Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (2024) vs Lenovo ThinkPad X9 15 Aura Edition (2025)
Which Laptop Is Better?
Products
Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (2024)
Lenovo ThinkPad X9 15 Aura Edition (2025)
Tested using Methodology v0.9
Updated Nov 27, 2025 02:04 PM
SEE PRICE
BestBuy.com
Tested using Methodology v0.8.3
Updated Nov 27, 2025 02:08 PM
SEE PRICE
BestBuy.com
Size
15"
Operating System
Windows 11
Size
15.3"
Operating System
Windows 11
Our Verdict
Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (2024)
Lenovo ThinkPad X9 15 Aura Edition (2025)
The Lenovo ThinkPad X9 15 Aura Edition (2025) and the Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (2024) are both premium Windows ultraportables that deliver a similar user experience overall. The main difference between these two models is that the ThinkPad uses an x86 Intel SoC, while the Surface Laptop uses an AMR-based Qualcomm Snapdragon SoC. This likely won't affect you if you only perform light productivity tasks, but if you use any third-party program, it's best to check for compatibility first, as many apps don't run on the Surface's Arm-based chip or will perform poorly via emulation. Another significant difference is the display type; the ThinkPad's OLED panel is visually more pleasing because it can produce deeper blacks, but unlike the Surface's IPS panel, it's susceptible to permanent burn-in, and its 480Hz flicker can bother some people, causing eye strain.
Variants
- Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (ZYT-00026) (Black - Snapdragon X Elite/16GB/1TB)
- Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (ZHH-00026) (Black - Snapdragon X Elite/16GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (ZHQ-00026) (Black - Snapdragon X Elite/16GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (ZHI-00001) (Black - Snapdragon X Elite/32GB/1TB)
- Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (ZYT-00001) (Platinum - Snapdragon X Elite/16GB/1TB)
- Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (ZYU-00001) (Platinum - Snapdragon X Elite/16GB/1TB)
- Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (ZHG-00001) (Platinum - Snapdragon X Elite/16GB/256GB)
- Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (ZHQ-00001) (Platinum - Snapdragon X Elite/16GB/256GB)
- Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (ZHP-00001) (Platinum - Snapdragon X Elite/16GB/256GB)
- Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (ZHH-00001) (Platinum - Snapdragon X Elite/16GB/512GB)
- ThinkPad X9 15 Aura Edition (21Q6002HUS) (Thunder Grey - Touch/Ultra 5 226V/16GB/512GB)
- ThinkPad X9 15 Aura Edition (21Q60024US) (Thunder Grey - Touch/Ultra 5 238V/32GB/1TB)
- ThinkPad X9 15 Aura Edition (21Q60029US) (Thunder Grey - Touch/Ultra 7 258V/32GB/1TB)
- ThinkPad X9 15 Aura Edition (21Q60027US) (Thunder Grey - Touch/Ultra 7 258V/32GB/1TB)
- ThinkPad X9 15 Aura Edition (21Q6002BUS) (Thunder Grey - Touch/Ultra 7 268V/32GB/1TB)
- ThinkPad X9 15 Aura Edition (21Q6002AUS) (Thunder Grey - Ultra 5 226V/16GB/512GB)
