Verdict - Surface Laptop 15 is better with Intel
The Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 is a good multimedia laptop and the Intel version offers more GPU performance, better compatibility with apps and games as well as Thunderbolt 4 connectivity. The raw CPU performance is probably better on the Snapdragon SKU, but the overall package of the Intel version with the superior iGPU is definitely better for the majority of users. Microsoft's approach with Snapdragon models for private users is wrong in our opinion and we think users should be able to choose with competitive prices, which is usually not the case with the business models (even though they can be purchased by private users as well).
We like the premium build quality, the comfortable keyboard, good speakers and the webcam quality. It is also one of the few premium devices with an IPS touchscreen. It offers good image quality with accurate colors, 120 Hz and there is no PWM flickering, which is great when you are sensitive to the flickering on OLED screens. The battery runtime of the Intel SKU is also very good (Microsoft actually advertises slightly shorter battery runtimes for the Snapdragon model).
This does not mean the Surface Laptop 15 is the perfect device, because there are definitely issues. The cooling performance with the single fan is not great and the sustained performance suffers a bit. It was fine for the old Lunar Lake processor, but it cannot utilize the full potential of the fast Panther Lake chip. The 65W power adapter is also insufficient under load, at least for a few minutes before the performance is reduced. We would also like regular M.2-2280 SSDs since there is plenty of free space inside the chassis. The Surface Connect port is quite large and we would prefer another USB-C port and maybe a regular SD-card reader instead of microSD. The prices for RAM and storage upgrades are also astronomical.
All in all, the Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 is a good multimedia laptop and the Intel version is the better choice for most users, but rivals like the Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p offer better overall packages. We hope Microsoft will update the device next year and fix some of the mentioned issues and not only focus on the upcoming Surface Laptop Ultra with RTX Spark.
Pros
Cons
Price and Availability
You can order the Surface Laptop 8 15 for Business with the Core Ultra X CPU directly from Microsoft starting from $2749.99.
- $238.94Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 15" Touch-Screen - CORE I5 1035G7 - 8GB Memory - 128GB Solid State Drive Platinum (Renewed)
- $483.98Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 13.5" Touchscreen Notebook - 2256 x 1504 - Intel Core i7 12th Gen i7-1265U - Intel Evo Platform - 16 GB Total RAM - 512 GB SSD (Platinum) (Renewed)
- $685.00Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 15” Touch-Screen – Intel Core i7 - 32GB - 1TB Solid State Drive - Matte Black
Specifications
Case, Connectivity and Input Devices
Microsoft did not change the chassis of the Surface Laptop 15, so you still get a premium aluminum chassis with excellent stability and build quality. The typing experience is very comfortable and the haptic trackpad works very well, even though it could be a bit larger. The screen is also very stable, but the hinges could be a bit firmer. Our silver review unit does not show fingerprints. The internals are easy to access and you can replace the M.2-2242 SSD, but you also notice that there is plenty of unused space, which could either be used for additional ports, a regular M.2-2280 SSD or an additional cooling fan.
The Intel model offers dual Thunderbolt 4 ports (Snapdragon only USB 4) and can even be equipped with a SmartCard reader. The Surface Connect port on the right side is a bit outdated in our opinion and is also quite large; we would have preferred an additional USB-C port and maybe a regular SD-card reader. The microSD version is still very fast (transfer rates up to 834 MB/s) thanks to SD-Express support and the camera quality is very good. The Wi-Fi 7 module manages stable transfer rates.
| SD Card Reader | |
| average JPG Copy Test (av. of 3 runs) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 (SanDisk microSD Express 256 GB) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 (Angelbird AV Pro V60) | |
| Average of class Multimedia (22.3 - 567, n=34, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake (Angelbird AV Pro V60) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| maximum AS SSD Seq Read Test (1GB) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 (SanDisk microSD Express 256 GB) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 (Angelbird AV Pro V60) | |
| Average of class Multimedia (37.3 - 1455, n=33, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake (Angelbird AV Pro V60) | |
| Networking | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| iperf3 transmit Wi-Fi6/7 RT-BE96U | |
| iperf3 receive Wi-Fi6/7 RT-BE96U | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| iperf3 transmit Wi-Fi6/7 RT-BE96U | |
| iperf3 receive Wi-Fi6/7 RT-BE96U | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 6GHz | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6GHz | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
Display - IPS touchscreen with higher resolution
Microsoft has updated the glossy IPS touchscreen. The aspect ratio is still 3:2, but the resolution is higher at 3270 x 2180 pixels. The subjective image impression is very good with crisp images and rich colors, but black levels obviously cannot compete with OLED rivals. The panel supports 120 Hz, but we still notice some ghosting due to slow response times. There is no PWM flickering and we backlight bleeding is no issue, either. The screen is very glossy, which is a real challenge outdoors and in bright environments. Both the brightness and the color can be adjusted automatically.
