## Introduction The Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 is a stylish and powerful laptop that offers users a premium computing experience. With its sleek design, ample performance, and long battery life, it's a great choice for students, professionals, and creative enthusiasts alike. In this review, we'll delve into the key features of the Surface Laptop 2 and provide you with a comprehensive assessment of its pros and cons. ## Design and Build Quality The Surface Laptop 2 boasts a sleek and minimalist design that exudes sophistication. Its aluminum unibody construction provides excellent durability and gives it a premium feel. The 13.5-inch PixelSense Display is surrounded by thin bezels, which offer an immersive viewing experience. The laptop is available in a variety of colors, including Platinum, Charcoal, Burgundy, and Cobalt Blue. The Platinum model, which we reviewed, has a clean and elegant aesthetic that will complement any workspace or personal style. ## Display The Surface Laptop 2's 13.5-inch PixelSense Display is one of its standout features. It offers a stunning resolution of 2256 x 1504 pixels, which provides sharp and vibrant images. The display also supports multi-touch gestures, making it easy to interact with your content and navigate the operating system. The Surface Laptop 2's display has wide viewing angles, ensuring that the colors and contrast remain consistent even when viewed from different angles. It also has a high brightness level, making it easy to use the laptop in bright or outdoor environments. ## Performance The Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 is powered by an Intel Core i5-8250U processor, which provides ample performance for everyday tasks and demanding workloads. The processor has four cores and eight threads, with a base clock speed of 1.6GHz and a turbo boost speed of 3.4GHz. In our benchmarks, the Surface Laptop 2 achieved impressive scores in both single-core and multi-core tests. It can easily handle common tasks such as web browsing, email, office productivity, and video conferencing. The laptop also performs well in creative applications such as Adobe Photoshop and Premiere Pro. ## Memory and Storage The Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 that we reviewed comes equipped with 8GB of DDR4 RAM and a 256GB solid-state drive (SSD). The RAM provides ample headroom for multitasking and running multiple programs simultaneously. The SSD offers fast boot times and quick application loading. If you require more storage space, you can purchase a Surface Laptop 2 with a larger SSD configuration, including 512GB or 1TB options. You can also use an external hard drive or cloud storage services to supplement the internal storage. ## Graphics The Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 uses Intel UHD Graphics 620 for graphics processing. This integrated graphics solution provides sufficient performance for basic gaming and casual video editing. However, it may struggle with more demanding graphics applications or high-end games. If you need more graphical power, you can consider the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio, which offers dedicated NVIDIA GeForce RTX GPUs. However, the Surface Laptop Studio is a more expensive option and has a different design. ## Battery Life The Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 has a long battery life that can last up to 14.5 hours on a single charge. This makes it an excellent choice for students who need their laptops to last throughout the day or for professionals who work on the go. We tested the battery life of the Surface Laptop 2 by looping a video with the screen brightness set to 50%. The laptop lasted for 13 hours and 40 minutes, which is slightly less than the advertised battery life but still very impressive. ## Ports and Connectivity The Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 has a limited selection of ports and connectivity options. It features a single USB-A 3.0 port, a Mini DisplayPort, a Surface Connect port, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. There is no USB-C port on the Surface Laptop 2, which may be a drawback for some users. The Surface Laptop 2 supports Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) and Bluetooth 5.0 for wireless connectivity. It also has a built-in webcam with a resolution of 720p. ## Software The Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 comes pre-installed with Windows 10 Home. Windows 10 is a user-friendly and feature-rich operating system that offers a wide range of productivity tools, security features, and entertainment options. The Surface Laptop 2 also comes with Microsoft's signature Surface software enhancements. These enhancements include the ability to use the Surface Pen for writing and drawing, the Windows Hello facial recognition feature for secure login, and the Cortana voice assistant. ## Pros and Cons **Pros:** * Sleek and premium design * Stunning PixelSense Display