For general use, the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 offers a superior experience with its higher-quality screen, better performance, and premium build quality, making it worth the extra cost if it fits your budget. However, if you're looking for a basic laptop for everyday tasks like web browsing and document editing, the Packard Bell Cloudbook 14" is a cost-effective choice with adequate performance for such tasks. The Surface Laptop 6 is also a better fit for engineering tasks with its more powerful processor and additional RAM, ensuring smoother multitasking and handling more demanding applications. While neither laptop is designed specifically for gaming or intensive 3D tasks, the Surface Laptop 6's better GPU will provide improved performance in these areas. Consider the Surface Laptop 6 for its touchscreen, better portability, and longer battery life if you're often on the move. The Packard Bell, though, is notably heavier and has a shorter battery life, which could be a drawback for frequent travelers. 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 Packard Bell Cloudbook 14"
The Packard Bell Cloudbook 14" has no clear advantages over the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5".
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
5.7/10
7.7/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
200.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
400.0 nits
7.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
9.0 Hours
4.6/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
8.1/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
8.6/10
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is good for general use, while the Packard Bell Cloudbook 14" 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
5.5/10
6.6/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.2/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.0/10
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is only fair for gaming and AI, while the Packard Bell Cloudbook 14" 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
5.5/10
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 Packard Bell Cloudbook 14" 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
5.9/10
7.7/10
3.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
4.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is good for content creation, while the Packard Bell Cloudbook 14" 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
7.7/10
3.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
4.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
4.6/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is good for software development, while the Packard Bell Cloudbook 14" 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
5.8/10
7.8/10
14.1in
SIZE
13.5in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
IPS
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 Packard Bell Cloudbook 14 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.
Battery
7.0 Hours
9.0 Hours
The Packard Bell Cloudbook 14 has 7 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.
Portability
Very Good
Very Good
14.1in
SIZE
13.5in
2.7 lbs
WEIGHT
3.0 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" and Packard Bell Cloudbook 14" both have very good portability, though the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" has somewhat better 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 Packard Bell Cloudbook 14" has poor build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$350
$1,200
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The Packard Bell Cloudbook 14" has a price of $350 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" costs $1,200.
How the Packard Bell Cloudbook 14" and the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
Packard Bell Cloudbook 14"
Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5"
GENERAL
Price
Price
$350
$1,200
Release Date
Release Date
January 1, 2022
June 1, 2024
Overall Dimensions
Overall Dimensions
14.8'' x 9.6'' x 0.78''
12.1'' x 8.8'' x 0.66''
Weight
Weight
2.7 lbs
3.04 lbs
Width
Width
14.76"
12.13"
Depth
Depth
9.56"
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
128 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
7 Hours
9 Hours
Battery Capacity
Battery Capacity
38 Wh
47 Wh
SCREEN
Diagonal Size
Diagonal Size
14.1"
13.5"
Display Technology
Display Technology
IPS
IPS
Resolution
Resolution
1920 x 1080
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
156.23 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
8.1/10
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
8.8/10
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
0 year
1 year
HARDWARE FEATURES
Keyboard Quality Score
Keyboard Quality Score
4.6/10
7/10
Speaker Quality Score
Speaker Quality Score
6/10
8/10
Webcam
Webcam
720p
1080p
Fingerprint Reader
Fingerprint Reader
No
Yes
Backlit Keyboard
Backlit Keyboard
No
Yes
Number Pad
Number Pad
No
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
4
5.3
WiFi Version
WiFi Version
5
6E
Get a great deal on the Packard Bell Cloudbook 14" or the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5"
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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CEO and Laptops Editor
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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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