Our analysis with the professional CalMAN software reveals accurate colors out of the box (accurate profiles for sRGB and P3) and the contrast ratio is better than advertised at ~1800:1, but the maximum brightness is lower compared to last year's model. We measure up to 537 nits and 520 on average. HDR is supported, but the brightness is not increased.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Brightness Distribution: 93 %
Center on Battery: 537 cd/m²
Contrast: 1852:1 (Black: 0.29 cd/m²)
ΔE ColorChecker Calman: 1 | ∀{0.5-29.43 Ø4.69}
ΔE Greyscale Calman: 1.6 | ∀{0.09-98 Ø4.94}
86.3% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 3D)
100% sRGB (Argyll 3D)
97.9% Display P3 (Argyll 3D)
Gamma: 2.2
CCT: 6804 K
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 LP150UD2-SPA1, IPS, 3270x2180, 15", 120 Hz | Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 ATNA53JB03-0, OLED, 2880x1800, 15.3", 120 Hz | Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 ATNA60HR07-0, OLED, 2880x1800, 16", 120 Hz | Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H LG Philips 160WV1, OLED, 3200x2000, 16", 120 Hz | Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 IPS, 2880x1864, 15.3", 60 Hz | Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake LQ150P1JX61, IPS, 2496x1664, 15", 120 Hz | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Display | 3% | 2% | 5% | -1% | 0% | |
| HDR Peak Brightness (cd/m²) | 518 | |||||
| Display P3 Coverage (%) | 97.9 | 99.1 1% | 99.8 2% | 99.5 2% | 97.5 0% | 98.1 0% |
| sRGB Coverage (%) | 100 | 100 0% | 100 0% | 100 0% | 98.3 -2% | 100 0% |
| AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage (%) | 86.3 | 94.3 9% | 89 3% | 96.5 12% | 86.3 0% | 87.2 1% |
| Response Times | 96% | 97% | 98% | 34% | 30% | |
| Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * (ms) | 45.7 | 1.1 ? 98% | 2 ? 96% | 0.65 ? 99% | 26.9 ? 41% | 33.4 ? 27% |
| Response Time Black / White * (ms) | 21.5 | 1.4 ? 93% | 0.48 ? 98% | 0.87 ? 96% | 15.9 ? 26% | 14.7 ? 32% |
| PWM Frequency (Hz) | 1194 ? | 960 ? | 240.2 ? | |||
| PWM Amplitude * (%) | 35 | 56 | 31 | |||
| Screen | -112% | 152% | -95% | -46% | 18% | |
| Brightness middle (cd/m²) | 537 | 489 -9% | 493 -8% | 395.4 -26% | 538 0% | 599 12% |
| Brightness (cd/m²) | 520 | 492 -5% | 495 -5% | 392 -25% | 521 0% | 590 13% |
| Brightness Distribution (%) | 93 | 98 5% | 98 5% | 95 2% | 90 -3% | 93 0% |
| Black Level * (cd/m²) | 0.29 | 0.02 93% | 0.44 -52% | 0.4 -38% | ||
| Contrast (:1) | 1852 | 24650 1231% | 1223 -34% | 1498 -19% | ||
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 1 | 4.6 -360% | 1.1 -10% | 3.69 -269% | 2.1 -110% | 0.5 50% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 2.4 | 8.2 -242% | 3.9 -63% | 7.94 -231% | 4.1 -71% | 0.9 62% |
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 1.6 | 2.6 -63% | 2.1 -31% | 1.9 -19% | 3.1 -94% | 0.6 63% |
| Gamma | 2.2 100% | 2.18 101% | 2.15 102% | 2.28 96% | 2.19 100% | 2.16 102% |
| CCT | 6804 96% | 6334 103% | 6544 99% | 6274 104% | 7075 92% | 6543 99% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 calibrated * | 5 | 0.68 | 0.7 | |||
| Total Average (Program / Settings) | -4% /
-43% | 84% /
109% | 3% /
-33% | -4% /
-23% | 16% /
16% |
* ... smaller is better
Display Response Times
| ↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
|---|---|---|
| 21.5 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ ms rise |  |
| ↘ ms fall | ||
| The screen shows good response rates in our tests, but may be too slow for competitive gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 48 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is similar to the average of all tested devices (19.7 ms). | ||
| ↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey | ||
| 45.7 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ ms rise |  |
| ↘ ms fall | ||
| The screen shows slow response rates in our tests and will be unsatisfactory for gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.13 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 79 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (30.7 ms). | ||
Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)
| Screen flickering / PWM not detected |  | ||
In comparison: 52 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 7611 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 343500) Hz was measured. | |||
Performance - Intel Core Ultra X7
Testing Conditions
We used Best Performance mode for our benchmarks and measurements.
