Microsoft's Latest Anti-MacBook Ad Focuses on Surface Pro 4's Touchscreen

Over the weekend, Microsoft launched a new ad for the Surface Pro 4, continuing its marketing strategy of comparing the tablet computer to Apple's products, this time the 13-inch MacBook Air. The ad is the newest in Microsoft's anti-Apple theme of commercials, previously comparing the iPad Pro with the Surface Pro 4, the MacBook Pro with the Surface Book, and OS X with Windows 10. Just a few weeks ago, the MacBook Air was the focus of another Surface Pro 4 ad.

Simple titled "Get the Surface Pro," the new ad has a focus on the tablet's ability to write and doodle on the screen with the included stylus. Using the same musical accompaniment of the previous MacBook Air comparison spot, the singer in the new ad tells potential customers that "if you try to write on a plain old Mac, the difference can be seen. It doesn't work." Other advantages highlighted in the ad include the detachable keyboard, and the ending tagline states, "Surface does more. Just like you."


Microsoft positions the Surface Pro 4 as a true combination tablet and personal computer, leading to ads comparing it to both an iPad Pro and MacBook. In the previous iPad Pro commercial, Microsoft's personal assistant Cortana let customers, and Siri, know that the iPad lacks an Intel Core i7 processor, full access to Microsoft Office beyond the mobile app versions, a trackpad, and external port options, making Microsoft's tablet more of a computer than Apple's 12.9-inch tablet.

The 12.3-inch Surface Pro 4 starts at $899 for 128GB of internal storage and 4GB of RAM, and goes up to as much as $1,799 for 256GB of internal storage and 16GB of RAM. Comparatively, the 11-inch MacBook Air starts at $899, with 128GB of storage and 4GB of RAM, increasing to $1099 for 256GB of storage and 8GB of RAM, while the 13-inch model starts at $999 for 128GB of storage and 8GB of RAM, and rising to $1199 for 256GB of storage.

Related Roundup: MacBook Air
Related Forum: MacBook Air

Popular Stories

sam sung auction

Former Apple Employee Sam Sung Changed His Name to Avoid Attention

Wednesday October 22, 2025 4:44 pm PDT by
Back in 2012, an Apple retail employee named Sam Sung went viral because his name is similar to Samsung, one of Apple's main competitors. In a recent interview with Business Insider, he detailed that period in his life, how Apple responded, and he explained why he ultimately changed his name. Someone posted an image of Sung's Apple business card on Reddit in 2012, and it spread rapidly....
iOS 26

iOS 26.1 Coming Soon With These 8 New Features for Your iPhone

Wednesday October 22, 2025 6:15 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a handful of new features and changes for iPhones, including a toggle for changing the appearance of the Liquid Glass design, "slide to stop" for alarms in the Clock app, and more. iOS 26.1 is currently in beta testing. The update will likely be released in the first half of November, and it is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and newer, but some...
iOS 26 Battery Glass Feature

iOS 26.1 Beta Liquid Glass Battery Drain Test: Tinted vs Clear Mode

Friday October 24, 2025 2:30 pm PDT by
In the fourth iOS 26.1 beta, Apple added a "Tinted" option that reduces the translucency of Liquid Glass for those who prefer a more opaque look. I saw some comments wondering whether the setting might preserve battery life, so I thought I'd do some testing. Test Settings I did four separate tests using the iPhone 17 Pro Max, and I kept the parameters as similar as possible. Here are the...
All Screen iPhone 2027 Feature 1

Report: Apple to Skip 'iPhone 19' Name for 'iPhone 20'

Thursday October 23, 2025 4:28 am PDT by
Apple's new iPhone lineup launched in the fall of 2027 will be called the "iPhone 20" models, rather than the "iPhone 19," according to research firm Omdia. Speaking at a conference in Seoul (via ETNews), Omdia Chief Researcher Heo Moo-yeol corroborated rumors that Apple plans to move the launch of its standard iPhone to the first half of the year and provided some additional clarity about...
trump white house ballroom

Apple Donating to Trump's $350M White House Ballroom Project

Thursday October 23, 2025 3:55 pm PDT by
Apple is one of several tech companies that will contribute to the construction of U.S. President Donald Trump's 90,000-square-foot ballroom, reports CNN. Construction began on the ballroom this week, and the White House's east wing was torn down. Trump claims that the ballroom will cost $350 million, and that it will be privately funded through donations. The cost has already increased $150 ...
apple wallet drivers license feature iPhone 15 pro

iPhone Driver's License Feature in Apple Wallet App Launches in Another U.S. State

Thursday October 23, 2025 7:44 am PDT by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Starting today, the feature is available to residents of West Virginia. To set it up, open the Wallet app and tap on the plus sign in...
cadillac lyric infotainment

GM to Remove CarPlay from All Future Vehicles, Including Gas Cars [Updated]

