The Surface Laptop is more than capable of powering through a 12-hour day and handling typical productivity tasks with ease. The laptop offers impressive standby times, too, while the quiet, tactile keyboard is a pleasure to type on, and some might even prefer it to the MacBook Air's. The mechanical trackpad isn't haptic, but clicks still feel surprisingly well-defined and crisp. You also get a sharp 1080p webcam, two USB-C 3.2 ports, and one USB-A 3.1 port.
The Surface Pro's place in the tech world is unique, as it's rivaling both premium tablets like the iPad Pro and full-fledged laptops. You get a device that works just as great for professional tasks like spreadsheet work and presentations as it does for entertainment, such as streaming and casual gaming. Demand for Microsoft's Surface Pro is consistently high throughout the year, which makes it seldom discounted.
Previously known as HP's 600 series, the EliteBook 6 G1 lineup is available in multiple RAM and memory configurations, a lightweight form factor, and either an AMD, Intel, or Qualcomm processor; a highly customizable laptop for a wide range of users. Also: I tested HP's first-gen EliteBook X, and it's a powerhouse at the office (and $500 off) I went hands-on with the EliteBook G1q (q for Qualcomm), which has the Snapdragon X Plus chip, 32GB of RAM, and a 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD.
Microsoft is perhaps best known for its Surface Pro tablets which compete directly with the iPad Pro but its Surface laptop line has been the best way to experience Windows at its finest. If what you need is a thin, light notebook with full Windows 11, current AI-capable Copilot capabilities and good performance, this is an extremely tempting option. The most affordable model with Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Plus processor and 256GB storage has now hit an all-time low cost on Amazon: