Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 review – A Portable Powerhouse with a Few Caveats
Temperatures and comfort, Battery life
Max CPU load
In this test we use 100% on the CPU cores, monitoring their frequencies and chip temperature. The first column shows a computer’s reaction to a short load (2-10 seconds), the second column simulates a serious task (between 15 and 30 seconds), and the third column is a good indicator of how good the laptop is for long loads such as video rendering.
Average P-core frequency; Average E-core frequency; CPU temp.; Package Power
| Intel Core i5-1235U (15W TDP) | 0:02 – 0:10 sec | 0:15 – 0:30 sec | 10:00 – 15:00 min |
|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 | 1.87 GHz @ 1.37 GHz @ 72°C @ 16W | 2.47 GHz @ 1.87 GHz @ 82°C @ 25W | 1.78 GHz @ 1.30 GHz @ 69°C @ 15W |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen 4 | 2.55 GHz @ 2.32 GHz @ 60°C @ 32W | 2.51 GHz @ 2.30 GHz @ 66°C @ 32W | 2.40 GHz @ 2.20 GHz @ 65°C @ 28W |
| ASUS Vivobook 15 OLED (X1505) | 3.22 GHz @ 2.48 GHz @ 77°C @ 39W | 2.76 GHz @ 2.29 GHz @ 78°C @ 32W | 2.23 GHz @ 2.09 GHz @ 72°C @ 25W |
| ASUS Vivobook 16 (X1605) | 2.76 GHz @ 2.59 GHz @ 71°C @ 39W | 2.72 GHz @ 2.57 GHz @ 79°C @ 38W | 2.06 GHz @ 2.22 GHz @ 68°C @ 25W |
| Lenovo ThinkPad L13 Yoga Gen 3 | 1.88 GHz @ 1.97 GHz @ 61°C @ 20W | 1.86 GHz @ 1.96 GHz @ 68°C @ 20W | 2.20 GHz @ 2.20 GHz @ 88°C @ 25W |
| Dell Latitude 15 5530 | 3.57 GHz @ 3.02 GHz @ 94°C @ 52W | 2.03 GHz @ 2.09 GHz @ 76°C @ 21W | 2.24 GHz @ 2.19 GHz @ 64°C @ 23W |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 5 (15″, 2022) | 3.60 GHz @ 3.08 GHz @ 73°C @ 55W | 3.44 GHz @ 2.95 GHz @ 88°C @ 51W | 2.80 GHz @ 2.49 GHz @ 69°C @ 35W |
| Dell Latitude 15 3530 | 2.97 GHz @ 2.60 GHz @ 87°C @ 34W | 2.64 GHz @ 2.43 GHz @ 88°C @ 30W | 2.37 GHz @ 2.29 GHz @ 80°C @ 25W |
| HP 470 G9 | 1.43 GHz @ 1.39 GHz @ 54°C @ 15W | 1.43 GHz @ 1.39 GHz @ 57°C @ 15W | 1.44 GHz @ 1.39 GHz @ 64°C @ 15W |
| ASUS ExpertBook B1 (B1502) | 2.54 GHz @ 2.28 GHz @ 58°C @ 28W | 2.59 GHz @ 2.29 GHz @ 67°C @ 28W | 1.99 GHz @ 1.98 GHz @ 64°C @ 21W |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 14 Gen 4 | 2.55 GHz @ 2.33 GHz @ 64°C @ 33W | 2.45 GHz @ 2.31 GHz @ 71°C @ 32W | 2.32 GHz @ 2.19 GHz @ 67°C @ 28W |
| Acer Aspire 3 (A315-59) | 3.07 GHz @ 2.76 GHz @ 64°C @ 45W | 2.84 GHz @ 2.61 GHz @ 73°C @ 40W | 2.37 GHz @ 2.29 GHz @ 70°C @ 28W |
| ASUS Vivobook 17 (X1702) | 3.21 GHz @ 2.68 GHz @ 68°C @ 39W | 2.86 GHz @ 2.53 GHz @ 72°C @ 33W | 2.15 GHz @ 2.22 GHz @ 61°C @ 24W |
| Lenovo ThinkPad L15 Gen 3 | 3.25 GHz @ 2.69 GHz @ 88°C @ 44W | 3.05 GHz @ 2.64 GHz @ 95°C @ 41W | 1.98 GHz @ 1.92 GHz @ 70°C @ 20W |
| Fujitsu LifeBook U7512 | 3.00 GHz @ 2.54 GHz @ 88°C @ 40W | 2.40 GHz @ 2.14 GHz @ 85°C @ 28W | 2.31 GHz @ 2.07 GHz @ 83°C @ 26W |
| HP ProBook 450 G9 | 3.44 GHz @ 2.82 GHz @ 80°C @ 47W | 2.45 GHz @ 2.14 GHz @ 74°C @ 26W | 2.33 GHz @ 2.09 GHz @ 73°C @ 24W |
| HP ProBook 440 G9 | 3.25 GHz @ 2.74 GHz @ 79°C @ 46W | 2.49 GHz @ 2.23 GHz @ 87°C @ 30W | 2.20 GHz @ 2.08 GHz @ 73°C @ 24W |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 14s Yoga Gen 2 | 2.55 GHz @ 2.39 GHz @ 70°C @ 32W | 2.49 GHz @ 2.38 GHz @ 75°C @ 32W | 2.20 GHz @ 2.10 GHz @ 71°C @ 24W |