Processor Performance
The Intel Core Ultra X7 368H is one of the fastest Panther Lake mobile processors and it can consume 65/35 Watts. This is not great for a 15-inch laptop and the multi-core performance could be a bit better. However, Panther Lake has a bigger focus on efficiency and not raw multi-core performance. The performance is very similar to the Dell XPS 16 with comparable power limits. The Snapdragon model uses Snapdragon X2 Plus or X2 Elite (X2E-78-100) CPUs, which should offer slightly more multi-core CPU performance.
Cinebench 2024: CPU Multi Core | CPU Single Core
Geekbench 6.7: Multi-Core | Single-Core
| CPU Performance rating | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 -2! | |
| Microsoft Surface Pro 13 OLED | |
| Average of class Multimedia | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 8 13.8 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Cinebench 2024 / CPU Multi Core | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (327 - 2490, n=61, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Pro 13 OLED | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (960 - 1104, n=2) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 8 13.8 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Cinebench 2024 / CPU Single Core | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 8 13.8 | |
| Microsoft Surface Pro 13 OLED | |
| Average of class Multimedia (72.5 - 201, n=55, last 2 years) | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (127.1 - 128.8, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Geekbench 6.7 / Multi-Core | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (4983 - 30057, n=61, last 2 years) | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (12050 - 17352, n=4) | |
| Microsoft Surface Pro 13 OLED | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 8 13.8 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Geekbench 6.7 / Single-Core | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Microsoft Surface Pro 13 OLED | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 8 13.8 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (1591 - 4336, n=61, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (2924 - 2983, n=3) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
Cinebench R15 Multi Loop
Cinebench R23: Multi Core | Single Core
Cinebench R20: CPU (Multi Core) | CPU (Single Core)
Cinebench R15: CPU Multi 64Bit | CPU Single 64Bit
Blender: v2.79 BMW27 CPU
7-Zip 18.03: 7z b 4 | 7z b 4 -mmt1
HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2: 4k Preset
LibreOffice : 20 Documents To PDF
R Benchmark 2.5: Overall mean
| CPU Performance rating | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average of class Multimedia | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 -1! | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Cinebench R23 / Multi Core | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (17052 - 17350, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (4861 - 33362, n=60, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Cinebench R23 / Single Core | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (2140 - 2169, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (1237 - 2459, n=59, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Cinebench R20 / CPU (Multi Core) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (6681 - 7938, n=2) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (1887 - 12912, n=51, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Cinebench R20 / CPU (Single Core) | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (809 - 820, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average of class Multimedia (482 - 833, n=51, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Cinebench R15 / CPU Multi 64Bit | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (2976 - 3156, n=2) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average of class Multimedia (856 - 5224, n=56, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Cinebench R15 / CPU Single 64Bit | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (308 - 323, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Average of class Multimedia (184.8 - 326, n=53, last 2 years) | |
| Blender / v2.79 BMW27 CPU | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Average of class Multimedia (100 - 557, n=52, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (179 - 203, n=2) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| 7-Zip 18.03 / 7z b 4 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (62173 - 63679, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (26062 - 130368, n=49, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| 7-Zip 18.03 / 7z b 4 -mmt1 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (6434 - 6637, n=2) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Average of class Multimedia (4526 - 7337, n=50, last 2 years) | |
| HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2 / 4k Preset | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average of class Multimedia (6.08 - 36.1, n=50, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (14.1 - 18.7, n=2) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| LibreOffice / 20 Documents To PDF | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Average of class Multimedia (23.9 - 72.5, n=51, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (39.1 - 40.5, n=2) | |
