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New 12-in MacBook vs. Surface Pro 3

New 12-in MacBook vs. Surface Pro 3
Gizmag compares the features and specs of Apple's new 12-in MacBook (left) vs. the Microsoft Surface Pro 3
Gizmag compares the features and specs of Apple's new 12-in MacBook (left) vs. the Microsoft Surface Pro 3
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Gizmag compares the features and specs of Apple's new 12-in MacBook (left) vs. the Microsoft Surface Pro 3
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Gizmag compares the features and specs of Apple's new 12-in MacBook (left) vs. the Microsoft Surface Pro 3
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Most of us thought a MacBook Air with Retina Display would have arrived long before 2015, but that's how long Apple took getting this bad boy ready. How does Apple's new MacBook ("Air" and "Retina" in everything but name) stack up next to the Surface Pro 3? Let's compare their features and specs.

Size

Dimensions
Dimensions

Heights are very close, and the Surface Pro 3 is 4 percent longer.

At first glance, the Surface looks to be thinner than the MacBook, but this spec only includes the Surface in tablet mode (while the MacBook's measurement is for a folded shut notebook). When you add the Surface's keyboard, it measures about 6 percent thicker than the MacBook.

This plays along with a trick that often pops up in Microsoft's Surface advertising: counting only the tablet in the areas where that makes it look good (like pricing, thickness and weight), but adding the keyboard cover everywhere else (like when advertising its 2-in-1 productivity nature). The bottom line is the Surface's keyboard is an essential part of the equation, and will be attached to the device any time you aren't actively using it in tablet mode.

Weight

Weight
Weight

Here too the Surface's spec sheet makes it look like the lighter device, but once you add its keyboard cover (the way you'll almost certainly carry it around in a bag), you'll see that it's actually 19 percent heavier than the new MacBook.

Build

Build
Build

Both machines have high-end designs, with the MacBook's aluminum unibody vs. the Surface's magnesium chassis.

Colors

Colors
Colors

For the first time, a modern MacBook is being sold in different colors. We're looking at the same silver, gold and space gray options that you can choose from with the latest iPhones and iPads.

Display (size)

Display (size)
Display (size)

Not all 12-in displays are created equal, as the Surface's 3:2 aspect ratio (vs. the MacBook's 16:10) makes it almost 3 percent bigger.

Display (resolution)

Display (resolution)
Display (resolution)

Pixel densities are close, with the MacBook measuring about 5 percent sharper. At the distance that laptops typically sit from your eyes, both screens will look very crisp.

In tablet mode, where it will sit closer to your eyes, the Surface will show its pixels a bit more. That's something the MacBook doesn't have to worry about.

Display (type)

Display (type)
Display (type)

Both machines have IPS panels.

Touch screen (and tablet mode)

Touch screen
Touch screen

Apple still believes a great trackpad and keyboard are the best ways to control a notebook (and it's hard to argue with that logic). With that said, it can be handy to have a touchscreen on a device like the Surface, even in laptop mode.

Pen input

Pen input
Pen input

Part of that is due to the Surface's bundled pen. More than a stylus, the N-Trig-powered Surface Pen provides some of the most natural digital inking around. If you're a OneNote user, it also has a nifty shortcut built into its cap: one click of the top end opens Microsoft's Evernote rival.

Trackpad (material)

Trackpad material
Trackpad material

In addition to being bigger, the MacBook's trackpad is also made of a much more solid-feeling glass. The Surface keyboard cover has a smaller plastic touchpad.

Trackpad (pressure-sensitivity)

Pressure-sensitive trackpad
Pressure-sensitive trackpad

If you've ever used a recent MacBook, then you're well familiar with clicking the trackpad, as it physically presses down in a "diving board" motion. With the new MacBook, though, Apple is replacing that physical movement with a pressure-sensitive touch mechanism, using the same "force touch" and haptic feedback tech we'll soon see on the Apple Watch.

Storage

Storage
Storage

You'll want to keep this in mind when you look at pricing, as the entry-level MacBook gives you four times the internal storage of the entry-level Surface.

MicroSD

MicroSD card slot
MicroSD card slot

The MacBook, though, doesn't give you any options for augmenting its storage with an SD card. The Surface has a discreet microSD slot that can go a long way in expanding that internal storage (128 GB microSDs reportedly work just fine in the SP3).

USB ports

USB ports
USB ports

This is by far the biggest reason to hesitate about the new MacBook. Yes, Apple is boldly attempting to push us all into the future by reducing the new MacBook's ports to a lone USB Type C port (much like it pushed us into a world without optical drives with the original MacBook Air).

BUT … right now this is going to be a big compromise. All of your USB 2/3 accessories – be it external hard drives, SD readers or DVD burners? You won't be able to use any of them without an adapter. That isn't a huge hassle or expense, mind you, but it is one more thing to think about (and bring with you on trips).

And since that lone port also doubles as a charging port, you can forget about doing a physical Time Machine backup while charging (unless perhaps you use a USB splitter, along with an adapter). Ditto for making large photo transfers from a camera's SD card while charging. Apple will, of course, recommend that you opt for wireless solutions, including its (rather expensive) routers to charge while making wireless Time Machine backups.

No matter how you slice it, this is one of the biggest categories you'll want to think about before throwing down for the MacBook. How do you use your notebook? How many accessories do you use with it? And are you willing to buy adapters for all of them, and add that to your upfront cost?

