Razer's 2022 base model Blade 15 gaming laptop is on sale for $250 off at the manufacturer's site. We named the Blade 15 our top pick for a premium gaming laptop in our best gaming laptop guide. At just $1,550, it's a great deal, considering the 2021 model, with an older processor, is holding steady at $1,700 on Amazon.

We put the premium version of the Blade 15 through its paces and were impressed by Razer's superb build quality. While that premium-level computer isn't budging from its $3,700 price, this deal on the base model is a chance to get that same Razer quality in a solid gaming laptop.

This configuration of the Blade 15 has two graphics cards, one integrated Intel UHD graphics processor for your day-to-day and a discrete NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 card that kicks in to handle gaming graphics. The 15.6-inch full HD screen has a solid 144Hz refresh rate that should keep all but the most intensive FPS looking smooth. 

It also has 16GM of dual-channel RAM, 512GB of SSD storage and there's an open M.2 slot for memory expansion when the time comes. The Blade 15 comes stocked with the older Windows 10 but includes a free upgrade to Windows 11 once you get the unit home. It all runs on Intel's 11th-gen Core i7 chip and has plenty of ports for your peripherals, including a Thunderbolt 4 USB-C. While it's not the most powerful configuration of the Blade 15, this is an excellent entry point into Razer's gaming devices — especially when you can keep an extra $250 in your pocket.  

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The old adage goes that if something ain't broke, don't fix it. Now while that's often sage advice, obviously there's a limit to how long you can keep something going — especially a gadget — before it starts to lag behind. And with the Surface Laptop 5, it feels like Microsoft is beginning to test that boundary because while the notebook is as sleek and elegant as ever, even with the inclusion of a new CPU, it's easy to see where its aging chassis could use a few updates or quality of life improvements. So while I'll never complain about getting a performance boost, it still feels like Microsoft could do better.

Design, keyboard and ports

I'm not going to spend too much time talking about the Surface Laptop 5's exterior because it's the same chassis Microsoft has been using for the last three or four generations. Both the 13 and 15-inch models feature an aluminum body with tall 3:2 displays for enhanced productivity. Our 13.5-inch review unit weighed in at 2.86 pounds and measured just 0.57 inches thick. The whole package is super sleek and in some respects, I can see why Microsoft doesn't want to mess with the design – it really is a thing of beauty. It's thin and minimalist just like a MacBook, but different enough that you'll never get the two confused. Still, I think Microsoft is more than capable of tweaking the current chassis to accommodate new components without ruining its good looks.

New for this year is a sage green color option like we got on the Surface Laptop Go 2. But Microsoft didn't stop there because the company also made custom wallpapers for Windows 11 that match the system's exterior paint job. I know this is a pretty minor change in the grand scheme of things, but the extra bit of color coordination is kind of nice.

Meanwhile, the Surface Laptop 5's keyboard and touchpad don't leave much to complain about. Keycaps are spaced out well while having nice crisp actuation, though after some hands-on time with the 15-inch version, I noticed that the larger model has slightly deeper key travel. And while its touchpad which measures 4.5 x 3 inches isn't quite as large as what you'd find on a similarly sized MacBook, there's still plenty of room to mouse around.

Sam Rutherford/Engadget

One of the other big changes on the Surface Laptop 5 is its new USB 4.0/Thunderbolt 4 port, which provides increased bandwidth for transferring data or sending video to external displays. Sadly, on both the 13.5 and 15-inch models, there are only a total of two USB connectors: the aforementioned Thunderbolt 4 port and a regular USB 3.1 Type-A slot. Thankfully, Microsoft hasn't axed support for wired audio, so you still get a 3.5mm headphone jack in addition to the company's signature magnetic Surface Connect port for charging and docking.

Sam Rutherford/Engadget

But if you'll allow me to grandstand a bit, I sort of wish Microsoft would ditch the Surface Connect port entirely. Due to recent regulations from the EU, we're on the brink of having all phones support USB-C for charging and data, and aside from the proprietary connectors Apple and Microsoft use on MacBooks and Surfaces, laptops aren't far behind. Not only would getting rid of the Surface Connect port free up room for another USB-C jack — which is both smaller and more versatile — I find its weak magnets and awkward shape make it more difficult to use than USB-C.

Display and webcam

Like its chassis, the 13.5-inch Surface Laptop 5 features the same 2,256 x 1,504 PixelSense touchscreen Microsoft used on the previous model and that's totally fine. It has good brightness that hit just under 400 nits on my light meter along with rich, saturated colors. The one new tweak for 2022 is support for Dolby Vision IQ, which automatically adjusts things like color profiles and contrast based on ambient conditions. It's a nice touch, but considering pretty much every phone made in the last few years has a similar display tech, Microsoft isn't [exactly] breaking new ground here.

Sam Rutherford/Engadget

That said, while its image quality is strong, the Surface Laptop 5's display is starting to show its age a bit. The bezels are a few millimeters thicker than what we got on last year's Surface Laptop Studio, which makes things look a bit chunky. You also don't get support for HDR or high-refresh rates.

