The Surface Laptop Go is an imbalanced machine. On one hand, it's one of the best $550 USD laptops you can find because its 10th gen Core i5 CPU, 3:2 touchscreen, and metal design are better than anything else at this price range.

faster display response times than Surface Laptop 3; USB-C charging and DisplayPort support; quiet fan during low-medium loads; >95 percent sRGB coverage; affordable starting price; well-calibrated display; crisp 3:2 touchscreen; small and lightweight; metal chassis

low-end SKUs are stuck with 4 GB of RAM; below average Turbo Boost sustainability; serviceability could be more user-friendly; no Thunderbolt 3; HDMI; or SD reader; higher-end SKUs are overpriced; slow NVMe SSD write rates; slow graphics performance; hinges could be more rigid; Wi-Fi 6 connectivity...

We think Microsoft can chalk this up as another successful downsizing: although the Surface Laptop Go’s cutbacks are more frequently felt than on the Surface Go 2, it’s still clearly a laptop that’s been crafted with care.

High build quality Great inputs Extremely portable

Lowered screen resolution Slow write speeds Not actually that cheap

Every mid-priced laptop comes with tradeoffs. The Surface Laptop Go’s concessions are largely straightforward: you get an excellent design in exchange for a couple of useful features and some performance overhead. For many people, that’s fine.

Light; attractive; and high-quality design; Comfortable keyboard and trackpad; Minimal bloatware; Good value for money

The keyboard isn’t backlit; Mediocre battery life; Only 256GB of storage at maximum; Slightly less-than-1080p display; The cheapest configuration probably shouldn’t exist

The Surface Laptop Go is a premium laptop at a lower price than you’d expect but it isn’t the best budget laptop you can buy

Beautiful design; Excellent display; Fingerprint reader and Windows Hello webcam

Cheapest model only has 64GB storage and 4GB of RAM

The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go provides portability and power

The Surface Laptop Go is a fantastic device at a super-affordable price. It offers decent performance and comfortable keyboard that's ideal for students, office workers and social media addicts alike.

Incredible value; Small and classy design; Excellent performance; Comfortable keyboard

Low-resolution display; No keyboard backlight; No fingerprint scanner on base configuration

A well-built ultraportable that does the basics very well, but sublime design can't make up for hardware shortcomings when rivals offer more power for less cash

Light and well-built; Vibrant 3:2 aspect touchscreen; Full-size keyboard and expansive touchpad

Internals merely average for the money; No backlit keyboard; Battery life only average

The Surface Laptop Go is an enjoyable device to use, but sub-par battery life and a lack of competitive specs mean most people will find better value for money elsewhere.

Thin and light; Impressive keyboard; Solid performance on top-spec model

No backlit keys; Average battery life; Comparatively expensive

With the Surface Laptop Go, Microsoft has tried to make an affordable laptop for the masses – or at least for students. While performance and battery life are underwhelming, the laptop is well built and designed, and will serve you well for day-to-day computing.

Well-built and lightweight; Impressive 12.4-inch; 3:2 aspect ratio display; Copes with most tasks comfortably

Average battery life; Average specs on the cheapest configuration; Average performance

Microsoft has a really good lower-cost Windows 10 laptop in it, but unfortunately the Surface Laptop Go isn’t quite it. It has many of the right elements: a great keyboard, good trackpad, nice look and reasonable performance.

solid performance; good keyboard and trackpad; fingerprint scanner in mid-or-high model; USB-C; nice look; solid build; recycled plastic.

weak battery life; runs hot; no backlit keys; screen not that crisp and not 1080p HD; not that much cheaper than premium machines; software niggles.