Video out

Video out
Video out

That USB-C port is natively compatible with DisplayPort for video out. USB Type C is a terrific new technology that can reduce port and cable clutter down to a single standard. But until these devices and cables become ubiquitous, it's going to make for a rocky transition.

Battery

Battery
Battery

Apple is estimating the same 9 hours of web use that Microsoft tosses up for the Surface. That's a few hours off the estimates for the most recent 13-in MacBook Air.

Cameras

Cameras
Cameras

Apple is actually using a lower-resolution webcam than it has on any of its recent MacBooks (they've been 720p for quite some time). Perhaps this was a necessary sacrifice in the name of appeasing the gods of light and thin.

Processor

Processors
Processors

The MacBook's Core M Broadwell chip is a big reason for its combination of light, thin and "Retina."

In addition to the standard configurations listed here, Apple also gives you a couple more made-to-order processor options that aren't shown in this visual.

Graphics

Integrated graphics
Integrated graphics

Both machines use integrated Intel graphics.

RAM

RAM
RAM

8 GB of RAM is standard on the MacBook, while only the more expensive tiers of the Surface jump up to 8 GB.

LTE

LTE
LTE

Unless you're talking about ARM-based ones, laptops still aren't LTE affairs. If you're an iPhone owner, though, Apple makes it very easy to set up a personal hotspot for your MacBook, without even touching your phone.

Software

Software
Software

The new MacBook ships with OS X Yosemite, including some new software tweaks to accommodate for Force Touch gestures on its trackpad. The Surface runs Windows 8.1 Pro, and will get a free upgrade to Windows 10 when it launches.

Release

Release
Release

Remember that we're comparing Apple's 2015 flagship notebook to Microsoft's 2014 2-in-1. We could very well see a new Surface around three months from now.

Starting price

Starting price
Starting price

Even with its keyboard included (which is the only sensible way to look at its pricing), the entry-level Surface is US$370 cheaper than the entry-level MacBook. Of course that cheaper price only gets you 64 GB of internal storage and an underpowered Core i3 processor. For a more capable 128 GB/i5 Surface, you're looking at $1,130 – inching a bit closer to the 256 GB MacBook's price tag.

For more, you can check out Gizmag's new MacBook review and our Surface Pro 3 review from last year.

View gallery - 25 images
13 comments
13 comments
Fronty
Seems a bit odd to cross shop those two.
How about a chromebook pixel vs macbook?
EricP
The SP3 type cover is covered with glass beads.
Mike Malsed
should really put in the power and display ports in the "ports" section - one of the most limiting factors with the Macbook is that it's sole port functions as display, USB, and power while the Surface has a magnetic power port (big plus which used to apply to the Macbook), USB3 and display port.
As written, this does not come out.
JuMo
Confirmation yet again (if you read between the lines of this article) that Apple are the ones playing catch-up these days. Love my SP3 and the envy it creates wherever it goes, who needs a pressure sensitive touchpad when you have a whole pressure sensitive touch-screen!
Calson
I have been using personal computers since 1978, the IBM computers with various Seattle Computing and DRI and Microsoft operating systems since 1982, and currently have a Mac Pro workstation and iPad mini and 5 Wintel laptops, netbooks, and a tower workstation running Windows. 99% of my time to keep the viruses and malware at bay and dealing with corrupt DLL's and deficiencies and defects of the operating system are with the computers running the Windows operating system.
When I first bought a tablet it was a Samsung Android and I returned it within a matter of days as the operating system user interface was terrible. I replaced it with an Apple iPad mini with the retina display and its superior operating system was obvious within a few minutes of powering it on.
After 30 years of personal computing devices I would expect even a journalist to know that it is the operating system that determines the overall experience for the end user. The rest is marketing icing on a cake not worth eating.
Roger
Late the party is, well, late to the party..... Apple had a target to hit, copy or exceed..... the Surface was created without apple as a target.... the key word here is "created" a teams idea's were translated into an available product and set the bar for others and the competition didn't have to think so hard.... just follow..... means alot in my mind...
Bryan Paschke
Their all in one charging port really makes me say "what the...heck...were they thinking????" If you notice a slight wobble in the Earth, it's just Jobs spinning in his grave.
SN150
@Calson:
"99% of my time to keep the viruses and malware at bay and dealing with corrupt DLL's and deficiencies and defects of the operating system are with the computers running the Windows operating system."
Wow, those must be some nasty sites you're visiting! In all my time running Windows, I've never have had to spend 99% of my time keeping the viruses at bay. I've also have never experience any sore of DLL corruption or OS defects.
I've experienced more beach balls with Yosemite then Windows. There's always one of you in a crowd, and the one usually defends Apple at all costs.
Monkeyspit
The i7 Surface uses HD 5000 graphics. Magnesium is superior to aluminium. The Core M processor is considerably underpowered compared to the i5/i7 processors. Good for browsing while drinking a latte, but not for production work.
Nikolaj Jørgensen
"The Core M processor is considerably underpowered compared to the i5/i7 processors. Good for browsing while drinking a latte, but not for production work."
The new Broadwell Core M will in most cases outperform a Haswell Core i5 http://www.windowscentral.com/intel-core-m-broadwell-processor-versus-core-i5-haswell.
The SSD interface and speed are not compared either (PCIe SSD on Macbook vs mSATA SSD on Surface).
On another note: why didn't this article mention the fanless design of the Macbook? That is one very big deal, compared to anything that tries to be a laptop.
I think some very important points were left out in the comparison.
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