But the thing that's lagging behind the most is its 720p web camera, which is passable at best. You don't get support for any of Microsoft's Windows Studio effects like you do on the Surface Pro 9 5G and I've said it before and I'll say it again: 1080p webcams should be the baseline on premium notebooks. Thankfully, Microsoft has kept the built-in IR cameras for Windows Hello facial recognition, which still works great.

Performance

Sam Rutherford/Engadget

Inside, the new 12th-gen Intel CPUs offer a big jump in performance. The downside is that unlike the previous generation, there aren't any AMD-based configs, which is kind of a bummer. That said, with scores that are around 20 percent higher in PCMark 10 compared to the Surface Laptop 4, it's hard to be too upset.

Just don't get your hopes up about doing any hardcore gaming, because both models are restricted to Iris XE integrated graphics. In Overwatch 2, I had to lower settings to medium in order to get a somewhat stable 60 fps, though you can eke out a little more performance if you're willing to lower the game's resolution or turn on upsampling. But regardless of what you do, this thing isn't really meant to play AAA titles.

Battery life and ports

Sam Rutherford/Engadget

As for battery life, with a time of 12 hours and 39 minutes, the Surface Laptop 5 turned in respectable though not outstanding results. In comparison, last year's 15-inch Surface Laptop 4 fared better with a mark of 15:25, as did other ultraportables from this year including the Lenovo Yoga 9i at 14:22 and the M2 MacBook Air at 17:05.

As a longtime Surface user, I appreciate that Microsoft kept the bonus 5-watt charging port built into the included power adapter, which is really nice for powering up small peripherals like a mouse or wireless headphones. And I should mention that if for some reason you lose or forget your charging brick at home, you can still top up the Surface Laptop 5 via USB-C.

Wrap-up

While the Surface Laptop 5 hasn't gotten a boatload of updates, it still has a really elegant design and the addition of new 12th-gen Intel chips and a Thunderbolt 4 port provide a big bump up in speed and usability. Sure, it might not have the sharpest webcam or a ton of ports, but if all you need is a streamlined ultraportable for general productivity, the Surface Laptop 5 packs all the essentials into a very sleek package.

Sam Rutherford/Engadget

It is somewhat telling, however, that Microsoft only sent out the 13.5-inch model for review, because there are even more changes I'd like to see on the 15-inch version. I know my dream of getting an Xbox gaming laptop probably won't ever happen, but I think there's a ton of potential to transform the bigger Surface Laptop 5 into a really great all-rounder by adding support for discrete graphics and a few more ports.

But the hard part comes when trying to decide between the 13-inch Surface Laptop 5 and something like the XPS 13. For the same $1,000 starting price, Dell's notebook comes with a similar CPU and a larger 512GB SSD instead of just a 256GB drive, but no touchscreen (though you can upgrade to one if you want). That means you have to choose between getting a slightly better value in the XPS 13, or opting for a taller 3:2 touch display with the Surface Laptop 5.

Still, if all you want is a stylish ultraportable with a nice screen for productivity, Microsoft's latest clamshell has a lot to like. I just hope next year we get a full refresh instead of just a simple spec bump.

Google has been making high-end Chromebooks for almost a decade now, dating back to the $1,300 Chromebook Pixel in 2013. At the time, many people saw it as a beautiful but strange device. In the years that followed, both Google and its hardware partners have made premium Chromebooks more and more commonplace. Though, a still-unconfirmed report earlier this year suggests Google is giving up on making laptop hardware, at least for now. The company hasn’t said anything of the sort yet, but the reality is that Google hasn’t made a new Chromebook since the Pixelbook Go in late 2019.

Of course, that hasn’t stopped other manufacturers from making Chromebooks with gorgeous screens, great industrial design and powerful hardware. But HP’s Elite Dragonfly Chromebook, released earlier this year, might be the nicest I’ve used in a long time. It also has a jaw-dropping price point, starting at well over $1,000. Much like the original Chromebook Pixel, HP’s latest is a joy to use that is very hard to recommend because of that price.

Design

Before we talk about the bummer that is the HP Elite Dragonfly Chromebook’s cost, let’s go over the good stuff. The Dragonfly is similar in stature to a MacBook Air, weighing in at about 2.8 pounds and measuring only .65 inches thick. Combined with a fairly spacious 13.5-inch touchscreen display with a 3:2 aspect ratio, the Dragonfly is comfortable to work on and easy to travel with.

Design-wise, it’s a spartan affair, with a dark gray finish and only a few silver accents to be found. But given that HP is primarily targeting this computer at enterprise users, it makes sense that they went with a classic look here. There’s a decent selection of ports, despite the Dragonfly’s rather slim profile: it has two USB-C / Thunderbolt 4 ports, a USB-A connection, a headphone jack, HDMI and a microSD slot. That’s a lot better than you’ll get on a typical ultraportable.

Nathan Ingraham / Engadget

Screen and keyboard

There’s a handful of things that make the Dragonfly really stand out. For starters, it has an excellent display, with a 3:2 aspect ratio that provides a lot more vertical viewing space than your standard 16:9 screen. The configuration I’m testing has a 2,256 x 1,504 resolution, good for about 200 pixels per inch. Sure, there are more pixel-dense displays out there, but this one looks stunning, with sharp text and images and basically no visible pixels. It’s the nicest screen on a Chromebook I’ve seen in a long time. The only minor knock is its unremarkable 60Hz refresh rate, but that shouldn’t be a major issue for most people. Still, HP spared basically no expense on everything else, so it would have been nice to have.

