For a balance of performance and portability with a focus on gaming, 3D tasks, and engineering work, the ASUS TUF Gaming A17 is a solid choice with its powerful AMD Ryzen 9 processor and Nvidia RTX 4070 graphics card, though it's bulkier and has a shorter battery life. However, if you prioritize a lightweight design, touchscreen functionality, and extended battery life for general use and business tasks, the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 with its sleek form factor, high-resolution display, and Windows 11 Pro operating system is more suitable, despite its less powerful Intel Arc graphics. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the ASUS TUF Gaming A17
Very good for general use
Very good for engineering and design
Very good for gaming and AI
Very good for content creation
Very good battery life
Advantages of the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5"
Good overall display quality
Very good portability
Very good speakers
Key differences
Gaming and AI
8.1/10
6.6/10
8.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.2/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.0/10
The ASUS TUF Gaming A17 is very good for gaming and AI, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is only fair.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
Engineering and Design
8.3/10
7.7/10
9.2/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
8.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.2/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The ASUS TUF Gaming A17 is very good for engineering and design, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is good.
PerfectRec’s Engineering and Design Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for graphic design and 3D rendering work.
Screen Quality
6.8/10
7.8/10
17.3in
SIZE
13.5in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
253.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
400.0 nits
The ASUS TUF Gaming A17 has a better screen than the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" for content creation, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" has a better screen for general use, gaming and AI, and engineering and design.
PerfectRec’s screen quality scores take into account various important factors that are relevant for different use cases.
Portability
Fair
Very Good
17.3in
SIZE
13.5in
5.7 lbs
WEIGHT
3.0 lbs
0.9in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" has very good portability, while the ASUS TUF Gaming A17 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Cost
$1,552
$1,200
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The ASUS TUF Gaming A17 has a price of $1,552 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" costs $1,200.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers ASUS TUF Gaming A17 to be very good for general use, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is good.
PerfectRec’s General Use Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for general productivity, web browsing, streaming, video calls, and running a wide variety of apps and programs.
Content Creation
8.1/10
7.7/10
9.2/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers ASUS TUF Gaming A17 to be very good for content creation, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is good.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Software Development
7.7/10
7.7/10
9.2/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The ASUS TUF Gaming A17 and Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" are both good for software development.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
Battery
10.0 Hours
9.0 Hours
The ASUS TUF Gaming A17 has 10 hours of battery life. The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" has 9 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
Build Quality
7.2/10
7.4/10
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" and ASUS TUF Gaming A17 both have good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Give feedback
We’re constantly working to improve.
How the ASUS TUF Gaming A17 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" compare to other laptops
"There is one big question that needs an answer. Is the TUF Gaming A17 FA707 a better purchase than the ROG Strix G17 G713R (2022)? Well, it depends. Undoubtedly, the Strix is the more premium product. Arguably the biggest advantage it has over its TUF fellow is in regards to the display. ASUS TUF Gaming A17 A707’s IPS panel has a Full HD resolution, comfortable viewing angles, and a very good contrast ratio."
Get a great deal on the ASUS TUF Gaming A17 or the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5"
About ASUS
ASUS, a Taiwanese electronics brand, is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. The majority of their laptops are targeted towards personal use or gaming. Their most popular product lines include the budget-friendly VivoBook, more premium ZenBook, and their TUF and ROG gaming laptops, the latter of which has a reputation for excellent gaming performance.
About Microsoft
Microsoft is an American technology corporation. Microsoft is best known for their Windows operating system and Surface laptop series. The Surface Laptop is their standard notebook offering, while their Surface Go, Surface Pro, and Surface Studio are their 2-in-1/tablet offerings in order of increasing capability. Although Microsoft charges a premium price tag for their laptops, buyers can expect a well integrated and packaged device since Microsoft develops the Windows operating system.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
By the numbers
380
Laptops evaluated
48,640
Laptops stats compiled
13
Proprietary Laptops ratings developed
100,395
Recommendations made
21,753
Consumer hours saved
About the laptop team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
CEO and Laptops Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Jason Lew
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
Chandradeep Chowdhury
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
Craig Russell
Laptops Expert
Craig is a UK-based laptops expert. Craig works in IT, where he recommends and supports laptops and PCs for clients and has been recommending laptops on Reddit for five years.