The 8GB Surface Laptop leaves little memory available for Windows 11
© The Verge Microsoft has introduced a lower-memory version of its 13-inch Surface Laptop, but the reduced specification does not come with a lower full price. The system costs $949.99 and includes 8GB of LPDDR5X memory, a Snapdragon X Plus processor and 256GB of storage.
A review by The Verge found that the laptop regularly froze during routine Windows 11 use. The hardware itself received praise for its build quality, keyboard, trackpad and battery life, but the limited memory affected everyday performance.
Windows 11 uses more than half the RAM after boot
Task Manager showed 4.2GB of memory in use after a fresh restart with few startup applications enabled. During normal use, the laptop frequently consumed around 6.7GB of its 7.6GB of usable memory.
The system hung for several seconds during a Microsoft Teams call when another participant shared a short video. At the time, the reviewer had around ten Chrome tabs open alongside Slack and Signal. Similar pauses reportedly occurred several times per day, including while working in Google Docs without a call or video running.
While the 8GB Surface was usually fine for basic web browsing or video streaming, I occasionally nudged it a bit too far in everyday use. I was on a Microsoft Teams call (using the app, not a browser) when the host streamed a brief video, which made the whole laptop hang for several seconds. At the time, I had about 10 Chrome tabs open across two desktops, alongside Slack and Signal — not an obscene level of multitasking. And we didn’t even have our webcams on.
— Antonio G. Di Benedetto, The Verge
© The Verge Reducing the workload to around six Chrome tabs, closing Signal and avoiding virtual desktops lowered memory use to approximately 5.5GB. Basic browsing and video playback generally worked, but the laptop left little available memory for additional applications. Its 8GB of LPDDR5X memory cannot be replaced or upgraded.
Half the memory at a higher full price
The original 13-inch Surface Laptop launched in 2025 for $899 with 16GB of memory. Microsoft introduced the 8GB configuration in June at $949.99, giving buyers half the memory for $50 more than the original launch configuration. The Microsoft Store currently discounts the 8GB model to $849.99, while its listed full price remains $949.99.
Source: The Verge