Despite the refresh rate, the Dragonfly’s display is great beyond just the aspect ratio. It’s bright and has nice contrast without things being too over-exaggerated. It’s also rather reflective, which makes it not ideal if there’s a light shining on the display, but the screen is bright enough that it should be usable in all but the harshest of light.

The keyboard and trackpad are also excellent. The keys are firm, but not too firm, and have plenty of travel for a relatively thin laptop. The trackpad, meanwhile, is large and responsive. Nothing quite matches up to the trackpad on a MacBook for me, but this one feels pretty close. HP says it’s a haptic trackpad, with customized vibrations for some specific actions like pinning windows in split screen or switching between virtual desks, but I can’t say I noticed much of anything there.

Nathan Ingraham / Engadget

Good specs (for a Chromebook)

Finally, the Dragonfly mostly has cutting-edge spec options; the model I tested has a 12th-generation Intel Core i5 processor, built-in LTE, 256GB of storage and 8GB of RAM. LTE isn’t exactly cutting-edge anymore, and 8GB of RAM is a bit stingy on a computer this pricey. But aside from those quibbles, this is plenty of horsepower for basically anything you want to do in ChromeOS; I never experienced any stutters when switching apps or playing back music and video. Despite the high-resolution screen and powerful processor, battery life is solid if not spectacular. I got between six and eight hours of normal usage, which involved a lot of Chrome tabs, Spotify, Todoist, Slack, Google Keep, Trello and the occasional Android app here and there. It managed to play back a movie for 8 hours and 50 minutes in our battery drain test. If battery is your foremost concern, the model with a Core i3 processor or the lower-resolution screen will likely last even longer.

It also does a fine job running the handful of Android apps I tested it with. In the last year or so, you’ve been able to run downloaded apps in tablet, phone or resizable windows, and for the most part I was able to get Todoist, Spotify and Lightroom all working well in resizable windows. Even Instagram finally works properly, although now that the website now allows you to create posts, it’s not really necessary any more. Putting that aside, performance across basically all the Android apps and games I tried was solid. But given how many apps are in the Play Store, there’s still a good chance of running across some that don’t work well.

While Chromebooks aren’t known for gaming, the Dragonfly easily handled some cloud-based play via NVIDIA’s GeForce Now and Xbox Cloud Gaming – not a surprise given the powerful (for a Chromebook, at least) hardware. At this point, ChromeOS has pretty solid game controller support, and it obviously works with external keyboards and mice. So provided the titles you want are available, this is probably the best way to play games on a Chromebook at this point. That said, this hardware should more than meet the cut for installing Steam, once Google and Valve start rolling that out beyond its current limited alpha phase.

The catch

The problem that keeps me from recommending the Dragonfly is easy to explain. The cheapest model of this laptop costs an eye-popping $1,150. And that’s with an i3 processor and only 128GB of storage. As usual, HP has a dizzying array of different configurations, though I don’t think they’re actually selling the model I have through their site right now. But there is an option with an i5 processor that costs more than $1,500. That is crazy money for a Chromebook, no matter how nice it is.

For a comparison, Acer’s Chromebook Spin 714 has essentially the same processor, storage and RAM as the Dragonfly for only $730. The screen and build quality aren’t quite as nice, but we’re talking about a computer that’s essentially just as capable but costs half of what HP is offering. For the cost of the Dragonfly, you could also pick up an extremely capable Windows laptop or MacBook Air. As much as I like using Chrome OS, it’s nearly impossible to recommend anyone spend that kind of cash on a Chromebook.

To be fair to HP, the company isn’t positioning this as a broad consumer device. It falls under their enterprise category, and I could imagine some businesses heavily invested in Google’s ecosystem buying these for executives. But, there’s no denying that, at this price point, ChromeOS is a compromise compared to Windows or macOS.

In this way, HP’s Elite Dragonfly Chromebook is a lot like Google’s Chromebook Pixel: It’s the best Chromebook you can buy, and it shows how good the experience of using ChromeOS can be. But, it’s not so much better than the many other reasonably priced options out there for anyone to seriously consider unless they love ChromeOS and have money to burn.

Google has been making high-end Chromebooks for almost a decade now, dating back to the $1,300 Chromebook Pixel in 2013. At the time, many people saw it as a beautiful but strange device. In the years that followed, both Google and its hardware partners have made premium Chromebooks more and more commonplace. Though, a still-unconfirmed report earlier this year suggests Google is giving up on making laptop hardware, at least for now. The company hasn’t said anything of the sort yet, but the reality is that Google hasn’t made a new Chromebook since the Pixelbook Go in late 2019.

