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The Surface Laptop 5 arrives with Thunderbolt 4 but no AMD options

The Surface Laptop 5 arrives with Thunderbolt 4 but no AMD options

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It’s pure Intel 12th Gen this year

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Microsoft is refreshing its Surface Laptop lineup today with new Surface Laptop 5 models. While the company has offered AMD and Intel chip options for the Surface in the past, this year’s models are pure Intel with the addition of Thunderbolt 4 support.

Microsoft hasn’t fully explained why it’s dropped AMD from its Surface Laptop lineup, though. “We focused on shipping Intel 12th Gen,” says Pete Kyriacou, vice president of program management at Microsoft. “We’re great partners with AMD, we continue to work with them on longer term projects but for Laptop 5 we don’t have AMD models.”

The new Sage color option (right).
The new Sage color option (right).
Photo by Becca Farsace / The Verge

As with last year’s Surface Laptop 4 lineup, Microsoft will offer two display configurations for the Laptop 5: 13.5 inches (2256 x 1504) or 15 inches (2496 x 1664). Both displays include Dolby Vision IQ support. Inside, the smaller model ships with Intel’s 12th Gen Core i5-1235U processor, with the Core i7-1255U as an optional upgrade. The larger 15-inch Surface Laptop 5 only ships with the Core i7-1255U.

Storage options start at 256GB as the base and go all the way up to 1TB, while memory starts at 8GB and can max out at 32GB of LPDDR5x RAM. Microsoft is using Intel’s Iris Xe graphics to power creator tasks.

As with the Surface Pro 9, there’s a new color option for the Surface Laptop 5 this year. The new sage green option is similar to the forest green found on the Surface Pro 9, but it’s a lot lighter. This will only be available on the 13.5-inch models, as the larger 15-inch Surface Laptop 5 only ships in matte black or the platinum Alcantara option.

<em>The Surface Laptop 5 comes in 13.5-inch and 15-inch models.</em>

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The Surface Laptop 5 comes in 13.5-inch and 15-inch models.
Photo by Becca Farsace / The Verge

I got a chance to briefly test both the 13.5-inch and 15-inch models, and there’s very little to say about the hands-on experience that hasn’t been said before. It’s the same great typing experience on the previous Surface Laptop models, paired with much-needed Thunderbolt 4 support. That addition will be great for creators, as it’s ideal for high-speed data transfers and support for multiple 4K monitors. The rest of the Surface Laptop 5 remains largely unchanged from the Surface Laptop 4.

Microsoft will start shipping its Surface Laptop 5 models on October 25th, with pricing starting at $999.99 for the 13.5-inch model and $1,299.99 for the 15-inch version. If you want the best 15-inch model (Core i7, 32GB RAM, 1TB storage), then prices max out at $2,399.99.