- ThinkPad X9 15 Aura Edition (21Q60026US) (Thunder Grey - Ultra 5 226V/16GB/512GB)
- ThinkPad X9 15 Aura Edition (21Q60025US) (Thunder Grey - Ultra 7 268V/32GB/1TB)
Main Differences for
School
School
Threshold
School
9.0
Full Comparison
Design
Style
Style Photo
Form Factor
Traditional (Clamshell)
Traditional (Clamshell)
Build Quality
9.5
9.5
Build Quality Photo
Hinge
9.1
9.4
Hinge Photo
Range
135°
177°
Stability
Good
Good
One Finger Lift
Yes
Yes
Portability
8.3
8.7
Dimensions Photo
Size
15"
15.3"
Thickness
0.7" (1.8 cm)
0.7" (1.7 cm)
Width
13.0" (33.1 cm)
13.4" (34.1 cm)
Depth
9.4" (24.0 cm)
9.3" (23.5 cm)
Volume
87.3 in³ (1,429.9 cm³)
83.1 in³ (1,362.3 cm³)
Weight
3.6 lbs (1.6 kg)
3.1 lbs (1.4 kg)
Charger Size
7.1 in³ (116.0 cm³)
5.5 in³ (90.0 cm³)
Charger Weight
0.7 lbs (0.3 kg)
0.4 lbs (0.2 kg)
Serviceability
5.8
6.5
Internals Photo
Ease Of Access
7.5
9.0
RAM Slots
0
0
Storage Slots
1
1
Replaceable Battery
Yes
Yes
Replaceable Wireless Adapter
No
No
In The Box
In The Box Photo
Display
Screen Specs
Display Photo
Resolution
2496 x 1664
2880 x 1800
Aspect Ratio
3:2
16:10
Pixel Density
200 PPI
221 PPI
Panel Type
IPS
OLED
Touch Screen
Yes
Yes
Screen-To-Body Ratio
88%
91%
Refresh Rate
8.7
8.7
Motion Blur
Refresh Rate
120 Hz
120 Hz
Variable Refresh Rate
Dynamic Refresh Rate
Dynamic Refresh Rate
Contrast
7.5
10
Contrast Photo
Native Contrast
1,404 : 1
32,997 : 1
Brightness
9.1
8.5
Maximum Brightness
601 cd/m²
469 cd/m²
Minimum Brightness
3 cd/m²
1 cd/m²
Reflections
6.3
7.7
Reflections Photo Off
Reflections Photo Max
Screen Finish
Glossy
Glossy
Total Reflections
5.79%
3.77%
Indirect Reflections
0.53%
0.89%
Calculated Direct Reflections
5.26%
2.88%
Black Uniformity
8.0
10
Black Uniformity Photo
Uniformity (Std. Dev.)
0.864%
0.251%
Out-Of-The-Box Color Accuracy
8.7
7.1
White Balance Screencap
Gamma Curve Screencap
Color Screencap
Avg. White Balance dE
2.81
2.39
Avg. Gamma
2.14
2.26
Avg. Color dE
1.58
4.38
Avg. Color Temperature
6,411.9 K
6,396.5 K
Color Gamut
8.3
9.6
Gamut SDR
sRGB xy
98.35%
148.29%
sRGB uv
98.9%
142.95%
Adobe RGB xy
72.95%
92.55%
Adobe RGB uv
84.98%
97.1%
Gamut HDR
DCI-P3 xy
73.15%
99.99%
DCI-P3 uv
79.9%
99.99%
Rec. 2020 xy
52.48%
78.33%
Rec. 2020 uv
58.23%
82.53%
Flicker
10
7.2
Flicker Graph
Flicker-Free
Yes
No
Flicker Frequency
No Flicker
480 Hz
Flicker Active Below
0%
100%
Interface
Keyboard
8.5
8.5
Keyboard Photo
Typing Quality
8.5
8.5
Numpad
No
No
Backlighting
Adjustable
Adjustable
Key Switch Actuation Graph
Operating Force
64 gf
59 gf
Actuation Force
31 gf
34 gf
Pre-Travel
0.96 mm
1.05 mm
Total Travel
1.37 mm
1.39 mm
Touchpad
8.8
9.3
Touchpad Photo
Tracking Quality
9.0
9.5
Size
14.9 in² (96.0 cm²)
16.7 in² (108.0 cm²)
Material
Glass
Glass
Dedicated Buttons
No
No
Speakers
8.7
8.1
Frequency Response Plot
Max Volume
82 dB SPL
81 dB SPL
Standard Error @ Normal Vol. (65 dB)
5.0 dB
5.9 dB
Slope @ Normal Vol. (65 dB)
-1.4
1.9
Bass Extension (Low-Frequency Ext.)
334 Hz
143 Hz
Treble Extension (High-Frequency Ext.)
16 kHz
17 kHz
Dynamic Range Compression @ Max Vol.