Of course, that hasn’t stopped other manufacturers from making Chromebooks with gorgeous screens, great industrial design and powerful hardware. But HP’s Elite Dragonfly Chromebook, released earlier this year, might be the nicest I’ve used in a long time. It also has a jaw-dropping price point, starting at well over $1,000. Much like the original Chromebook Pixel, HP’s latest is a joy to use that is very hard to recommend because of that price.

Design

Before we talk about the bummer that is the HP Elite Dragonfly Chromebook’s cost, let’s go over the good stuff. The Dragonfly is similar in stature to a MacBook Air, weighing in at about 2.8 pounds and measuring only .65 inches thick. Combined with a fairly spacious 13.5-inch touchscreen display with a 3:2 aspect ratio, the Dragonfly is comfortable to work on and easy to travel with.

Design-wise, it’s a spartan affair, with a dark gray finish and only a few silver accents to be found. But given that HP is primarily targeting this computer at enterprise users, it makes sense that they went with a classic look here. There’s a decent selection of ports, despite the Dragonfly’s rather slim profile: it has two USB-C / Thunderbolt 4 ports, a USB-A connection, a headphone jack, HDMI and a microSD slot. That’s a lot better than you’ll get on a typical ultraportable.

Nathan Ingraham / Engadget

Screen and keyboard

There’s a handful of things that make the Dragonfly really stand out. For starters, it has an excellent display, with a 3:2 aspect ratio that provides a lot more vertical viewing space than your standard 16:9 screen. The configuration I’m testing has a 2,256 x 1,504 resolution, good for about 200 pixels per inch. Sure, there are more pixel-dense displays out there, but this one looks stunning, with sharp text and images and basically no visible pixels. It’s the nicest screen on a Chromebook I’ve seen in a long time. The only minor knock is its unremarkable 60Hz refresh rate, but that shouldn’t be a major issue for most people. Still, HP spared basically no expense on everything else, so it would have been nice to have.

Despite the refresh rate, the Dragonfly’s display is great beyond just the aspect ratio. It’s bright and has nice contrast without things being too over-exaggerated. It’s also rather reflective, which makes it not ideal if there’s a light shining on the display, but the screen is bright enough that it should be usable in all but the harshest of light.

The keyboard and trackpad are also excellent. The keys are firm, but not too firm, and have plenty of travel for a relatively thin laptop. The trackpad, meanwhile, is large and responsive. Nothing quite matches up to the trackpad on a MacBook for me, but this one feels pretty close. HP says it’s a haptic trackpad, with customized vibrations for some specific actions like pinning windows in split screen or switching between virtual desks, but I can’t say I noticed much of anything there.

Nathan Ingraham / Engadget

Good specs (for a Chromebook)

Finally, the Dragonfly mostly has cutting-edge spec options; the model I tested has a 12th-generation Intel Core i5 processor, built-in LTE, 256GB of storage and 8GB of RAM. LTE isn’t exactly cutting-edge anymore, and 8GB of RAM is a bit stingy on a computer this pricey. But aside from those quibbles, this is plenty of horsepower for basically anything you want to do in ChromeOS; I never experienced any stutters when switching apps or playing back music and video. Despite the high-resolution screen and powerful processor, battery life is solid if not spectacular. I got between six and eight hours of normal usage, which involved a lot of Chrome tabs, Spotify, Todoist, Slack, Google Keep, Trello and the occasional Android app here and there. It managed to play back a movie for 8 hours and 50 minutes in our battery drain test. If battery is your foremost concern, the model with a Core i3 processor or the lower-resolution screen will likely last even longer.

It also does a fine job running the handful of Android apps I tested it with. In the last year or so, you’ve been able to run downloaded apps in tablet, phone or resizable windows, and for the most part I was able to get Todoist, Spotify and Lightroom all working well in resizable windows. Even Instagram finally works properly, although now that the website now allows you to create posts, it’s not really necessary any more. Putting that aside, performance across basically all the Android apps and games I tried was solid. But given how many apps are in the Play Store, there’s still a good chance of running across some that don’t work well.

While Chromebooks aren’t known for gaming, the Dragonfly easily handled some cloud-based play via NVIDIA’s GeForce Now and Xbox Cloud Gaming – not a surprise given the powerful (for a Chromebook, at least) hardware. At this point, ChromeOS has pretty solid game controller support, and it obviously works with external keyboards and mice. So provided the titles you want are available, this is probably the best way to play games on a Chromebook at this point. That said, this hardware should more than meet the cut for installing Steam, once Google and Valve start rolling that out beyond its current limited alpha phase.

The catch

The problem that keeps me from recommending the Dragonfly is easy to explain. The cheapest model of this laptop costs an eye-popping $1,150. And that’s with an i3 processor and only 128GB of storage. As usual, HP has a dizzying array of different configurations, though I don’t think they’re actually selling the model I have through their site right now. But there is an option with an i5 processor that costs more than $1,500. That is crazy money for a Chromebook, no matter how nice it is.

For a comparison, Acer’s Chromebook Spin 714 has essentially the same processor, storage and RAM as the Dragonfly for only $730. The screen and build quality aren’t quite as nice, but we’re talking about a computer that’s essentially just as capable but costs half of what HP is offering. For the cost of the Dragonfly, you could also pick up an extremely capable Windows laptop or MacBook Air. As much as I like using Chrome OS, it’s nearly impossible to recommend anyone spend that kind of cash on a Chromebook.

