AMD’s Ryzen processors debuted in the Surface Laptop 3, but they were a year behind with Ryzen 3000 chips. It now comes with a wide selection of Intel and AMD processors. The new components are what makes the Surface Laptop 4 what it is. The docking capabilities of the Surface Connect port are great, though it’s all proprietary. Microsoft continues to ignore the existence of Thunderbolt 4, which means the USB-C port isn’t as fast as it is on other laptops. Ports include a USB-C 3.1, USB-A, a headphone jack, and the magnetized Surface Connect. The bezels are larger than I’d like, but in the 15-inch form factor, they’re less egregious.

The Surface Laptop 4 is one of the few 15-inch laptops that offer a 3:2 screen - and it’s glorious. I also like what the ultrathin design does to emphasize the screen. It’s a superbly manufactured device worthy of the Surface brand. The lid is rigid, the hinge opens with one finger, and there isn’t too much screen wobble either. You won’t find the bend or flex that’s common in laptops this thin. The tiny stature of the chassis makes its build quality that much more impressive. That makes the Surface Laptop 4 the slimmest 15-inch laptop you can buy. It’s still an accomplishment, though - the similarly configured LG Gram 16, for example, is still a larger 0.66 inches thick. Because the Surface Laptop 4 doesn’t support discrete graphics or 45-watt processors, Microsoft’s able to go razor-thin. Of course, those laptops have larger chassis to support the extra performance you can configure. That’s especially true if you’re used to thicker laptops in this category such as the Dell XPS 15 (0.71 inches thick) or MacBook Pro 16-inch (0.64 inches thick). That thinness is really noticeable in the palm rests, which are barely raised off the table.

It’s still as remarkably thin as ever at just 0.58 inches for the 15-inch model. All of those things are still intact with the Surface Laptop 4, which leaves the chassis relatively unchanged.

Surface laptop 4 15 inch