0.7 dB
5.4 dB
Webcam & Microphone
8.7
8.7
Webcam Video Sample
Video Quality
9.0
9.0
Resolution
1080p
1440p
Position
Top Center
Top Center
Privacy Cover
No
No
Face Unlock
Yes
Yes
Connectivity
Ports
6.5
8.0
Ports Photo
USB-A Ports
1
1
USB-C Ports
2
2
Thunderbolt
No
Thunderbolt 4
USB-C Charging
Yes
Yes
USB-C Display Out
Yes
Yes
HDMI
No
2.0
DisplayPort
No
No
3.5mm Jack
Combo mic/headphone
Combo mic/headphone
Card Reader
MicroSD UHS 2
No
Ethernet
No
No
Proprietary Port
Surface Connect
No
Security Lock
No
No
Wireless Communication
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)
Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)
Bluetooth
5.4
5.4
Configuration
CPU
Brand
Qualcomm
Intel
Model
Snapdragon X Elite X1E80100
Core Ultra 7 268V
Core Count
12
8
Thread Count
12
8
GPU
Brand
Qualcomm
Intel
Model
Adreno GPU X1E80100
Arc 140V GPU
Dedicated/Integrated
Integrated
Integrated
VRAM Size
N/A
N/A
GPU Total Graphics Power (TGP)
N/A
N/A
RAM
Capacity
16 GB
32 GB
Modules
1 (Soldered)
8 (Soldered)
Type
LP-DDR5x
LP-DDR5x
Speed
8,448 MHz
8,533 MHz
Storage
Advertised Capacity
512 GB
1,000 GB
Usable Capacity
452 GB
930 GB
Drive 1
WD SDDPTQD-512G-1124
SK Hynix HFS001TEM4X169N
Drive 1 Type
SSD
SSD
Drive 2
No 2nd Drive
No 2nd Drive
Drive 2 Type
No 2nd Drive
No 2nd Drive
Performance
Geekbench 5 (Synthetics)
9.2
Geekbench Image
CPU Single-Thread
2,032 points
CPU Multi-Thread
9,729 points
GPU Compute
29,320 points
CPU/RAM Performance
7.8
Cinebench 2024 - Single Core
126 points
Cinebench 2024 - Multi Core
939 points
Geekbench 6 - Single Core
2,778
Geekbench 6 - Multi Core
14,239
Blender - CPU (Avg)
90 samples/min
PassMark PT - CPU Mark
26,637
PassMark PT - Memory Mark
4,301
PassMark PT - Memory Mark (Android)
N/A
Mozilla Kraken
398 ms
Cinebench R23 (CPU Rendering)
9.7
Cinebench R23 Photo
Single-Thread
1,948 points
Multi-Thread
9,440 points
Low Tier Graphics
7.4
Geekbench 6 - GPU Compute
27,488
Basemark Web 3.0
1,746
PassMark PT - 2D Mark
424
PassMark PT - 2D Mark (Android)
N/A
PassMark PT - 3D Mark
3,519
PassMark PT - 3D Mark (Android)
N/A
Novabench 5 - GPU
164.0
mprep - Stress My GPU
23,046
Blender (3D Rendering)
7.8
Blender Image
CPU Render Time
4.3 min
GPU Render Time
N/A
GPU Render Time (Optix)
N/A
High Tier Graphics
4.5
3DMark - Steel Nomad (DX12)
499
3DMark - Steel Nomad (Vulkan/Metal)
447
Basemark GPU (DX12)
30,820
Basemark GPU (Vulkan/Metal)
N/A
GFXBench - High Level Test (Vulkan/Metal)
3,637 Frames
Basemark GPU (Game Scene)
7.1
Basemark Image
Overall Score
40,254
Professional 3D (GPU Accelerated)
0.0
Blender - GPU (Avg)
N/A
Cinebench 2024 - GPU
N/A
CPU-Intensive Game Performance
4.3
Civilization VII - AI
N/A
Civilization VII - Graphics (Avg)
N/A
Civilization VII - Graphics (1% Low)
N/A
Total War: Warhammer III (Avg)
14.5 fps
Baldur's Gate 3 (Avg)
21.9 fps
Baldur's Gate 3 (1% Low)
14.0 fps