| R Benchmark 2.5 / Overall mean | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Average of class Multimedia (0.3903 - 0.609, n=50, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (0.4137 - 0.4144, n=2) | |
* ... smaller is better
AIDA64: FP32 Ray-Trace | FPU Julia | CPU SHA3 | CPU Queen | FPU SinJulia | FPU Mandel | CPU AES | CPU ZLib | FP64 Ray-Trace | CPU PhotoWorxx | CPU CheckMate
| Performance rating | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 -1! | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H -1! | |
| Average of class Multimedia | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H -1! | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 -1! | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 -1! | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake -1! | |
| AIDA64 / FP32 Ray-Trace | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Average of class Multimedia (2214 - 50388, n=48, last 2 years) | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (15419 - 17245, n=2) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H (v8.20.8100) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake (v6.92.6600) | |
| AIDA64 / FPU Julia | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (84167 - 90689, n=2) | |
| Average of class Multimedia (12867 - 201874, n=48, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H (v8.20.8100) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake (v6.92.6600) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 (v8.20.8100) | |
| AIDA64 / CPU SHA3 | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (4052 - 4537, n=2) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H (v8.20.8100) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Average of class Multimedia (626 - 8623, n=48, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake (v6.92.6600) | |
| AIDA64 / CPU Queen | |
| Average of class Multimedia (13483 - 181505, n=31, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake (v6.92.6600) | |
| AIDA64 / FPU SinJulia | |
| Average of class Multimedia (886 - 28794, n=48, last 2 years) | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (6765 - 7511, n=2) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H (v8.20.8100) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake (v6.92.6600) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 (v8.20.8100) | |
| AIDA64 / FPU Mandel | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (44784 - 48562, n=2) | |
| Average of class Multimedia (6395 - 105740, n=48, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H (v8.20.8100) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake (v6.92.6600) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 (v8.20.8100) | |
| AIDA64 / CPU AES | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Average of class Multimedia (8171 - 126790, n=48, last 2 years) | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (58572 - 68180, n=2) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H (v8.20.8100) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake (v6.92.6600) | |
| AIDA64 / CPU ZLib | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H (v8.20.8100) | |
| Average of class Multimedia (143.8 - 2022, n=48, last 2 years) | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (803 - 1130, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake (v6.92.6600) | |
| AIDA64 / FP64 Ray-Trace | |
| Average of class Multimedia (1014 - 26875, n=48, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (8151 - 9131, n=2) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H (v8.20.8100) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake (v6.92.6600) | |
| AIDA64 / CPU PhotoWorxx | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H (v8.20.8100) | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (75761 - 84065, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake (v6.92.6600) | |
| Average of class Multimedia (8187 - 88533, n=48, last 2 years) | |
| AIDA64 / CPU CheckMate | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (4328 - 4613, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 (v8.20.8100) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H (v8.20.8100) | |
| Average of class Multimedia (569 - 4742, n=20, last 2 years) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 (v8.20.8100) | |
System and Storage Devices
Overall system performance is excellent and we did not notice any stability issues, either. There are obviously no compatibility issues with the Intel SKU, which is an advantage over the Snapdragon version. Our review unit only offers 16 GB RAM, but we did not experience any issues and if you keep it light with multi-tasking, this cheaper version should be fine. 32 GB would obviously be better (you can configure up to 64 GB), but additional prices are high. Our latency test revealed some issues for real-time audio applications. The SSD performance (PCIe 4.0) is good and stable.