To be fair to HP, the company isn’t positioning this as a broad consumer device. It falls under their enterprise category, and I could imagine some businesses heavily invested in Google’s ecosystem buying these for executives. But, there’s no denying that, at this price point, ChromeOS is a compromise compared to Windows or macOS.

In this way, HP’s Elite Dragonfly Chromebook is a lot like Google’s Chromebook Pixel: It’s the best Chromebook you can buy, and it shows how good the experience of using ChromeOS can be. But, it’s not so much better than the many other reasonably priced options out there for anyone to seriously consider unless they love ChromeOS and have money to burn.

You won't have to pay much extra to get Apple's latest thin-and-light laptop. Amazon is once again selling the base MacBook Air configuration with 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD for $1,049, significantly below the official $1,199 price. The savings only apply to the silver and midnight hues, but you probably won't mind if you were previously considering the M1 model. You can also save $150 on 512GB versions if you need the extra storage.

The M2-powered MacBook Air is, simply put, one of the best general-purpose laptops we've tried. It's extremely slim and fanless, but still performs well and lasts a very long time on battery. Add a high-quality display and surprisingly powerful speakers and you have a portable that can travel most anywhere, but still has the power to handle serious tasks like video editing.

There are some important considerations. The storage in the 256GB configuration isn't as quick as for the 512GB edition — it's just fine for everyday use, but may prove a bottleneck if you're routinely working with very large files (such as major 4K video projects). And while the absence of a fan is rarely an issue in typical circumstances, you may want to spring for the 13-inch MacBook Pro M2 if you regularly subject your computer to sustained heavy workloads. Otherwise, the MacBook Air is a great pick — it's even better than the Pro if you need more ports (as MagSafe frees up one) or prefer physical function keys over the Touch Bar.

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Can you believe it's been 10 years since Microsoft first launched the Surface? That's a decade of trying to make hybrid tablet PCs a thing, something I'm still not sure many people actually want. But, you know what, I'll give Microsoft credit for trying to push laptop designs forward in an era when everyone was trying to copy Apple's unibody MacBook Pro and ultra-thin MacBook Air. The Surface was a radical alternative.

The Surface Pro 9 with 5G makes it clear that Microsoft has learned some lessons since its first tablets: It's impeccably designed, and it's the first Surface to tap into speedy 5G networks. Unfortunately, it's also a disappointing reminder that Microsoft can't help but repeat many of its earlier mistakes. It's yet another ARM-based Windows PC that we can't possibly recommend.

That's not exactly surprising, given our lukewarm reaction to the ARM-powered Surface Pro X line. But what's more galling this year is that Microsoft is actually calling it the Surface Pro 9 with 5G, as if it's directly comparable to the Surface Pro 9 powered by Intel's 12th-gen chips. That's more than hubris – it's an outright lie, one that will undoubtedly confuse shoppers and IT workers for the next year.

Sure, they both have the same gorgeous and impressively thin aluminum case, 13-inch PixelSense display, and very usable keyboard covers (which are unfortunately still sold separately). Both models also have the same built-in kickstand, which lets you prop up the screen on a table, or if you're feeling risky, on your leg for on-the-go computing. If you've seen a Surface tablet before, especially last year's solid Pro 8, not much has changed.

Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

A tale of two Surfaces

Here's the rub: Microsoft now has one product line running on two very different chip designs, Intel's x86 hardware and Microsoft's custom SQ3 ARM system-on-a-chip (itself based on Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3). The Intel-powered Surface Pro 9 can run all of the legacy Windows apps you'd expect. The SQ3 model, on the other hand, can only run newer apps natively. Everything else is emulated, leading to significantly slower performance. On the plus side, Windows 11 supports x64 emulation now, so the Pro 9 with 5G can run plenty of apps that the Pro X couldn't when it launched. But that doesn't cover games, and it's a compromise I don't think anyone should be making at this point.

What's even more frustrating is that Microsoft is making you pay a $300 premium above the $999 Surface Pro 9 for the privilege of owning an inherently slower computer. How much is built-in 5G worth to you, then?

Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

A better Windows on Arm experience, but not by much

After using the Pro 9 with 5G for several days, I'm even more baffled by Microsoft's reckless attempt at shoving its x86 and ARM product lines together. While a few of the company's engineers assured me in a recent interview that the performance would be comparable between the SQ3 and Intel models, I knew that was inaccurate the minute I launched Chrome. As an emulated x86 app, it's slower to launch and fairly laggy while browsing the web and juggling tabs. Microsoft Edge, on the other hand, is snappier all around because it's a native ARM app.

I typically run multiple browsers at once, since it's the easiest way to separate work and personal accounts. I can't just move to Edge full time. So if I wanted to work the way I'm used to on the Surface Pro 9 with 5G, I'd just have to live with an experience that's worse than a three-year-old Surface Laptop. Does that sound like progress to you? While it performed generally fine with native apps like Spotify and Evernote, multitasking between them and emulated apps still felt noticeably sluggish. In many ways, it felt like a step down from the Surface Pro 6 I reviewed four years ago, save for the silkier 120Hz refresh rate on the Pro 9's larger screen.