Previous Methodology Score
4.0
Previous Methodology Score Converted
3.5
GPU-Intensive Game Performance
2.5
Cyberpunk 2077 (Avg)
12.3 fps
Cyberpunk 2077 (Min)
9.9 fps
Assassin's Creed Shadows (Avg)
N/A
Assassin's Creed Shadows (1% Low)
N/A
GTA V (Avg)
26.4 fps
GTA V (1% Low)
17.8 fps
Black Myth: Wukong (Avg)
5 fps
Black Myth: Wukong (5% Low)
5 fps
Resident Evil 4 (Avg)
12.1 fps
Resident Evil 4 (1% Low)
9.7 fps
Previous Methodology Score
3.4
Previous Methodology Score Converted
1.3
Borderlands 3
4.3
Borderlands 3 Graph
Avg. FPS
32 fps
1% Low
16 fps
0.1% Low
6 fps
1% Low Delta
33 ms
0.1% Low Delta
135 ms
Avg. FPS On Very Low
73 fps
Ray Tracing Performance
0.0
Cyberpunk 2077 (Avg)
N/A
Cyberpunk 2077 (Min)
N/A
Assassin's Creed Shadows (Avg)
N/A
Assassin's Creed Shadows (1% Low)
N/A
Black Myth: Wukong (Avg)
N/A
Black Myth: Wukong (5% Low)
N/A
Civilization VI
7.2
Civilization VI Graph
Avg. FPS
56 fps
1% Low
40 fps
0.1% Low
38 fps
1% Low Delta
7 ms
0.1% Low Delta
9 ms
Avg. FPS On Minimum
178 fps
Avg. Turn Time
7.17 s
Storage Drive Performance
9.0
9.5
Storage Performance Image
Sequential Write Speed
1,363.6 MB/s
1,474.6 MB/s
Sequential Read Speed
2,680.7 MB/s
4,402.4 MB/s
Random Write Speed
78.0 MB/s
87.2 MB/s
Random Read Speed
39.6 MB/s
63.5 MB/s
Battery
9.7
9.6
Capacity
66 Wh
80 Wh
Battery Life (Web Browsing)
17.0 hrs
15.2 hrs
Battery Life (Video Playback)
16.4 hrs
18.8 hrs
Battery Life (Gaming)
3.5 hrs
4.2 hrs
Charge Time
2.1 hrs
1.9 hrs
Counter-Strike 2
7.0
CS2 Graph
Avg. FPS
54fps
1% Low
37fps
0.1% Low
34fps
1% Low Delta
8 ms
0.1% Low Delta
11 ms
Avg. FPS On Low
137fps
Thermals And Noise
7.4
7.4
Keyboard Temps Picture
Keyboard Temp While Idle
29 °C (84 °F)
34 °C (92 °F)
Keyboard Temp Under Load
49 °C (121 °F)
45 °C (112 °F)
Fan Noise While Idle
25.0 dBA
25.0 dBA
Fan Noise Under Load
39.5 dBA
44.5 dBA
Power & Fan Control App
No
Yes
Shadow Of The Tomb Raider
5.6
SOTTR Graph
Avg. FPS
43 fps
1% Low
27 fps
0.1% Low
20 fps
1% Low Delta
14 ms
0.1% Low Delta
26 ms
Avg. FPS On Lowest
56 fps
Performance Over Time
0.0
9.2
Performance Over Time Graph
CPU Temp (Cinebench)
N/A
81 °C
CPU Perf. Loss (Cinebench)
N/A
4% loss
GPU Temp (Heaven)
N/A
73 °C
GPU Perf. Loss (Heaven)
N/A
0% loss
Additional Features And Software
Software
Operating System
Windows 11
Windows 11
Additional Software
None
Yes
Extra Features
Biometrics
Face Recognition
Face Recognition and Fingerprint Sensor
RGB Illumination
No
No
Touch Pen Support
No Stylus Support
No Stylus Support
Secondary Display
No
No
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Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (2024)
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Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (2024) vs Lenovo ThinkPad X9 15 Aura Edition (2025): Main Discussion
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