Microsoft is kind of new in manufacturing its own best laptops, most notably the Surface line. That doesn’t mean it cannot compete with the best of the best in the industry. They’ve made stunningly well designed and powerful portable computers that rival Apple’s MacBook, like the Surface Pro, which debuted in 2013. Over the years it has been refined and tweaked in terms of hardware and software that we’re actually surprised that it wasn’t released as the Surface Pro 5. It now looks pretty much like the Surface Pro 4. Those improvements are not readily obvious, but significant.

Now, you can get the Surface Pro at an incredible 27% discount on Amazon, which is an unmissable deal. Take home this lightweight midrange laptop that’s convertible to a tablet for $580 , a total of $219 less than its retail price of $799.

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The Surface Pro is ultra-lightweight and engineered with the utmost attention to detail like the rest of the Surface line. Its kickstand opens to 165 degrees and reliably holds up the tablet. When fully flexed, the Surface Pro feels like a solid thin slab of metal. The laptop is equipped with a single USB-A 3.0 connection and a mini-DisplayPort. On the kickstand, you will find a microSD card reader and the patent Surface Connect port for power.

Beneath its exterior, this Surface Pro is powered by an Intel Core M processor and a Windows 10 OS pre-installed. It has 4GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. Even when we were working this laptop hard by opening multiple browsers or using more than one program, it managed to keep the heat under control.

This deal does not include the Signature Type Cover keyboard, which you can purchase separately. This vital piece of accessory is covered with Alcantara fabric and adds a welcome splash of color to the grayness of the Surface Pro. The detachable keyboard is backlit and provides very comfortable and responsive keystroke. Typing requires minimal effort, and it is relatively quieter than most keyboards. Flipping the keyboard automatically turns it off and transforms the laptop into a tablet.

The LCD touchscreen offers fluid touch responsiveness and gorgeous colors and contrasts. Texts and images look razor-sharp, the colors are vibrant, and the blacks are deep. It has a 12.3-inch PixelSense display with 2,736 × 1,824 resolution (267 PPI) in a 3:2 aspect ratio.

Battery life is not that great, to be honest. It’s a little behind compared to other laptop/tablet hybrids. With continuous web browsing, the Surface Pro managed to last five and a half hours. It did last a respectable 10 hours in our video looping test.

The Microsoft Surface Pro is an outstanding and extremely portable 2-in-1 machine that’s the perfect travel buddy. At just 0.33 inches thick and weighing 1.73 pounds, it is easy to carry around and slip inside a bag. For $580 you can get the device (not including the Type Cover) on Amazon.

If you’re not that impressed with the Surface Pro, check out this page for the best 2-in-1 laptops (which includes Surface Pro 6) or this for the best laptops of 2021.