Microsoft surprise drops the Surface Laptop SE, its cheapest Surface yet

When most people see the line of Surface Laptops from Microsoft, the first impressions are that it’s probably not going to be cheap. But it seems as though the folks over at Redmond, Washington wants to change that perception, but not with their usual entry-level Surface Go though. They’ve now introduced their cheapest Surface yet, the Surface Laptop SE.

The Surface Laptop SE is very much not your everyday laptop. In fact, it’s more like Microsoft’s own take on a Chromebook, as it comes with a new, student-centric version of Windows too called Windows 11 SE. Windows 11 SE is a more streamlined operating system built for kids to use, and comes with a host of web-based learning apps, Microsoft 365 programs as well as zero-touch device deployment for IT admins. And unsurprisingly, it’ll also have third-part app support for test taking programs, content filtering and tools to help teachers conduct class.

But going back to the Surface Laptop SE, as you can perhaps guess, being an entry-level machine for students to learn with means that it also doesn’t have the most bleeding edge of hardware. Under the hood is either the Intel Celeron N4020 or Celeron N4120 depending on the model with Intel UHD Graphics, up to 8GB of DDR4 RAM and up to 128GB of eMMC memory. The screen meanwhile is an 11.6-inch, 1366 x 768p resolution TFT display, and all of that comes in a plastic chassis that weighs around 1.1kg and is 17.85mm thick.

Keeping the lights on meanwhile is a battery of unspecified size that Microsoft claims will last your child up to 16 hours of use. As for ports, the Surface Laptop SE comes with a USB-C port, a USB-C port, the barrel DC power in port and a 3.5mm audio jack. You’ll also find WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity. Other features of note include a 1MP webcam, a built-in microphone and a pair of 2W stereo speakers. It comes in just the Glacier colourway, and has physical power and volume buttons too.

Pricing and availability

Unfortunately for the time being there’s no word just yet on when it’ll be launched in Malaysia. However, we do know that it will be made available for the US, UK, Canada and Japan by early 2022. It will be priced at USD249 (~RM1,036.84) for the base model with the Intel Celeron N4020 CPU, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, while the higher spec model with an Intel Celeron N4120 CPU, 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage will set you back USD329 (~RM1,369.96).

If you feel like you would want a Windows 11 SE laptop for your child but don’t want the Surface Laptop SE specifically though then fret not. Microsoft did also state that there will be more Windows 11 SE machines soon from their hardware partners like Acer, Asus, Dell, Lenovo and more. In the meantime though, for more information on either Windows 11 SE or the Surface Laptop SE, you can visit their respective pages on Microsoft’s website.