PCMark 10: Score | Essentials | Productivity | Digital Content Creation
CrossMark: Overall | Productivity | Creativity | Responsiveness
WebXPRT 3: Overall
WebXPRT 4: Overall
Mozilla Kraken 1.1: Total
| Performance rating | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 -4! | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 -4! | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H, Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average of class Multimedia | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| PCMark 10 / Score | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H, Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU (9923 - 10456, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (4325 - 10386, n=48, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| PCMark 10 / Essentials | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H, Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU (11288 - 11715, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Average of class Multimedia (8025 - 11664, n=47, last 2 years) | |
| PCMark 10 / Productivity | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H, Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU (17463 - 18738, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (7323 - 18233, n=47, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| PCMark 10 / Digital Content Creation | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H, Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU (13454 - 14129, n=2) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (3738 - 16240, n=47, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| CrossMark / Overall | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H, Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU (2032 - 2182, n=2) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (866 - 3231, n=56, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| CrossMark / Productivity | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H, Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU (1916 - 1995, n=2) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average of class Multimedia (931 - 2677, n=56, last 2 years) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| CrossMark / Creativity | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H, Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU (2241 - 2530, n=2) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (907 - 4522, n=56, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| CrossMark / Responsiveness | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H, Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU (1808 - 1832, n=2) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (605 - 2073, n=56, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| WebXPRT 3 / Overall | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (197.4 - 622, n=59, last 2 years) | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H, Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU (338 - 342, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| WebXPRT 4 / Overall | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H, Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU (304 - 314, n=2) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average of class Multimedia (167.3 - 415, n=59, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Mozilla Kraken 1.1 / Total | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average of class Multimedia (228 - 835, n=60, last 2 years) | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H, Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU (429 - 437, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
* ... smaller is better
| PCMark 10 Score | 9923 points | |
Help | ||
| AIDA64 / Memory Copy | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (109931 - 114339, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (11299 - 132135, n=48, last 2 years) | |
| AIDA64 / Memory Read | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (106702 - 112338, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Average of class Multimedia (11624 - 174586, n=48, last 2 years) | |
| AIDA64 / Memory Write | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (120698 - 120732, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Average of class Multimedia (11755 - 134998, n=48, last 2 years) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| AIDA64 / Memory Latency | |
| Average of class Multimedia (84.1 - 535, n=47, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Average Intel Core Ultra X7 368H (88.9 - 90.3, n=2) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
* ... smaller is better
| DPC Latencies / LatencyMon - interrupt to process latency (max), Web, Youtube, Prime95 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (327 - 7067, n=46, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
* ... smaller is better
* ... smaller is better
Disk Throttling: DiskSpd Read Loop, Queue Depth 8
GPU and Gaming Performance
The highlight of the Core Ultra X CPU is the powerful Arc B390 iGPU, which is much faster than the Adreno X2-85 you get with the Snapdragon SKUs. However, the Surface Laptop cannot utilize the full potential due to the drop to 35 Watts under sustained workloads, which results in a performance drop of around 20 % after a couple of minutes, which is also clearly noticeable in our Cyberpunk gaming test. This is not ideal, but the Arc B390 is still the better choice for a multimedia laptop and there are no compatibility issues with games, either.
| 3DMark 11 Performance | 18531 points | |
| 3DMark Fire Strike Score | 13306 points | |
| 3DMark Time Spy Score | 6854 points | |
| 3DMark Steel Nomad Score | 1301 points | |
| 3DMark Steel Nomad Light Score | 5878 points | |
Help | ||
| Blender / v3.3 Classroom CPU | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Average of class Multimedia (133 - 1042, n=57, last 2 years) | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU (282 - 409, n=16) | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Blender / v3.3 Classroom METAL | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (17.8 - 68, n=6, last 2 years) | |
| Blender / v3.3 Classroom oneAPI/Intel | |
| Average of class Multimedia (105 - 492, n=17, last 2 years) | |
| Average Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU (105 - 254, n=6) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
* ... smaller is better
| Final Fantasy XV Benchmark - 1920x1080 High Quality | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average of class Multimedia (7.61 - 144.4, n=51, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Strange Brigade - 1920x1080 ultra AA:ultra AF:16 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (13.3 - 303, n=50, last 2 years) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Dota 2 Reborn - 1920x1080 ultra (3/3) best looking | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| Average of class Multimedia (30.3 - 170.9, n=52, last 2 years) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
Cyberpunk 2077 ultra FPS Chart
| low | med. | high | ultra | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GTA V (2015) | 176.4 | 170.4 | 87.7 | 33.2 |
| Dota 2 Reborn (2015) | 127 | 85.6 | 86.9 | 80 |
| Final Fantasy XV Benchmark (2018) | 116.7 | 68.7 | 50 | |
| X-Plane 11.11 (2018) | 61.8 | 50.2 | 42.4 | |
| Strange Brigade (2018) | 307 | 120.8 | 101.7 | 89.2 |
| Baldur's Gate 3 (2023) | 71.6 | 54.3 | 47.7 | 46.6 |
| Cyberpunk 2077 (2023) | 67.9 | 60.4 | 50 | 42.3 |
| F1 24 (2024) | 111.5 | 109.1 | 82 | 28.5 |
Emissions & Power Consumption
System Noise
The Surface Laptop 15 is a very quiet laptop in general, but cooling unit with the single fan has problems with the high short-term TDP of 65 Watts, so the fan will be audible quite quickly under higher workloads. While gaming and during our stress test, we measure up to 41.3 dB(A) and around 36-37 dB(A) in the two less powerful operating modes. GPU load also resulted in some coil whine on our test system.
