Microsoft Surface Pro Microsoft Surface Pro (5th Gen) Intel Core i7, Review

This is a specs sheet hero and a real-world zero. The old processor makes it feel sluggish for anything beyond the basics. You're better off with a newer, cheaper tablet or spending a bit more for a modern low-end Surface.

The Surface Pro 5th Gen is a weird one. On paper, it looks like a steal: 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD for under $400. But here's the one thing you need to know: you're buying a seven-year-old processor in a modern chassis. This isn't a tablet for heavy lifting. It's a refurbished Windows machine for someone who needs a specific form factor and a lot of storage on a tight budget, and is willing to accept some serious performance trade-offs.

The performance is exactly what you'd expect from a 7th-gen Intel chip. Our database shows its CPU and GPU scores land in the 18th and 12th percentiles, respectively. That means it's slow. It'll handle web browsing, email, and basic Office apps, but don't even think about photo editing or multitasking with more than a few Chrome tabs. The surprising part is how good everything else is: that screen is still gorgeous (85th percentile), and 16GB of RAM with a 512GB SSD is a killer combo for the price. It's a fast-feeling machine trapped with a slow brain.

At $369, it's a value trap. The price is low, but you're paying for specs that look good on a listing page, not for usable speed. If you need a cheap Windows tablet right now and your workload is incredibly light, maybe. For everyone else, that money is better spent elsewhere.

Don't compare this to a new iPad Pro or Galaxy Tab. Compare it to other cheap Windows options. The newer Surface Pro with an Intel Core i3 will run circles around this i7 for similar money. If you don't need Windows, a base model iPad or Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE will feel like a spaceship next to this, with better batteries and screens, but you lose the desktop OS and file management. This old Surface Pro only wins if you absolutely must have a ton of local storage and RAM under $400 and Windows is non-negotiable.

If you need a tablet for anything resembling 'work'—multitasking, Zoom calls while taking notes, or editing documents—this isn't it. The CPU will choke. Go get a used M1 iPad Air or a newer Surface Go instead. Also skip it if battery life matters to you; you're rolling the dice on a seven-year-old battery.

We can't recommend it for most people. The core experience is hamstrung by that old CPU. It's the computing equivalent of putting a lawnmower engine in a sports car body. The risk of a degraded battery or other refurbishment issues is high, and the performance ceiling is so low it'll frustrate you quickly. Only consider this if you have a very specific, very simple use case and zero budget flexibility.