The ASUS Vivobook Go 12 is an excellent budget-friendly option for general use, such as web browsing, word processing, and video streaming. It's highly portable due to its lightweight design and compact size, making it ideal for on-the-go tasks. However, its performance is best suited for basic tasks, as it has a less powerful processor and limited RAM, and the screen quality is modest with a lower resolution and no touchscreen. The battery life is decent, ensuring you can work for a reasonable amount of time without needing a charge.
On the other hand, the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" offers a significant step up in performance with a more powerful processor and double the RAM, making it suitable for more demanding tasks like light gaming, 3D work, and machine learning. The screen is sharper, with a higher resolution and touchscreen capability, and the color accuracy is superior, which is great for content creation or consumption. It also has a more premium build quality and a better keyboard and webcam. The battery life is slightly lower, but it's still respectable for everyday use. It's a bit heavier and larger, but still portable enough for most users.
In summary, if you need a laptop for basic tasks and prioritize portability and budget, the ASUS is a solid choice. But if you're looking for a more versatile machine that can handle a wider range of tasks with better screen quality and build, and you're willing to pay a midrange price, the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 is the way to go. 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 Vivobook Go 12
Excellent portability
Very good battery life
Advantages of the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5"
Good for general use
Good for engineering and design
Good for software development
Good for content creation
Good overall display quality
Good overall build quality
Very good speakers
Good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
5.6/10
7.7/10
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
TN
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
200.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
400.0 nits
10.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
9.0 Hours
5.3/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
9.3/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
8.6/10
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is good for general use, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 12 is poor.
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.
Gaming and AI
5.4/10
6.6/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.2/10
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
7.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.0/10
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is only fair for gaming and AI, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 12 is poor.
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
5.3/10
7.7/10
3.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.2/10
4.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is good for engineering and design, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 12 is poor.
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.
Content Creation
5.7/10
7.7/10
3.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
4.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
TN
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is good for content creation, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 12 is poor.
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
5.7/10
7.7/10
3.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
4.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
5.3/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is good for software development, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 12 is poor.
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.
Screen Quality
5.1/10
7.8/10
11.6in
SIZE
13.5in
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
TN
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
200.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
400.0 nits
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" has a better screen than the ASUS Vivobook Go 12 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
PerfectRec’s screen quality scores take into account various important factors that are relevant for different use cases.
Portability
Excellent
Very Good
11.6in
SIZE
13.5in
2.3 lbs
WEIGHT
3.0 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The ASUS Vivobook Go 12 has excellent portability, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" has very good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
5.1/10
7.4/10
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" has good build quality, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 12 has poor build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$267
$1,200
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The ASUS Vivobook Go 12 has a price of $267 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" costs $1,200.
The ASUS Vivobook Go 12 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.
Give feedback
We’re constantly working to improve.
How the ASUS Vivobook Go 12 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
ASUS Vivobook Go 12
Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5"
GENERAL
Price
Price
$267
$1,200
Release Date
Release Date
October 1, 2021
June 1, 2024
Overall Dimensions
Overall Dimensions
11'' x 7.5'' x 0.67''
12.1'' x 8.8'' x 0.66''
Weight
Weight
2.31 lbs
3.04 lbs
Width
Width
10.98"
12.13"
Depth
Depth
7.52"
8.78"
INTERNAL
Processor
Processor
Intel Celeron N4020
Intel Core Ultra 7 135H
RAM
RAM
4 GB
16 GB
DDR Memory Version
DDR Memory Version
4
5
RAM Slots
RAM Slots
0
0
Storage
Storage
64 GB
256 GB
Storage Slots
Storage Slots
1
1
Graphics
Graphics
UHD Graphics 600
Intel Arc 8-Cores
Mux Switch / Advanced Optimus
Mux Switch / Advanced Optimus
No
No
GPU Type
GPU Type
Integrated
Integrated
Supports DLSS
Supports DLSS
No
No
Supports Ray Tracing
Supports Ray Tracing
No
No
BATTERY
Battery Life
Battery Life
10 Hours
9 Hours
Battery Capacity
Battery Capacity
38 Wh
47 Wh
SCREEN
Diagonal Size
Diagonal Size
11.6"
13.5"
Display Technology
Display Technology
TN
IPS
Resolution
Resolution
1366 x 768
2256 x 1504
Refresh Rate
Refresh Rate
60Hz
120Hz
Display Brightness
Display Brightness
200 nits
400 nits
Screen Aspect Ratio
Screen Aspect Ratio
16:9
3:2
Pixel Density
Pixel Density
135.09 PPI
200.84 PPI
Contrast
Contrast
Unknown
1300: 1
Display Response Time
Display Response Time
Unknown
1 ms
DCI-P3
DCI-P3
35 %
73.4 %
sRGB
sRGB
50 %
98.9 %
Adobe RGB
Adobe RGB
35 %
85 %
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS
Build Quality Score
Build Quality Score
5.1/10
7.4/10
Portability Score
Portability Score
9.3/10
8.7/10
Gaming Laptop Appearance
Gaming Laptop Appearance
No
No
Premium Business Laptop
Premium Business Laptop
No
Yes
Fan Noise Score
Fan Noise Score
7/10
8/10
Facial Recognition
Facial Recognition
No
Yes
Upper Side Temp (Max)
Upper Side Temp (Max)
38.6°C
Lower Side Temp (Max)
Lower Side Temp (Max)
42.9°C
Palm Rest Temp (Max)
Palm Rest Temp (Max)
25.1°C
Keyboard Lighting Color
Keyboard Lighting Color
N/A
White
Warranty Period
Warranty Period
1 year
1 year
HARDWARE FEATURES
Keyboard Quality Score
Keyboard Quality Score
5.3/10
7/10
Speaker Quality Score
Speaker Quality Score
6/10
8/10
Webcam
Webcam
480p
1080p
Fingerprint Reader
Fingerprint Reader
No
Yes
Backlit Keyboard
Backlit Keyboard
No
Yes
Number Pad
Number Pad
Yes
No
CONNECTIVITY
USB Type-A
USB Type-A
2
1
USB-C ports
USB-C ports
1
1
USB-C Charging
USB-C Charging
No
Yes
Display Outputs
Display Outputs
1
1
Thunderbolt Version
Thunderbolt Version
N/A
4
Thunderbolt Ports
Thunderbolt Ports
0
1
DisplayPorts
DisplayPorts
0
0
HDMI Ports
HDMI Ports
1
0
Ethernet
Ethernet
No
No
Bluetooth Version
Bluetooth Version
5.1
5.3
WiFi Version
WiFi Version
5
6E
Get a great deal on the ASUS Vivobook Go 12 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.
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Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
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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.
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Laptops Expert
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