The ASUS Vivobook Go 15 offers a more affordable price point, with ample performance for everyday tasks, but if you prioritize a higher build quality and better display for tasks like photo editing, the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 may be your preference, even though it is typically more expensive. The Vivobook also tends to have a longer battery life, making it suitable for long periods of use away from a power source. On the other hand, the Surface Laptop Go 2 is lighter and more portable, ideal for carrying around. When considering gaming or more graphic-intensive tasks, neither is particularly strong, but the Vivobook's larger size might make it slightly more suited with its potentially better heat management and sustained performance. For engineering tasks that require more power, you might find both models lacking, as they are not designed for high-performance computing. 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 15
The ASUS Vivobook Go 15 has no clear advantages over the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2.
Advantages of the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2
Good for general use
Good for software development
Good for content creation
Excellent portability
Very good speakers
Good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
5.6/10
7.0/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
TN
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
200.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
401.0 nits
7.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
8.0 Hours
6.7/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
7.9/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
9.2/10
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 is good for general use, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 15 is poor.
The ASUS Vivobook Go 15 has a basic Intel Celeron processor, a TN panel which is inferior in color and viewing angles to the IPS display of the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2, and a less portable design owing to its greater weight and dimensions. Meanwhile, the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 offers more RAM and storage, a significantly brighter and better quality touch screen, and better portability due to its lighter weight and smaller size, coupled with a slightly longer battery life.
Gaming and AI
5.5/10
6.0/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 is only fair for gaming and AI, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 15 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
5.4/10
6.5/10
3.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
4.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 is only fair for engineering and design, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 15 is poor.
The ASUS Vivobook Go 15 is considered poor for engineering and design due to its less powerful Intel Celeron processor, lower RAM, and basic integrated graphics, along with a lower quality TN screen. In contrast, the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 provides better suitability for these tasks with its more capable i5 processor, double the RAM, superior Iris Xe graphics, and a higher quality IPS touchscreen display, though it's more compact and thus might be less convenient for multitasking on larger projects.
Content Creation
5.7/10
7.1/10
3.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
4.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
TN
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 is good for content creation, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 15 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
5.9/10
7.0/10
3.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
4.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
6.7/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 is good for software development, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 15 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
5.2/10
6.9/10
15.6in
SIZE
12.4in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
TN
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
200.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
401.0 nits
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 has a better screen than the ASUS Vivobook Go 15 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
If you prioritize a clear and vibrant display for everyday tasks like browsing and watching videos, the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2, with its higher resolution and brightness, provides a better experience than the ASUS Vivobook Go 15. For engineering and design work, where accurate colors are crucial, the Surface Laptop Go 2's better coverage of color gamuts ensures more precision, but for gaming and 3D applications requiring fast visuals, both laptops may not be ideal as neither focuses on high refresh rates, with the Surface offering slightly better resolution and panel quality.
Battery
7.0 Hours
8.0 Hours
The ASUS Vivobook Go 15 has 7 hours of battery life. The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 has 8 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.
Portability
Good
Excellent
15.6in
SIZE
12.4in
3.4 lbs
WEIGHT
2.4 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 has excellent portability, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 15 has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.0/10
7.8/10
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 and ASUS Vivobook Go 15 both have good build quality, though the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 has somewhat better build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$240
$565
$0
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
The ASUS Vivobook Go 15 has a price of $240 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 costs $565.
"The Asus Vivobook Go 15 is a good option if you’re looking for one device to tackle a bunch of smaller problems. For simple school studies, portable evening entertainment or distractions, and getting household admin or light office workloads out of the way, it’s a great little package with respectable battery life, and a great contender for the advent of cloud gaming."
"The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 review is a compact companion with old hardware. The Surface Laptop Go 2 shows some weaknesses. Microsoft didn't really develop the second generation of the Surface Laptop Go 2 any further but has only equipped it with a slightly more powerful Core i5 processor. However, the performance still remains at a fairly low level overall, but for many users, it definitely should still be sufficient for everyday tasks."
Get a great deal on the ASUS Vivobook Go 15 or the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2
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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