All of the benchmarks I ran on the Surface Pro 9 also show that it's slower than any premium laptop we've reviewed over the past few years. Sure, Geekbench 5 was running as a slower emulated app, but its score is also indicative of how other emulated programs will run. Even the weak Surface Go 2, with its low-power 11th-gen Intel chip, managed to outperform the Pro 9 5G in single-core performance. (At least the SQ3 faired better with multi-core speeds.) 3DMark's Wildlife Extreme test, which is one of the best ways to compare cross-platform gaming, also returned a low score, as I expected. (The bigger surprise? It was on par with the ASUS ZenBook Fold 17, a foldable computer held back by a low-wattage Intel chip.)

While I don't think many people would be buying the 5G Surface Pro 9 for its performance alone, it's still worth reiterating that it'll be a far slower computer than its Intel counterpart. I didn't have that other Pro 9 model to test, but we did review the ASUS ZenBook Fold 17, which uses a similar Intel Core i7-1250U CPU. That's a low-power chip but otherwise comparable to the i7-1255U on the Surface Pro 9. Compared to the SQ3 Pro 9, the ZenBook blew it away in Geekbench 5's CPU test, as well as Cinebench R23.

Surprisingly, both the ZenBook Fold 17 and 5G Pro 9 scored similarly in the Wildlife Extreme benchmark, but the Intel chip has the advantage of being able to run games natively. The Pro 9 5G couldn't even successfully emulate older titles like Quake on Steam. (For the truly desperate, you can always stream Xbox Game Pass titles over the cloud, and a handful of low-power native games like Minecraft run fine.)

Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

What good is built-in cellular?

The Surface Pro 9's built-in 5G connectivity gives it one major leg up over the Intel model, but I didn't find it very compelling during my testing. During cellular setup, Windows directed me to Ubigi and Gigsky as two potential providers that would connect to the Surface's eSIM. I went with Ubigi, and after 20 minutes of account setup, I was able to hop onto their LTE network. Unfortunately, I didn't see any 5G speeds in my Atlanta suburb, but the network still delivered a respectable 33.6 Mbps down and (far less impressive) 2 Mbps up over LTE.

If you already have a working SIM card, you can open up the Pro 9's expansion area under the kickstand and slide it in there. My Verizon SIM was recognized in 30 seconds, and it delivered 50 Mbps down and 4 Mbps up over LTE. You can also easily swap out the notebook's SSD in that expansion area too, something we could never do before. In exchange, though, Microsoft removed the SD card slot. I wouldn't consider that a dealbreaker — being able to upgrade to a larger SSD down the line is incredibly useful — but it's something to keep in mind if you rely on SD cards to store your music or photos.

Having the ability to hop on cellular everywhere, especially for international providers like Ubigi, is certainly impressive. Personally, though, I'd trade that in for the increased speed and app compatibility from the Intel Surface Pro 9. Is it really that tough to tether your phone? And true road warriors are likely better off with a mobile hotspot, which can connect to multiple devices easily.

Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

Same Surface issues, 10 years later

Perhaps I'm just grumpy from the whole forced ARM transition, but I also couldn't help but be frustrated by the other annoyances from the Surface Pro 9. Microsoft has been pumping these things out for a decade now, and they're still annoying to use on your lap. Unlike a traditional laptop, which has a flat base connected to a screen, you have to juggle the Surface's keyboard cover and kickstand on your leg to keep it propped up. It's functional enough — I was able to type this whole review with the Surface on my lap — but not exactly comfortable.

I've been able to bear it for years, but by this point, it'd be nice to see Microsoft try something to improve the experience. Maybe add a secondary hinge to stabilize things, or offer a case that can completely unify the keyboard and tablet (like HP's leather-clad Spectre Folio). With ultraportables like the MacBook Air and Dell XPS 13 getting lighter and thinner every year, Microsoft can't just assume consumers will live with subpar ergonomics. Perhaps the tradeoff would be worth it if the Surface was usable as a tablet on its own, but I still find it too large and unwieldy compared to the iPad Pro. (And it’s not like Windows is any better on tablets, either.)

There are still some nice design ideas around the Surface — I love the way the Slim Pen 2 hides away in the $180 Signature Pro keyboard, and it remains one of the best stylii on the market when it comes to drawing and jotting down notes. Still, it feels like the Surface is turning into a computer that's more performative than it is functional. Look at its kickstand! Don't worry about how impractical it is. It's got 5G! But ignore the fact that it has a slow mobile processor. Even its two USB-C ports are compromised; they're limited to USB 3.2, whereas the Intel model's ports all support the faster Thunderbolt 4 standard.

AI-assisted video chats

Oddly enough, there's one thing the 5G Surface Pro 9 excels at: video calls. It sports a sharp 1080p front-facing camera, but crucially, it's assisted by the SQ3's Neural Processing Unit. That powers features like automatic framing, background blurring and sustained eye contact during video calls. And in my experience, it's almost magical. The portrait blurring effects are close to what I'd expect from a larger DSLR camera, and the automatic framing was silky smooth. Those features also work across any video chat app, so you don't have to worry about looking different across Zoom or Teams.