| Microsoft Surface Pro 9 | 3.32 GHz @ 2.78 GHz @ 75°C @ 46W | 3.06 GHz @ 2.54 GHz @ 82°C @ 42W | 1.91 GHz @ 1.79 GHz @ 64°C @ 19W |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 (13.5″) | 3.35 GHz @ 2.84 GHz @ 69°C @ 44W | 3.27 GHz @ 2.78 GHz @ 80°C @ 42W | 2.24 GHz @ 2.17 GHz @ 71°C @ 22W |
| ASUS Vivobook 15 (X1502) | 2.91 GHz @ 2.49 GHz @ 78°C @ 39W | 2.62 GHz @ 2.37 GHz @ 81°C @ 33W | 2.30 GHz @ 2.19 GHz @ 68°C @ 27W |
| Acer TravelMate P2 (TMP215-54) | 3.67 GHz @ 3.09 GHz @ 90°C @ 55W | 2.83 GHz @ 2.55 GHz @ 85°C @ 33W | 2.59 GHz @ 2.44 GHz @ 84°C @ 28W |
| HP EliteBook 650 G9 | 3.26 GHz @ 2.80 GHz @ 89°C @ 45W | 2.63 GHz @ 2.39 GHz @ 91°C @ 32W | 2.25 GHz @ 2.15 GHz @ 79°C @ 24W |
| HP EliteBook 640 G9 | 3.27 GHz @ 2.77 GHz @ 90°C @ 45W | 2.53 GHz @ 2.32 GHz @ 90°C @ 30W | 2.32 GHz @ 2.17 GHz @ 74°C @ 24W |
| HP EliteBook 840 G9 | 3.09 GHz @ 2.75 GHz @ 83°C @ 46W | 2.73 GHz @ 2.46 GHz @ 89°C @ 37W | 1.58 GHz @ 1.67 GHz @ 61°C @ 17W |
| Lenovo ThinkPad E14 Gen 4 | 3.28 GHz @ 2.77 GHz @ 84°C @ 44W | 3.18 GHz @ 2.77 GHz @ 90°C @ 44W | 2.49 GHz @ 2.28 GHz @ 77°C @ 28W |
| HP Pavilion Plus 14 (14-eh0000) | 2.85 GHz @ 2.43 GHz @ 77°C @ 39W | 2.34 GHz @ 2.10 GHz @ 75°C @ 29W | 1.84 GHz @ 1.79 GHz @ 65°C @ 20W |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 5 (15″, 2022) | 3.60 GHz @ 3.08 GHz @ 73°C @ 55W | 3.44 GHz @ 2.95 GHz @ 88°C @ 51W | 2.80 GHz @ 2.49 GHz @ 69°C @ 35W |
| Lenovo ThinkPad L14 Gen 3 | 3.20 GHz @ 2.77 GHz @ 83°C @ 44W | 3.10 GHz @ 2.71 GHz @ 94°C @ 43W | 1.89 GHz @ 1.95 GHz @ 72°C @ 20W |
| Acer Aspire Vero (AV14-51) | 3.63 GHz @ 2.87 GHz @ 84°C @ 55W | 2.73 GHz @ 2.36 GHz @ 81°C @ 33W | 2.49 GHz @ 2.23 GHz @ 79°C @ 28W |
| MSI Modern 14 (C12M) | 3.17 GHz @ 2.69 GHz @ 77°C @ 45W | 3.10 GHz @ 2.61 GHz @ 81°C @ 45W | 2.69 GHz @ 2.45 GHz @ 78°C @ 35W |
| Dell Latitude 15 5530 | 3.57 GHz @ 3.02 GHz @ 94°C @ 52W | 2.03 GHz @ 2.09 GHz @ 76°C @ 21W | 2.24 GHz @ 2.19 GHz @ 64°C @ 23W |
The Core i5-1235U inside this Microsoft device can maintain surprisingly low clocks in short loads which isn’t a surprise since the fan is dead silent. In medium load, when the fan becomes slightly audible, the frequencies are adequate. In the long run, the P and E core clocks are low but yet higher than the official minimums.
Comfort during full load
During 100% CPU loads, the left and the central part of the keyboard feel averagely hot to the touch but you can use the device comfortably for work. At the same time, you can hear the fan but the noise isn’t too loud at all.
Battery
Now, we conduct the battery tests with the Windows Better performance setting turned on, screen brightness adjusted to 120 nits, and all other programs turned off except for the one we are testing the notebook with. The notebook’s 41Wh battery lasts for around 9 hours of Web browsing, or 8 hours of video playback.
Brightness: 180 nits; Display Mode: SDR
Time to Full Discharge: Higher is Better
In order to simulate real-life conditions, we used our own script for automatic web browsing through over 70 websites.
Author: Nikolay Palaozov
Author: eng. Kroum NikolovHead of Engineering at LaptopMedia.com, inventor and innovator with 40+ years of experience in electronics and high technology.
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