77 kg
Up to
Intel Core i7-6650U
2C/4T, 2.20 → 3.40 GHz
Geekbench 5
764
Single Core
Geekbench 5
1,757
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® Iris® Graphics 540
48 Execution Units with 64 MB eDRAM side cache, 300 → 1050 MHz
Configurable up to
16GB
1866 MHz LPDDR3
Surface Pro 4 Ports
Released in Early
2015
16:10 HD+
11.6”
756p 60Hz
Weight
2.38 lb
1.08 kg
Up to
Intel Core i7-5650U
2C/4T, 2.20 → 3.10 GHz
Geekbench 5
737
Single Core
Geekbench 5
1,538
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® HD Graphics 6000
48 Execution Units, 300 → 1000 MHz
Up to
8GB
1600 MHz LPDDR3

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