The Microsoft Surface Pro 11 Is Almost the Perfect Tablet-Laptop Hybrid
We may earn a commission from links on this page.
We're now all the way up to the 11th version of the Microsoft Surface Pro: The tablet-laptop hybrid made its first appearance in 2013, and we've seen plenty of tweaks and changes to the device since then. This latest 2024 version brings with it a couple of notable internal upgrades, together with a familiar design.
The Surface Pro 11 is the first to run a Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite processor, with ARM architecture that isn't quite as widely supported as Intel's x86 platform. Thanks to that chip, it's also the first Surface Pro with an integrated Neural Processing Unit (NPU), which means much better on-board AI processing.
I've been using the new Surface Pro 11 for a couple of weeks now, to see if the potential benefits of Qualcomm and ARM—better power efficiency, less heat, better battery life—actually work out in real-world testing. Here's what I found, and how you can tell whether or not the Surface Pro 11 is for you.
Hardware and design
While the shift to Qualcomm chipsets is significant, on the outside there's not a lot that's new with the Surface Pro 11: My review model brings with it a 13-inch touchscreen OLED display, running at a resolution of 2880 x 1920 pixels (an LCD version is also available). As with Surface Pros past, it's a fantastic screen, bright and sharp—and personally I'm a fan of the 3:2 aspect ratio, as it works well for reading documents and websites.
If you've never used a Surface Pro before, these are not particularly thin and light tablets. This model is 9.3 mm (0.37 inches) thick and weighs in at 895 g (1.97 lbs)—compare that to the 5.1 mm (0.2 inches) and 582 g (1.28 lbs) of the 13-inch iPad Pro launched in 2024. Unlike the iPad Pro, however, you do get a built-in kickstand, so you can easily prop it up for making video calls and watching movies.
And it is, of course, thin and light if you think of it as a laptop rather than a tablet, and assuming you're ready to pay another $140 at least for a Surface snap-on keyboard ($449 if you want the latest Flex keyboard, and the stylus as well). With a keyboard attached, it works fine as a laptop, but you do need a desk—it's not easy to use on your lap, due to the kickstand design, which can be an annoyance if you're using it on the couch or sitting at an airport or train station.
Various configurations are available, and my review model came fitted with a 12-core Snapdragon X processor, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB of SSD storage. There's no discrete graphics processor, but the Snapdragon chip comes with both a GPU and the aforementioned NPU built in, and it's very capable overall. As yet there's no cellular option, so it's just Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4.
Connectivity is covered by two USB-C ports with support for USB 4 and DisplayPort 1.4a, and the standard Surface charging port is here as well (though you can charge via USB-C as well). There are two 2W stereo speakers that produce sound that's merely OK, two mics that work in sync, a 10MP camera on the back, and what Microsoft calls a "Quad HD" selfie camera for video calling and Windows Hello facial recognition.
This new Surface Pro follows its predecessors in feeling well put together, made of premium materials and with a good amount of heft to it. Typing away on a device this size is inevitably going to feel a little cramped, but I didn't have any problems using it for extended periods of time (including typing out several parts of this review).
Software and performance
Windows 11 is Windows 11, and needs little introduction—except it does, because this is Windows 11 for ARM, so applications need to be coded for the different architecture. Native software support remains a work in progress, though the computer does a decent job of emulating x86 processor architecture for apps that need it. Programs such as Google Chrome and Adobe Photoshop are now available in ARM versions, but it may be worth checking that your most vital apps (including VPNs and messaging tools) will work.
I like what Microsoft has done with Windows 11 in recent years, on the whole. It feels like a modern operating system, with configuration settings that are a lot easier to get around than they used to be, and plenty of help in terms of program management, personalization, and notification settings.
Performance on the Surface Pro 11 is impressive for day-to-day computing tasks, but with the Snapdragon chip and the thin-and-light form factor, there isn't enough oomph here for serious graphics work or for high-end gaming—that said, if those are priorities for you, you're not going to be shopping for devices like the Surface Pro 11 anyway.
You can game on the Surface Pro 11, but not to any advanced level—but you wouldn't expect this thin slate to match a bulky Nvidia graphics card in terms of performance, especially with the x86 emulation going on. You can play older premium games at lower settings, and simpler, less demanding games (such as puzzlers), but performance is an issue on demanding titles such as Cyberpunk 2077.
There was very little in the way of lag or slowdowns when switching between apps or managing multiple tabs in a web browser. For me, having access to a desktop operating system, and specifically a desktop browser—which you don't get on an iPad—makes a huge amount of difference in terms of what I can get done on the go. From Slack to Google Docs to Photoshop, I'd much rather be using the full desktop experience than the equivalent iPadOS apps.
As for battery life, I found I regularly got around 12-13 hours between charges, though obviously there are lots of variables involved in terms of how bright the screen is and how many demands you're putting on the processor. While that's not stellar battery life for a tablet or a laptop, it will comfortably get you through a working day (and perhaps a bit more) without you having to worry about recharging.
AI features
This is a Copilot+ PC, which means you get built-in help from Microsoft's AI assistant, as well as access to tools such as Studio Effects and Cocreator. (There's also Windows Recall, though that remains in testing for now.) If you invest in one of the new keyboard attachments made by Microsoft, you'll find it has a dedicated Copilot key too.
Your mileage will vary when it comes to these AI features, but they're not something I find particularly useful. Studio Effects adds a few neat tricks to your video calls (like background blur), and Cocreator in Microsoft Paint lets you produce AI-generated pictures—and they work well; they're just not features I need.
Copilot is the same AI assistant as you get on the web, and while it has some clever capabilities—inventing alternative endings to movies or thinking up ideas for a birthday party, for example—I can't say it's something I turn to a lot. It's no secret that AI hallucinates and makes mistakes, and I'd rather trust other sources for my information. But if you're an AI enthusiast, go for it.
Verdict
The 11th edition of the Surface Pro doesn't really alter who this device is going to appeal to. It's still very much for those people who need the flexibility of both tablet and laptop form factors, with access to a powerful desktop computing environment and good-enough performance to carry out most tasks well. If you just need a tablet, or just need a lightweight laptop, then there are better options out there.
If you are in the target demographic for the Surface Pro, however, this is the best combination of the benefits of a tablet-plus-laptop that Microsoft has managed yet. Performance is noticeably better; battery life is noticeably better; and the solid build quality and superb screen remain (as do little annoyances like not being able to use it comfortably on your lap).
Pricing starts at $1,000 for the base model Surface Pro 11, and that can quickly go up for higher-spec versions—and even more so if you're buying a keyboard and stylus as well. It's definitely not cheap, which unfortunately puts it out of the budget of a lot of users. Perhaps that's something Microsoft can look to change with the Surface Pro 12.