2-in-1 laptops rarely stay in people’s minds if they are looking for the best laptop with i5 processor or the best laptops. However, the Microsoft Surface series of Windows tablets are quite popular among consumers, and for good reasons. The Microsoft Surface Pro 6 is similarly great and has aged well over the years.
Why We Like It – Microsoft Surface Pro 6
The Surface Pro 6 is quite old at this point, but Microsoft did such an excellent job making this mostly tablet computer/laptop, it still holds up to this day, even when you compare it to the new Surface Pro X from last year.
- Gorgeous 12.3 inch 2736 x 1824p display
- Up to 14 hours of battery life
- Official Microsoft Surface type cover included
- Windows 10 Pro not included
Power & Performance
The Surface Pro 6 sports an eighth-gen Intel Core i5-8250U Quad Core CPU inside. Even though it is three generations old at this point, it’s still quite capable in terms of power and efficiency. There’s also another variant with a Core i7 processor, but that’ll cost more without a doubt.
Related: Also check out our Microsoft Surface Go review.
Battery
Just like most other Surface laptops, the battery life is excellent here (even better than the Acer Aspire 5 A515). You get almost 14 hours of battery on a full charge, which basically should suffice for a whole working day. If you really need more battery life, you can try turning off things like the Wi Fi, but that probably won’t help much, as the Intel wireless module inside is already very efficient and barely uses any power at all.
Ports & Expandability
Well, the I/O is quite disappointing on the Surface Pro 6. You get just one USB 3.0 port with it (full-sized Type A). There’s no USB C here either. Thankfully it at least retains the SD card slot. If you like this laptop but prefer something with more ports, check out our Mobiledemand Flex 10B review.
Build Quality
Just like with almost every other Surface laptop, tablet, or any other product, the build quality is top-notch overall. Even in tablet mode, the Surface Pro 6 feels sturdy. And the black color variant is no different. The type cover surface of both editions has the same comfy velvet finish.
Value
The Microsoft Surface Pro 6 is over two years old, and you should easily be able to find it at low price points. If you do get this one, we strongly recommend also getting an official Microsoft Surface Pen along with it. And if you have the Microsoft Modern Keyboard accessory, you can also take advantage of Windows Hello as it has a fingerprint reader built-in. However, if you can’t find it for cheap, the ASUS VivoBook S14 S433 thin and light ultrabook is also a good alternative.
Microsoft Surface Pro 6 Wrap Up
All in all, the Microsoft Surface Pro 6 is a great 2-in-1 laptop that can be bought for cheap. But, if you like something that caters more to gamers, you should pick up the Dell G5 15 Gaming Laptop instead.
