Surface Laptop Go 2 Review: Microsofts Flawed Diamond

The Surface Laptop Go 2 is Microsoft's play in the mid-range consumer laptop market. While there's a company-focused version that neglects specs, the target market wants an affordable laptop with good looks and enough power for everyday use.

I spent some time with the Go 2 laptop to see if the original Surface Go laptop was more than just a special wipe.

At first glance, there isn't much difference between the Surface Laptop Go 2 and its predecessor; External features and design are the same. Being introduced to the corporate space allows you to continue using peripherals already purchased - which the finance department likes, but the Go 2 Laptop team limits what can be added.

This means limited foreign ports as usual; The Microsoft Surface Connect port has a 3.5mm headphone jack, USB-A and USB-C ports. In terms of looks, the Go 2 comes with a 1536x1024 pixels screen. It supports a 3:2 aspect ratio, making it more comfortable for gaming and media consumption than a 16:9 ratio screen. However, resolution is low, less than HD, and while this screen gets the job done, it looks like a package that needs a little more attention next time.

From a branding perspective, not listing the Surface Pen as a digitizer still seems like an odd choice. But, in practice, I've never felt lost—the Surface Pen is better suited to tablets and laptops, and it's more focused on creativity than a portfolio.

Thankfully, the specifications have changed internally. The Go 2 Pack laptop includes an 11th generation Intel chipset with state-of-the-art Iris Xe graphics and is common to all SKUs. Your choices are limited by storage and memory... preferably 128GB or 256GB with 4GB, 8GB or 16GB of RAM, though the higher-end 16/256 combination is only available to enterprise customers.

Surface Laptop Go 2 is just as easy in the hand as its predecessor. It's not the size of a typical Android tablet or iPad, but it's easy to move around. The new paint colors add a cool-leaning style to the more angular business muscle of the Surface Laptop Studio.

The weight is supported by the plastic motor base, the light texture avoids the possibility of being cheap, and the construction is durable. Like the first model, the design team left a small millimeter hole at the top of the case instead of a case cutout to make opening the laptop easier. One-handed opening requires a surface with a good friction level.

A quiet upgrade to the previous Go laptop means that many of the issues noted in the older model remain. I already mentioned the relatively low screen resolution. The keyboard is another matter. Surface Laptop Go 2 doesn't have a backlit keyboard - you need enough light to select the keys. With three different colors, it offers three different key colors, but all with white text. The new color Sage (reviewed here) offers the best contrast of the three available colors.

Considering how much I like the physical shape of the keys and the positive reaction to their feel, this lack of care leaves much to be desired compared to the Go 2 laptop.

Consumer versions of the laptop start at $599 for 4GB of RAM and 128GB of SSD storage, which of course comes with the caveat that 4GB of RAM offers very little space for applications. Of course, the $599 8GB/128GB model is a good place to start, and you can double the storage to get the 8/256GB model for $100.

The original Surface Laptop Go seemed like a laptop that had a lot of minor compromises to reach its sub-$600 price point, and those compromises have become more apparent as the portfolio has grown, competing with better spec options from companies like Acer and Asus. . . . and design materials.

Two years later, Microsoft updated the Surface Laptop Go 2's performance specs, which definitely kept up with the competition in terms of performance (and put the original Go Laptop slightly ahead of the competition). But in the year The 2020 deal is still part of the original design of the Surface Laptop Go 2, which means that the beautiful but imperfect Go 2022 laptop meets market requirements while still offering the same sleek, sleek look. .

Charm is a good word for the Surface Laptop Go 2. There's something about the design that looks like a set of company-security options that only work outside of a computer.

But back to the two main issues with the Go 2 laptop.Firstly, if you go for the 8GB RAM model, the price is about $50 more than similar competing laptops. Secondly, the lack of keyboard backlight. I can live with the former, but if I want a single laptop for hiking, the latter is a personal compromise...your mileage may vary.

Frankly, it's like an Apple deal here. The Surface Laptop Go 2 seems to require you to pay a bit more for the display, but still give it some space. You will find answers that I like because the Windows PC market is diverse enough to offer so many different laptops.

The Go 2 laptop wasn't the answer for me, but it's clear why it might be for many others.

Disclaimer: Microsoft UK is offering the Surface Laptop Go 2 for review.

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