Microsoft's first round of Copilot Plus PCs launched last week with the promise of better battery life, performance comparable to a MacBook Air, and ai-ready chips. I spent the past week testing Microsoft's two new Surface devices and I think they largely deliver on Microsoft's promises.
There are some expected drawbacks to app emulation here and there. But for the most part, if you don't have complex application needs, these new Qualcomm Snapdragon x Elite and Plus chips deliver the Windows on Arm experience that Microsoft has been promising for more than a decade. They also put a lot of pressure on Intel to respond.
I was very impressed with the battery life of the $999.99 base model of the Surface Laptop during my tests. There have been times when I have used it throughout the work day and have never worried about having to charge it. I closed the lid and, days later, woke up the Surface Laptop to find that it hadn't drained the battery life to zero. I've never been confident enough to do that with an Intel-powered laptop.