Noise level
| Idle |
| 24.9 / 24.9 / 24.9 dB(A) |
| Load |
| 32.2 / 41.3 dB(A) |
 | ||
30 dB silent 40 dB(A) audible 50 dB(A) loud |
||
min:  , med:  , max:  Earthworks M23R, Arta (15 cm distance) environment noise: 24.9 dB(A) | ||
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 Ultra X7 368H, Arc B390 Panther Lake iGPU | Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 Ultra X7 358H, Arc B390 Panther Lake iGPU | Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 X2E-94-100, X2-90 | Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H Ultra X7 358H, Arc B390 Panther Lake iGPU | Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 M5 10-Core, M5 10-Core GPU | Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake Core Ultra 7 268V, Arc 140V | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Noise | 3% | -5% | -2% | 3% | ||
| off / environment * (dB) | 24.9 | 22.9 8% | 24.9 -0% | 23.3 6% | 23.9 4% | |
| Idle Minimum * (dB) | 24.9 | 22.9 8% | 24.9 -0% | 23.4 6% | 23.9 4% | |
| Idle Average * (dB) | 24.9 | 22.9 8% | 24.9 -0% | 23.4 6% | 23.9 4% | |
| Idle Maximum * (dB) | 24.9 | 22.9 8% | 24.9 -0% | 25.8 -4% | 23.9 4% | |
| Load Average * (dB) | 32.2 | 31.4 2% | 27.9 13% | 38 -18% | 31.8 1% | |
| Cyberpunk 2077 ultra * (dB) | 41.3 | 43.8 -6% | 51.1 -24% | 38.1 8% | 38 8% | |
| Load Maximum * (dB) | 41.3 | 43.7 -6% | 51.1 -24% | 48.6 -18% | 41.9 -1% |
* ... smaller is better
Temperature
The aluminum surfaces can get quite warm under heavy loads, and you can definitely feel it while typing. The bottom panel stays noticeably cooler and it is no problem to put it on your lap. During our stress test, the CPU quickly levels off at 28 Watts (~79 °C).
(±) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 44.2 °C / 112 F, compared to the average of 36.8 °C / 98 F, ranging from 21 to 71 °C for the class Multimedia.
(±) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 40.3 °C / 105 F, compared to the average of 39.1 °C / 102 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 25.4 °C / 78 F, compared to the device average of 31.3 °C / 88 F.
(±) 3: The average temperature for the upper side is 37.1 °C / 99 F, compared to the average of 31.3 °C / 88 F for the class Multimedia.
(+) The palmrests and touchpad are cooler than skin temperature with a maximum of 31.7 °C / 89.1 F and are therefore cool to the touch.
(-) The average temperature of the palmrest area of similar devices was 28.7 °C / 83.7 F (-3 °C / -5.4 F).