The one downside of the Intel-powered Surface Pro 9 is that it can't take advantage of any of those features. While Intel's 12th-gen CPUs are plenty powerful, they don't have an NPU built-in. Microsoft reps say any future chips that add AI processing will be able to use these features, but that doesn't help people buying Intel Pro 9 models this year. At the very least, they'll have a good front-facing camera (as well as a very capable 10-megapixel rear camera).

Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

Wrap-up

If you're still interested in the 5G Surface Pro 9, having read my complaints and frustrations, be prepared to pay dearly. It starts at $1,300 with a relatively modest 8GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD, while the Intel model goes for $1,000 with those same specs. And if you want a keyboard, add another $120 for the Pro Type Cover (though we’d recommend the $140 Pro Keyboard instead). Jumping up to 16GB of RAM with the 5G Pro 9 (like our review unit) will cost you $1,600 with 256GB of storage. As you go up the price range, the Intel and SQ3 models end up costing the same — but who wants to pay nearly $2,000 for an ARM-based Windows PC?

Perhaps one day, Microsoft's dream of an ultra-thin, ARM-powered Surface will come true. But the company has failed at every attempt to make that happen (my condolences to anyone who bought the Surface RT). The 5G Pro 9 is an improvement, but its beauty belies its many practical issues. If you're at all interested in a new Surface, buy the Intel model and get a hotspot on the side. You'll be far happier.

Among the new computers Apple plans to announce in the coming months is an M2 variant of the Mac Pro, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Writing in his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman reports the company has been testing a version of its high-end desktop that features a chipset with a 24-core CPU and 76-core GPU, as well as 192GB of memory. He predicts Apple will ultimately let customers choose between two different chipsets when configuring the Mac Pro. For the moment, Gurman has taken to calling those the “M2 Ultra” and “M2 Extreme.”

“My belief is that the Mac Pro will be offered with options for 24 and 48 CPU cores and 76 and 152 graphics cores — along with up to 256 gigabytes of memory,” he writes. Gurman adds those chips will be “at least twice or four times as powerful as the M2 Max,” a processor Apple has yet to announce. To put those core counts in perspective, the base M2 features 8 CPU cores and 10 GPU cores. Meanwhile, the unannounced M2 Max is expected to feature 12 CPU cores and 38 GPU cores.

Before the new Mac Pro arrives, Gurman expects Apple to announce updated versions of the 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro, as well as a new Mac mini. According to him, Apple’s latest high-end laptops will feature the company’s new M2 Pro and M2 Max chips, while the Mac mini will ship with the same M2 silicon found in its 2022 MacBook Air. Gurman notes Apple has also internally tested an M2 Pro variant of the Mac mini, though he doesn’t mention if the company plans to release that version of the computer. Those devices should arrive sometime in the coming months.

Now that speedy ports are par for the course on computers, how is Intel going to make Thunderbolt more enticing? By courting enthusiasts who demand a wall of monitors, apparently. The company has previewed a next-generation Thunderbolt standard that will offer more bandwidth for multi-monitor setups and other "visually intensive usages." While the port will normally offer 80 gigabits per second of bandwidth like the USB 4 Version 2.0 spec it's built on, it auto-switches to a special mode with 120Gbps upstream and 40Gbps downstream when your screens' resolution or refresh rate demands greater performance.

You can also expect DisplayPort 2.1 support, twice the PCI Express data (important for external GPUs) and backward compatibility with earlier formats as well as passive cables up to 3.3ft long.

That's not far off from the new USB 4 standard. As The Vergepoints out, though, Intel is betting that consistency will persuade PC makers to adopt the new technology. "Many" of USB 4's new features are optional where they're required with the new Thunderbolt, Intel's Jason Ziller says. While the USB Implementers Forum is improving labeling, you may want Thunderbolt to be sure your gaming rig or creative studio can handle all the monitors you want.

Intel plans to share the updated Thunderbolt standard's final name and capabilities sometime in 2023. This might give some users a reason to buy Intel-powered computers (or Macs, if Apple adopts the port) next year. However, it's clear the gap between Thunderbolt and USB has narrowed considerably. You might not have much reason to buy an Intel Core-based PC when a USB 4-equipped AMD system may offer nearly identical connectivity.

Earlier this week, Google and hardware partners ASUS, Acer and Lenovo announced a somewhat surprising initiative to build Chromebooks expressly for cloud gaming. While many Chromebooks are a riff on the classic 13-inch laptop, the first round of these devices have large, high-resolution screens with fast refresh rates, anti-ghosting keyboards, powerful processors and a few software tweaks to better work with cloud gaming services like GeForce NOW.

All these laptops are set to be released by the end of October, but I got a chance to check out a pre-production version of Acer’s Chromebook 516 GE. Over the last week, I’ve played some games with it as well as put it through my daily work routine. I’ll need to test the final version before giving it a proper review, but the Chromebook 516 GE has a lot going for it, whether you play games or not.