Wednesday October 22, 2025 11:34 am PDT by
General Motors began phasing out support for CarPlay in its electric vehicles back in 2023, leading to complaints from iPhone users, but the company has no plans to back down. In fact, GM is going further and plans to remove CarPlay from all future gas vehicles, too. In an interview with The Verge, GM CEO Mary Barra said that the company opted to prioritize its platform for EVs, but the...
iPhone Air

Report: 'Virtually No Demand' for iPhone Air

Wednesday October 22, 2025 3:22 am PDT by
Apple is "drastically" cutting production of the iPhone Air and shifting focus toward the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro models, Nikkei Asia reports. The business publication claims to have learned of a major cut to iPhone Air production motivated by weaker-than-expected consumer interest, nearly to "end of production levels." Despite early reports of the iPhone Air selling out within hours of...
maxresdefault

Apple's iPhone Air Experiment Fails as Supply Chain Cuts Production by 80%

Wednesday October 22, 2025 10:48 am PDT by
iPhone Air demand failed to meet Apple's expectations and the company's supply chain is scaling back shipments and production, reports Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Suppliers are expected to reduce capacity by more than 80 percent between now and the first quarter of 2026, and some components with longer lead times will be discontinued ...
iOS 26 Feature

iOS 26 Leaker Being Sued by Apple is Actually a 'Lifelong Apple Fanboy'

Friday October 24, 2025 9:20 am PDT by
In July, Apple sued well-known YouTuber Jon Prosser and his acquaintance Michael Ramacciotti over alleged theft of the company's trade secrets, after Prosser leaked some iOS 26 details in videos uploaded to his YouTube channel Front Page Tech. If you are not caught up on the lawsuit, read our initial coverage to learn more. Earlier this week, Prosser told The Verge he has "been in active...

Top Rated Comments

levitynyc Avatar
119 months ago
Remember when Apple made laptops?

I used to love them before they stopped updating them.
Score: 36 Votes (Like | Disagree)
newdeal Avatar
119 months ago
but I don't want to write on the screen, I just want a keyboard and trackpad that aren't terrible
Score: 29 Votes (Like | Disagree)
4966246 Avatar
119 months ago
That's the most desperate sounding ad I have ever heard.
Score: 28 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dannys1 Avatar
119 months ago
Waiting for the Samsung Note 7 advert...

"I can even start fires with my Note 7, I could never do that with my Mac".
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
RamGuy Avatar
119 months ago
I have to admit that the Surface Pro (I don't fancy the Surface "non-Pro") are some really unique and rather nice products. But after owning the Surface Pro 3 for a month, one thing became obvious. It's a "jack of all trades, master of none".

What makes me say this? Well, the whole purpose with the Surface Pro for me was being capable of replacing both my notebook (MacBook Pro) and my tablet (iPad Air) and one thing became blatantly obvious; if you do enjoy the "touch-first" experience of tablet, the Surface Pro will fall way short.

It doesn't really matter if it's a tablet in form, and features a touchscreen etc.. When you have next to none "touch optimised" apps and user experiences to offer. All the "apps" in the Windows Store are plain horrible and lacklustre. The amount of apps offered are really low, and the ones being offered often costs money for no apparent reason and they don't really offer anything. The whole tablet / touch ecosystem is non-existent.

Most Surface Pro users tend to tell me to simply use the "real applications" aka full-blown X86 applications, that's the whole reason for a Surface Pro. But I can't agree with this logic. Using x86 applications when I simply want to use the Surface Pro as a tablet provides a really horrible and unoptimised experience. With UI not designed for touch in mind.


So compared to my iPad Air, the Surface Pro couldn't really deliver the tablet experience I have come to expect.



When it comes to being a notebook it does fare much better. It's a great devices, with great hardware and that shows. But when the tablet experience is so lacklustre, you being to feel and think about why would I want to live with a Surface Pro as primarily a notebook? The keyboard attachment is far from great, it's much better to have a "real" keyboard as the typing experience is much better and with a "real" keyboard you don't need to deal with the kickstand making it really awkward to use the Surface Pro when it's not able to sit on a table. Using it "in your lap" is a mixed experience, and that how I mostly use my notebooks, on my lap.

Not to mention the touchpad/trackpad. It's really small and it performs really bad. It's not even on the level of decent Windows touchpads/trackpads, and even they can't really compared to those of the MacBook's. It just doesn't provide a great user experience having to fiddle with that keyboard attachment.



If only the Surface Pro was able to offer a great tablet experience, then I might have been willing to pay with the fiddlyness that is the keyboard attachment and it's touchpad/trackpad. But when the Surface Pro doesn't really offer anything in terms of a touch-first tablet experience, why should I want to live with it as a rather fiddly notebook?


Once again; Jack of all trades, master of none in my experience.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
needfx Avatar
119 months ago
removing the headphone jack might boost sales figures
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)