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 Ultra X7 368H, Arc B390 Panther Lake iGPU | Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 Ultra X7 358H, Arc B390 Panther Lake iGPU | Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 X2E-94-100, X2-90 | Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H Ultra X7 358H, Arc B390 Panther Lake iGPU | Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 M5 10-Core, M5 10-Core GPU | Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake Core Ultra 7 268V, Arc 140V | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heat | -9% | -2% | 7% | 2% | 3% | |
| Maximum Upper Side * (°C) | 44.2 | 43.3 2% | 43.2 2% | 40.6 8% | 44.1 -0% | 45.7 -3% |
| Maximum Bottom * (°C) | 40.3 | 38.6 4% | 43.3 -7% | 39.8 1% | 43.1 -7% | 42.9 -6% |
| Idle Upper Side * (°C) | 26 | 32.6 -25% | 26.7 -3% | 23.2 11% | 24 8% | 23.6 9% |
| Idle Bottom * (°C) | 25.8 | 30.4 -18% | 26 -1% | 23.8 8% | 23.9 7% | 23.1 10% |
* ... smaller is better
Speakers
The sound system is still very good, even though the rivals are slightly superior.
Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 audio analysis
(±) | speaker loudness is average but good (80.8 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(±) | reduced bass - on average 11.1% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (8.6% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 3.7% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (3.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 2.3% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (4.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(+) | overall sound is linear (11.1% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 17% of all tested devices in this class were better, 3% similar, 80% worse
» The best had a delta of 5%, average was 17%, worst was 45%
Compared to all devices tested
» 7% of all tested devices were better, 2% similar, 91% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 23%, worst was 136%
Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 audio analysis
(±) | speaker loudness is average but good (80.3 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(+) | good bass - only 4.2% away from median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (10.2% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 3.9% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (5.2% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 4.3% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (2.6% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(+) | overall sound is linear (8.9% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 11% of all tested devices in this class were better, 2% similar, 87% worse
» The best had a delta of 5%, average was 17%, worst was 45%
Compared to all devices tested
» 3% of all tested devices were better, 1% similar, 96% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 23%, worst was 136%
Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (84.5 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(±) | reduced bass - on average 6.4% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (8.3% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 3.9% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (4.2% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 3.3% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (5% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(+) | overall sound is linear (9.8% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 14% of all tested devices in this class were better, 2% similar, 84% worse
» The best had a delta of 5%, average was 17%, worst was 45%
Compared to all devices tested
» 4% of all tested devices were better, 1% similar, 95% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 23%, worst was 136%
Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (85.1 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(±) | reduced bass - on average 7.6% lower than median
(+) | bass is linear (6.1% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 2.1% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (3.4% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 2.3% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (4.1% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(+) | overall sound is linear (6.2% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 4% of all tested devices in this class were better, 0% similar, 96% worse
» The best had a delta of 5%, average was 17%, worst was 45%
Compared to all devices tested
» 0% of all tested devices were better, 0% similar, 99% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 23%, worst was 136%
Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (84.8 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(±) | reduced bass - on average 6.8% lower than median
(+) | bass is linear (6.6% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 2% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (3.3% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 3.6% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (3.2% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(+) | overall sound is linear (7.7% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 2% of all tested devices in this class were better, 0% similar, 98% worse
» The best had a delta of 5%, average was 18%, worst was 53%
Compared to all devices tested
» 1% of all tested devices were better, 0% similar, 98% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 23%, worst was 136%
Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake audio analysis
(±) | speaker loudness is average but good (78.8 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(±) | reduced bass - on average 9.3% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (8.4% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 4.4% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (3% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 2.4% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (4.1% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(+) | overall sound is linear (11.4% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 4% of all tested devices in this class were better, 2% similar, 95% worse
» The best had a delta of 7%, average was 21%, worst was 53%
Compared to all devices tested
» 8% of all tested devices were better, 2% similar, 90% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 23%, worst was 136%
Power Consumption and Battery Life
The Panther Lake SKU is more efficient while idling compared to the old Lunar Lake model, despite the updated display. The battery runtime in our Wi-Fi test is still a bit shorter, which is a result of the higher short-term TDP. However, the results are still very good with almost 16 hours in our Wi-Fi test at 150 nits and 8.5 hours at maximum brightness. The 65W power adapter, however, is insufficient, which is hardly surprising considering the short-term TDP of 65 Watts. This means the battery has to be used in peak load scenarios. We also tried a 140W power adapter, but the device simply does not accept more power.
