Which premium laptop fits your needs?

There are no shortages of premium laptops in 2023, but two of the best include both the Surface Laptop 5 and the new Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Pro series. The Galaxy Book 3 Pro brings many changes over past models, like the move to bigger 16:10 aspect ratio AMOLED screens, while Microsoft’s Surface Laptop 5 also offers up pretty new colors and support for the Surface Pen. Even the screen sizes on these devices are different, with Samsung offering 14 and 16-inch options and Microsoft going for the classic 13 and 15-inch models.

If you’re wondering how these devices compare and want an excellent new flagship laptop from either Samsung or Microsoft, we’re here to help in your buying decision.

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  Microsoft Surface Laptop 5

  The Surface Laptop 5 features a sleek design, runs Windows 11, and has a touchscreen. For the money, it’s one of the best laptops around right now, and for the 15-inch model, it’s one of the lightest.

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  Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Pro

  The Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Pro is a premium aluminum laptop with 13th-generation Intel Core processors and options for a 14-inch or 16-inch screen.

Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Pro vs Surface Laptop 5: Price and availability

The Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Pro starts at $1,449.99 and will be on sale starting Feb. 17, 2023. You can preorder now through Samsung.com and, once available, other retailers like Best Buy and Amazon. It comes packed with 13th-generation Intel Core CPUs, starts with 256GB of storage and 8GB of RAM, and comes in 14 or 16-inch sizes. The Galaxy Book 3 Pro series also features the Galaxy Book 3 Pro 360, which is a 2-in-1 convertible, but we’ll be focusing on the clamshell model in this article.

The Surface Laptop 5, meanwhile, starts at $999 for the 13-inch model and $1,300 for the 15-inch model. That 13-inch Surface Laptop 5 comes with an Alcantara fabric finish, 8GB RAM, a 256GB SSD, and the Intel Core i5 CPU. The 15-inch model has a metal finish, 8GB of RAM, 256GB of SSD storage, and the Intel Core i7 CPU. You can buy it through Microsoft, Best Buy, Amazon, and other retailers.

Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Pro vs Surface Laptop 5: Specs

Display: Samsung has a better AMOLED display

If you’re considering just the display of these laptops as part of your buying choice, then, without a doubt, you’ll want to buy a Galaxy Book 3 Pro thanks to its bigger size, higher pixel count, and AMOLED technology. These three features come together to make Samsung’s laptop way more vibrant and immersive than Microsoft’s for everyday use. However, the Surface Laptop 5 offers touch support and support for the Surface Pen, which is an advantage over the Galaxy Book 3 Pro. If you want touch support with the Galaxy Book 3 Pro series, you’ll need to check out the Galaxy Book 3 Pro 360.

Diving into the specifics, the Galaxy Book 3 Pro’s display has 2880 x 1800 resolution across both 14-inch and 16-inch models. Not only are the screens bigger but they also have much higher resolution than the 13-inch Surface Laptop 5’s 2256 x 1504 resolution display or the 15-inch 2496 x 1664 resolution display.

Also of note is the 16:10 ratio with the Galaxy Book 3 Pro and the 3:2 ratio on the Surface Laptop 5. Both are great aspect ratios for displays for multitasking and stacking windows side by side. However, the 3:2 aspect ratio on the Surface Laptop 5 is slightly taller than the 16:10 aspect ratio display on the Galaxy Book 3 Pro series, so you’ll be able to see more of a webpage, for example.

Samsung is calling the display that they’re using a “Dynamic AMOLED 2X display”. That’s just a marketing term, but what it means is that you get a smooth and life-like viewing experience. AMOLED panels can recreate colors more accurately and push out darker blacks and brighter whites. This means games, and other content on the screen will be more colorful than on the Surface Laptop 5.

Of note is the 120Hz refresh rate on the Galaxy Book 3 Pro series. It’s higher than the refresh rate on the Surface Laptop 5. For real-world tasks, that means scrolling webpages, and even video editing or light gaming should be much smoother on the Galaxy Book 3 Pro series.

We appreciate the touch and inking support, along with the Surface Pen on the Surface Laptop 5, though. You won’t get touch or pen support on the Galaxy Book 3 Prol; Samsung’s S Pen is only supported on the Galaxy Book 3 Pro 360. So if you’re planning on drawing and inking, the Surface Laptop 5 will be better for you.

And the webcams atop those displays? We give the win to Samsung, which has a 1080p webcam, while Microsoft still uses a 720p Windows Hello webcam. You’ll look better on your video calls on the Galaxy Book 3 Pro due to the higher quality sensor and features like Studio Mode, which can dim your background and offer auto framing or eye contact correction. Just remember that you won’t get Windows Hello cameras on Samsung laptops, and you’ll have to sign in to your PC using your fingerprint instead.