Acer will offer a few configurations of this laptop, but the one I tried is up for pre-order at Best Buy. It features a 12th-generation Intel Core i5-1240P processor, 8GB of RAM, 256GB of storage and a 16-inch, 2,560x1,600 display with a 120Hz refresh rate. The 516 GE is larger and heavier than a lot of Chromebooks, but 3.75 pounds is pretty reasonable for a 16-inch laptop.

As an all-purpose machine, there’s a lot to like about the 516 GE, assuming you’re OK with a computer that isn’t super portable. The screen is simply great to work on – with an effective 1,600 x 1,000 resolution by default, there’s plenty of vertical space, and I was easily able to have large windows (like a Google Doc and Slack) next to each other without feeling cramped. Its brightness rating of 350 nits isn’t going to blow you away, but it felt like plenty to me, and colors were nicely saturated without being exaggerated. And while the 120Hz refresh rate doesn’t change the basic experience of using a Chromebook, things like scrolling through YouTube or resizing windows did feel smooth and fluid.

The keyboard and trackpad are also great. The keyboard is large and spacious, and the keys have plenty of travel. It’s equally suited to a long writing session or playing games. And the computer’s large deck means the trackpad is also one of the bigger ones I’ve used on a Chromebook; it’s smooth and responsive. In a nod to its gaming heritage, the keyboard has an RGB LED backlight and an outline around the WASD keys, but these are about the only flourishes that make this computer feel like a “gaming laptop.”

The real question with this laptop, though, is whether it truly offers a better cloud gaming experience than other options (including other Chromebooks). I’m not ready to pass judgment on that yet, but both NVIDIA’s GeForce Now and Xbox Cloud Gaming worked without any issues here. I just plugged in my Xbox Controller and got to business. On GeForce Now, which I connected to my Steam account, I spent some time playing Portal and Shadow of the Tomb Raider, while I tried out favorites like Forza Horizon 5 and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge via my Game Pass subscription.

There’s no doubt that this display elevates the experience, both simply because of its sheer size and its resolution. I haven’t tried any games that played at 120Hz yet, but everything I did play looked excellent – assuming my connection stayed solid. The 516 GE has a WiFI 6E chip inside, but as I don’t have a 6E router yet, that didn’t do me any good. And even when I was in the same room as my router, with a strong signal, the quality of my game streams varied significantly. Overall, GeForce Now feels much more reliable than Xbox Cloud Gaming. When playing Xbox games, the picture glitched out in significant, game-disrupting fashion pretty frequently. GeForce Now, on the other hand, I would experience the occasional burst of dropped frames, but the visuals rarely started tearing and distorting like they did on Xbox Cloud Gaming.

Neither were nearly as good as playing a locally installed game, and the overall experience isn’t all that different from what I’ve experienced doing cloud gaming on my MacBook Pro or other laptops. Acer can make a great laptop, but there’s only so much they can do about iffy streaming quality. And my internet connection isn’t exactly slow – I got about 170 Mbps down in a speed test I took when I was done playing.

For $650, Acer’s Chromebook 516 GE seems like a solid value – the combination of a powerful hardware, a great screen and keyboard and solid build quality make it a compelling device. Chromebooks with an i5 processor usually cost at least this much if not more, and the 516 GE has a fair number of features that make it unique. Whether this helps Google’s initiative to convince people Chromebooks are worth gaming on is another story altogether, but at the very least, Acer’s latest will likely be worth a look once it is available.

Framework, which make modular, easy-to-repair laptops with the idea of reducing e-waste, is now selling refurbished models. They come from "the small number of returns we get from our 30-day return guarantee," and promise a like-new laptop with decent specs, a full guarantee and a discount from all-new models. The company is also selling refurbished version of its expansions packs (USB-C, USB-A, HDMI, etc.)

The returns go through a detailed testing process, and the company replaces any parts that fail to meet its specifications. They're then tested to confirm functionality and cleaned. There are what Framework calls "cosmetic limitations," but the company has set "pretty stringent" limits for the initial set of refurbed laptops.

Framework

The cheapest refurbished model available has an Intel Core i5-1135G7 processor for $600, without memory, storage, WiFi, a power adapter, the OS and expansion cards. In comparison, the same model new costs $680. With 16GB of DDR4-3200 RAM, 1TB of storage, WiFi, a power adapter and a refurbished expansion card pack (2 USB-C, 1 USB-A and 1 HDMI), you're looking at $905 in total — not bad for a decently equipped laptop that's easy to repair and upgrade. The other options are a Core i7-1165G7 model for $800 and a Core i7-1185G7 model for $1,069.

Allowing the sale of previously purchased devices is part of the company's pledge to "remake consumer electronics to respect people and the planet," while letting buyers contribute to the circular economy. The refurbished program is only available in Canada and the US so far — it hasn't received enough returns to launch the program in Europe yet.

Framework has always said that it wants to sell PCs to compete with models like the Surface Laptop or Dell XPS 13, and spec-wise, its latest 12th-generation Intel models are at least competitive. And so far, the company has offered mainboard updates you can install yourself, should you desire more performance down the road. In any case, most buyers will likely be just as interested in playing a part in reducing e-waste, and the refurbished models give Framework another way to do that.