| Off / Standby | 0.28 / 0.38 Watt |
| Idle | 2 / 7.6 / 8.1 Watt |
| Load |
54.4 / 62.6 Watt |
   
| |
Key:
min: ,
med: ,
max: Metrahit Energy | |
Power Consumption Cyberpunk / Stress Test
Power Consumption external Monitor
| Battery Runtime | |
| WiFi Websurfing | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 (Edge 150, 60 Hz) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (4.37 - 26.6, n=59, last 2 years) | |
| Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H | |
| WiFi Websurfing max. Brightness | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 (Edge 150, 30 - 120 Hz VRR) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 (Edge 150, 60 Hz) | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake | |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 | |
| Average of class Multimedia (3.53 - 11.6, n=30, last 2 years) | |
| Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 | |
| Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 | |
Notebookcheck Rating
Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8
- 10/05/2026 v8
Andreas Osthoff
Total Sustainability Score: Potential Competitors in Comparison
Image | Model / Review | Price | Weight | Height | Display |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. 85.3%  | Microsoft Surface Laptop 15 Gen 8 Intel Core Ultra X7 368H ⎘ Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU ⎘ 16 GB Memory, 256 GB SSD | Amazon: 1. $238.94 Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 1... 2. $483.98 Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 1... 3. $685.00 Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 1... List Price: 2400€ | 1.7 kg | 18.3 mm | 15.00" 3270x2180 262 PPI IPS |
2. 89.9%  | Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Gen 1 Intel Core Ultra X7 358H ⎘ Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU ⎘ 32 GB Memory, 1024 GB SSD | List Price: 2500 Euro | 1.5 kg | 18 mm | 15.30" 2880x1800 222 PPI OLED |
3. 87.5%  | Asus Zenbook A16 UX3607 Qualcomm Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme X2E-94-100 ⎘ Qualcomm Adreno X2-90 ⎘ 48 GB Memory, 1000 GB SSD | Amazon: 1. $2,299.99 ASUS Zenbook A16 16" Laptop,... 2. $2,299.99 ASUS Zenbook A16 AI Laptop, ... 3. $1,999.00 EXCaliberPC [2026] ASUS Zenb... | 1.2 kg | 16.5 mm | 16.00" 2880x1800 212 PPI OLED |
4. 87.2%  | Dell XPS 16 Core Ultra X7 358H Intel Core Ultra X7 358H ⎘ Intel Arc B390 12 Xe3 Panther Lake iGPU ⎘ 32 GB Memory | Amazon: 1. $1,977.99 Dell Premium 16 (Previously ... 2. $1,999.00 Dell Premium 16 (Previously ... 3. $1,849.99 Dell XPS 14 Premium Laptop 1... List Price: 2350 USD | 1.7 kg | 14.62 mm | 16.00" 3200x2000 236 PPI OLED |
5. 91.6%  | Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 Apple M5 10-Core ⎘ Apple M5 10-Core GPU ⎘ 32 GB Memory, 2048 GB SSD | 1.5 kg | 11.5 mm | 15.30" 2880x1864 224 PPI IPS | |
6. 87.4%  | Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 15 Lunar Lake Intel Core Ultra 7 268V ⎘ Intel Arc Graphics 140V ⎘ 32 GB Memory, 1024 GB SSD | List Price: 2760€ | 1.7 kg | 18.3 mm | 15.00" 2496x1664 200 PPI IPS |
Transparency
The selection of devices to be reviewed is made by our editorial team. The test sample was provided to the author as a loan by the manufacturer or retailer for the purpose of this review. The lender had no influence on this review, nor did the manufacturer receive a copy of this review before publication. There was no obligation to publish this review. As an independent media company, Notebookcheck is not subjected to the authority of manufacturers, retailers or publishers.
This is how Notebookcheck is testing
Every year, Notebookcheck independently reviews hundreds of laptops and smartphones using standardized procedures to ensure that all results are comparable. We have continuously developed our test methods for around 20 years and set industry standards in the process. In our test labs, high-quality measuring equipment is utilized by experienced technicians and editors. These tests involve a multi-stage validation process. Our complex rating system is based on hundreds of well-founded measurements and benchmarks, which maintains objectivity. Further information on our test methods can be found here.
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