Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) vs Microsoft Surface Laptop 15-inch (8th Edition)
VS
41.4Performance44
29.8Display41.6
55.3Battery68
79.6Portability65.9
4 spec wins — Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3)5 spec wins — Microsoft Surface Laptop 15-inch (8th Edition)
InnoReviews verdict
Microsoft Surface Laptop 15-inch (8th Edition) wins this laptop face-off, 52.6 to 48.4, pulling ahead mainly in battery (+13) and display (+12). Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) still makes sense if its price or standout specs fit your needs better.
Which would you pick?
Key differences
Reasons to pick the Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3)
- Stronger portability score: 80 vs 66
- 37% lower thickness: 11.5 mm vs 18.3 mm
- Lower launch price: $1,299 vs $1,550
Reasons to pick the Microsoft Surface Laptop 15-inch (8th Edition)
- Stronger display score: 42 vs 30
- Stronger battery score: 68 vs 55
- 100% higher Refresh rate: 120 Hz vs 60 Hz
- 100% higher RAM: 16 GB vs 8 GB
- 100% higher storage: 512 GB vs 256 GB
Display
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) | Microsoft Surface Laptop 15-inch (8th Edition) |
|---|---|---|
| Screen size | 15.3 ″+2% | 15 ″ |
| Panel type | IPS (Liquid Retina) | HDR PixelSense LCD (touchscreen) |
| Resolution | 2880x1864 | 3270x2180 |
| Refresh rate | 60 Hz | 120 Hz+100% |
| Peak brightness | 500 nits | 600 nits+20% |
Performance
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) | Microsoft Surface Laptop 15-inch (8th Edition) |
|---|---|---|
| Processor | Apple M3 (8-core) | Qualcomm Snapdragon X2 Plus (10-core) or Snapdragon X2 Elite (12-core) |
| Graphics | Apple M3 10-core GPU | Qualcomm Adreno |
| RAM | 8 GB | 16 GB+100% |
| RAM type | LPDDR5 (unified) | LPDDR5x |
| Storage | 256 GB | 512 GB+100% |
| Storage type | SSD | Gen 4 SSD (removable, M.2 2230) |
Benchmarks
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) | Microsoft Surface Laptop 15-inch (8th Edition) |
|---|---|---|
| Geekbench 6 (single) | 3,130Top 26% | — |
| Geekbench 6 (multi) | 12,066Bottom 19% | — |
Battery
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) | Microsoft Surface Laptop 15-inch (8th Edition) |
|---|---|---|
| Capacity | 67 Wh+1% | 66 Wh |
| Web browsing endurance | — | 14 h |
| Charging | 35 W | 65 W+86% |
Design
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) | Microsoft Surface Laptop 15-inch (8th Edition) |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 1.51 kg+9% | 1.66 kg |
| Thickness | 11.5 mm+37% | 18.3 mm |
| Material | Recycled Aluminum | Aluminum (100% recycled) |
Connectivity
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) | Microsoft Surface Laptop 15-inch (8th Edition) |
|---|---|---|
| Ports | 2x Thunderbolt / USB 4, MagSafe 3, 3.5mm | 2x USB-C/USB4, USB-A 3.2, 3.5mm headphone jack, Surface Connect, microSD |
| Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi 6E | Wi-Fi 7 |
| Bluetooth | 5.3 | Bluetooth 5.4 |
| Webcam | 1080p FaceTime HD | 1080p Full HD (Windows Studio Effects) |
| Biometrics | Touch ID | Facial recognition (Windows Hello) |
Software
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) | Microsoft Surface Laptop 15-inch (8th Edition) |
|---|---|---|
| Operating system | macOS Sonoma | Windows 11 Home (Arm) |
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