Surface Book 3 13.5 review: Microsoft convertible is slowly getting old

The Microsoft Surface Book 3 13.5 is of high quality and shows no defects in the case. The removable tablet is surrounded by a magnesium alloy, which is also used for the keyboard dock. Since the hardware is almost completely in the display, the convertible is somewhat top-heavy. But it is very steady on the table. Only when placed on the thighs must it be ensured that the whole unit does not tip back. The Surface Book does not have maintenance hatches or the like.

The holding mechanism between the keyboard dock and the tablet is very reliable. The combination of a magnetic and a mechanical lock works very well, with the software occasionally causing problems. To release the tablet part, a key on the keyboard must be pressed. The system then checks whether applications must be closed before the keyboard dock is released. If software such as YourPhone.exe is in the way, it has to be closed in the Task Manager to complete the undocking process. 

The dimensions of the Surface Book 3 13.5 are somewhat unusual compared to other Windows tablets. That is not only because of the rarely used 3:2 display format but also because of the height in connection with the keyboard dock. Due to the unusual hinge, the convertible has a thickness of 2.4 cm, making it anything but slim.

Microsoft only integrated a few ports into the Surface Book 3 13.5. There is a surface connector on both the tablet and the keyboard dock, which in conjunction with the optionally available Surface Dock 2 can provide all conceivable ports. But even without the Surface Dock, an HDMI signal can be outputted via the USB Type-C port, with an appropriate adapter. The Surface Book 3 can also be charged via this connection.

The SD card reader of the Surface Book 3 13.5 accepts memory cards up to about halfway. With our reference card Toshiba Exceria Pro M501, very good speeds are achieved with 138.5 MB/s when copying and 216 MB/s when writing data.

In Wi-Fi, the Surface Book 3 13.5 with the Wi-Fi 6 standard (802.11ax) achieves average speeds of 913 Mb/s when receiving data and 670 Mb/s when transmitting data. It is slightly below the average of other devices with a comparable WLAN adapter, with the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga with only Wi-Fi 5, for example, achieving a better result.

Microsoft has equipped the Surface Book 3 13.5 with an 8 MP main camera and a 4.9 MP front camera. While the latter is well suited for video conferencing and the like, the main camera can take very useful pictures. As the ColorChecker Passport shows, blue and gray tones are displayed a bit too light and yellow and green tones are shown darker than they should be. The recording of our test chart looks a bit pale overall. However, details and fine structures remain visible.

The Surface Book 3 13.5 can be unlocked with face recognition via Windows Hello and has a TPM 2.0 module. There are no other security functions, such as a fingerprint reader.

Microsoft offers numerous accessories for the Surface Book 3 in its own shop. This ranges from docking stations to a stylus to matching bags.

The Microsoft convertible offers no way to access the hardware inside. Accordingly, neither the RAM nor the mass storage can be upgraded or expanded.

Microsoft offers a 12-month warranty period to buyers of the Surface Book 3 13.5. For a surcharge of currently 250 Euros (~$280), the warranty can be extended to 24 months and Microsoft takes care of accidental damages that occur during this time.

Keyboard

The keyboard of the Surface Book 3 13.5 is well suited for longer typing tasks. The feedback is pleasant and the pressure point triggers an input almost immediately. The labels can also be read easily in daylight and when the lighting is deactivated. If the white light is activated, it is much more difficult to decipher the labeling of the silver keys in bright surroundings. In poor or no ambient light, on the other hand, the keyboard is evenly illuminated and easy to see.

With the Surface Book 3, Microsoft targets users who are looking for enough power for everyday tasks. There is a choice of two Intel processors, of which the Intel Core i5-1035G7 with the integrated Intel Iris Plus Graphics G7 is suitable for various office work and occasional image-editing.

For more graphics performance, users have to use the Intel Core i7-1065G7 model, which is equipped with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 Max-Q. Since the latter corresponds to our test configuration, we will examine its performance in more detail below. 

The Intel Core i7-1065G7 is a four-core processor that is characterized by its energy efficiency. The clock rates are between 1.3 and 3.9 GHz, which is slightly lower than those of the Intel Core i7-8650U, which was installed in the Surface Book 2. However, the benchmark tests show that the CPU performance is on the level of the previous Microsoft model despite the lower clock speeds. Compared to other notebooks with an Intel Core i7-1065G7, the Surface Book 3 only achieved a below-average result in the disciplines for the single and multi-core performance of the Cinebench R15.

Our continuous load loop also shows that the processor in the Surface Book 3 13.5 starts with a comparatively low initial value. However, there is no significant drop like those of other convertibles with this CPU in our test field. 

In the system performance benchmarks, the Microsoft convertible remains below our expectations. While the result of the Work discipline of the PCMark 8 test is still at the level of the Surface Book 2, the achieved value of the Surface Book 3 in the Home test is about 10% lower. In the PCMark 10 test, the difference in the overall scores is slightly lower at 4%, but here too the Surface Book 2 scores better.

During our test period, the Surface Book 3 13.5 system ran very smoothly. Applications were started quickly and there were no micro-stutters or similar. The convertible from Microsoft is therefore well suited for smooth everyday tasks.

Our CPU-benchmark list shows what results other notebooks were able to achieve in our tests. 

Microsoft uses a 512 GB SK-Hynix SSD in our test configuration. This reaches values in the storage benchmarks that correspond to the installed hardware. Compared to the other convertibles in our test field, the mass storage is somewhat slower. However, users still benefit from the better write and read rates compared to conventional HDDs.

Our SSD-/HDD benchmark page shows how the SSD used here compares with other mass storage devices. 

In addition to the processor's internal GPU Intel Iris Plus Graphics G7, the Surface Book 3 13.5 can also use an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 Max-Q to display graphics content. The GPU is characterized by an energy-saving architecture and can also take on more-demanding tasks.

The results of the 3DMark benchmarks not only show the advantage of the GTX 1650 Max-Q compared to the internal graphics units in our test field, but they also illustrate the better performance compared to the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050, which Microsoft has installed in the Surface Book 2. Here, users can expect up to 44% higher performance.

Compared to other laptops from our database that use the same graphics card, the GTX 1650 Max-Q in the Surface Book 3 scores below average. Our GPU benchmark list contains the performance of other graphics cards. 

The performance of the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 Max-Q in the Surface Book 3 13.5 is sufficient to be able to run games from recent years smoothly even at high graphics levels. With very demanding and current titles, however, a reduction in the details setting is necessary. The 3:2 format of the screen, for example in The Witcher 3, resulted in a distorted display of the image format in full-screen mode. Here, players have to reckon with restrictions or an increased need for adjustment.

Our GPU games list shows which games run smoothly with the graphics card installed here. 

The Witcher 3 endurance test shows that the performance of the Surface Book 3 13.5 declines slightly after about half an hour. However, there is no significant drop in the refresh rate here.