Design: Clamshell laptops, but the Surface Laptop 5 has a fabric option

Both of these laptops are clamshell laptops, but there are two differences. The Surface Laptop 5 sports an option for a fabric finish, and it’s technically smaller and more portable.

Let’s start with the size. The Surface Laptop 5 comes in either 13-inch or 15-inch sizes, while the Galaxy Book 3 Pro series also comes in either 14-inch or 16-inch sizes. While Samsung’s displays are technically one inch bigger, the actual sizes only differ by millimeters, so you shouldn’t have any issues carrying either one around.

Weighting in at 2.58 pounds, the 14-inch Galaxy Book 3 Pro is lighter than the 13-inch Surface Laptop 5’s Alcantara model, which comes in at 2.8 pounds. It’s lighter than the metal model, too, which is 2.86 pounds. The 16-inch Galaxy Book 3 Pro, though, is about the same as the 15-inch Surface Laptop 5 at 3.4 pounds.

You can get a more luxurious fabric keyboard finish on the Surface Laptop 5 13-inch model, but 15-inch models only come with a metal finish, similar to the aluminum finish of the Galaxy Book 3 Pro series.

Performance: Samsung packs in newer Intel CPUs

On how these two laptops will perform in the real world, we have one note. Since the Galaxy Book 3 Pro series is newer, it has 13th-generation Intel CPUs. The Surface Laptop 5 was announced at the end of 2022, so it has what we’ll now call “last year” 12th-generation Intel CPUs.

Don’t let that fool you though. Both of these systems should perform fine for everyday tasks like web browsing because both 12th-generation and 13th-generation Intel CPUs are plenty fast. However, if you want to future-proof your laptop, it’s always best to buy a device with a new CPU, which in this case is the Galaxy Book 3 Pro series.

We can pick things apart further since the CPU parts used here are different, with Microsoft going with U-series CPUs and Samsung sticking with P-series CPUs. Both generation CPUs (and laptops) have performance and efficiency cores that help with multitasking, but the P-series chips run at 28 watts vs the 15-watt U-series CPUs on the Surface Laptop 5. The P-series chips also have more cores (12 cores total) than the U-series chips 10 cores, which will make a slight difference in overall system performance.

If you’re curious how this shakes up, here’s a comparison between last year’s Surface Laptop 5 and the LG gram 17, which has a 12th-generation P-series chip.

We have yet to review a laptop with one to confirm it, but Intel has mentioned that the 13th-generation CPUs will bring a 10% productivity boost over last gen.

Ports and connectivity: The Galaxy Book 3 Pro series has an HDMI port and microSD card slot

The Galaxy Book 3 Pro series and the Surface Laptop 5 have different port and connectivity options. Both devices have Thunderbolt 4, USB-A, and a headphone jack. In the case of the Surface, it’s one of each of those ports, in addition to the Surface Connect port. Meanwhile, the Galaxy Book 3 Pro has two Thunderbolt 4 ports, HDMI 2.0, and a microSD slot. We’ll always appreciate extra ports because it helps avoid dongles for connecting to displays and, with the microSD card, there’s even a quick way to add extra storage. There’s no 5G option for either laptop, though, so you’ll have to stick to Wi-Fi or a hotspot.

It’s also worth mentioning the Galaxy Book 3 Pro’s connectivity features with other devices in the Samsung ecosystem. You can use Samsung Multi Control to control your Samsung tablet, or smartphone using your Galaxy Book 3 series keyboard and trackpad. Samsung Second screen also turns your Galaxy Tab into a second monitor for your laptop. There are other features like Single Sign-on and Samsung Pass to enjoy transferring data between Samsung devices. You won’t see these Samsung-branded features on a Surface device.

Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Pro vs Surface Laptop 5: Which to buy?

There’s no doubt that these are both great devices, but the Galaxy Book 3 Pro is the clear winner. It has a better screen than the Surface Laptop 5, as well as newer CPUs, plus the addition of an HDMI port and microSD card slot. The Surface Laptop 5, though, should only be considered if drawing on the screen and inking is important, if you want a smaller device, or you just really like Surface products.

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  Microsoft Surface Laptop 5

  The Surface Laptop 5 features a sleek design, runs Windows 11, and has a touchscreen. For the money, it’s one of the best laptops around right now, and for the 15-inch model, it’s one of the lightest.

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  Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Pro

  The Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Pro is a premium aluminum laptop with 13th-generation Intel Core processors and options for a 14-inch or 16-inch screen.