Versus Engine
Apple MacBook Neo vs Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 (Snapdragon X Elite)
Specs, price and the one trade-off that actually decides it — Apple MacBook Neo against Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 (Snapdragon X Elite), side by side.
Cheaper to start
Apple MacBook Neo
Starts about $800 lower.
Rated higher
Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 (Snapdragon X Elite)
9.2 vs 8.8 on our design scale.
Standout
Apple MacBook Neo
All-aluminium build at $699
Apple MacBook Neo
Apple's entry laptop from $699 — the first MacBook running an iPhone chip.
Where it wins, where it doesn't
Pros
- All-aluminium build at $699
- A18 Pro delivers iPhone-class efficiency and battery life
- Cheapest credible path into macOS
Cons
- 8GB of memory and a 256GB base, neither upgradeable
- Display is a step below the Air
- A18 Pro is a phone chip — sustained workloads are not its job
Specifications
- chipApple A18 Pro
- memory8GB
- chassisAluminium, no plastic parts
- coloursIndigo, blush, citrus, silver
- display13-inch, 2408 x 1506
- storage_base256GB (512GB at $799)
- npu—
- soc—
- cpu_cores—
- connectivity—
- fabrication_process—
Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 (Snapdragon X Elite)
The vanguard of Copilot+ PCs, introducing Windows on ARM that finally competes with Apple Silicon. The Snapdragon X Elite integrates a massive 45 TOPS Hexagon NPU, delivering ultra-low latency for local on-device AI tasks.
Where it wins, where it doesn't
Pros
- Class-leading 45 TOPS NPU for instant local AI inference
- Stunning fanless-like thermal efficiency and battery life
- Premium haptic touchpad and aluminum unibody build
Cons
- x86 emulation overhead for legacy specialized software
- Gaming performance is limited by driver compatibility
Specifications
- chip—
- memory16GB or 32GB LPDDR5x (8448 MT/s)
- chassis—
- colours—
- display13.8 or 15-inch PixelSense Flow (120Hz)
- storage_base—
- npuQualcomm Hexagon (45 TOPS)
- socQualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-80-100)
- cpu_cores12-core Qualcomm Oryon (up to 3.4GHz, 4.0GHz boost)
- connectivityWi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4
- fabrication_process4nm (TSMC)