The Surface Laptop Go promises to bring the Surface design and ethos to an everyday laptop. Has Microsoft succeeded?
Updated Nov 26 with Black Friday deals; Article originally posted Nov 24. Microsoft launched the Surface Laptop Go in October this year, following on from the success of the Surface Laptop over three iterations. The use of the ‘Go’ designation signified a smaller and cheaper Surface device, much like the titular Surface Go flowed from the Surface Pro. There’s no doubt that the initial impression of the Surface Laptop Go is a good one. Opening the box on my review unit supplied by Microsoft reveals a burst of aluminium, a mirrored Microsoft logo, and a cool edged small laptop. But an absolute winner needs more than looks. Nov 26 update: If you are looking to purchase the top-specced Microsoft Surface Laptop Go reviewed her, Walmart has the model with 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of SSD storage with a $100 discount in its Black Friday sales. Here’s your link to the Walmart Deal. Nov 27 update: If you’d rather go direct to Microsoft, it is also offering $100 off the list price of the top consumer version of the Surface Laptop Go (the aforementioned 8GB/256GB model). Here’s your link to the Microsoft Store. The powerful first impression continues as you open the laptop. The two-tone keyboard and the casing catches the eye while the bezels around the screen are subtle, it feels solid but not too heavy in the hand, and the slight angle to the base of the machine make it easy to pick up and carry around. The problem is after that great opening experience, the Surface Laptop Go’s first impression starts to slide away in small but perceptible amounts. In isolation each feels like a reasonably compromise, but in the round they all add up to something that needs carful consideration. Opening the Laptop Go from a standing start is ungainly. Rather than a small cutout on the base of the laptop, the chassis around the screen has a small overhang, barely a milimeter, that you can catch with your finger or thumb to aid opening. It contributes to the clean lines and look of the laptop, but it’s not winning me over from a practical point of view. The resolution on the screen is a relatively low 1536×1024 pixels. A 4K screen doesn’t make a huge amount of sense on a 12.4 inch display, especially given the useful 3:2 ratio of the screen, as opposed to the more media-friendly 16:9, but the screen used here feels a little bit cramped. It does come with a touchscreen, but it’s important to note that it does not work with Microsoft’s Surface Pen.
