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

Apple Creator Studio

Apple Introduces New 'Creator Studio' Bundle of Apps for $129 Per Year

Tuesday January 13, 2026 6:11 am PST by
Apple today introduced a new Apple Creator Studio bundle that offers access to six creative apps, as well as exclusive AI features and content, as part of a single subscription. In the U.S., pricing is set at $12.99 per month or $129 per year. Here are the six apps included with an Apple Creator Studio subscription:Final Cut Pro on the Mac and iPad Logic Pro on the Mac and iPad Pixelmator...
Low Cost MacBook Feature A18 Pro

Apple Is Expected to Launch These Four MacBooks in 2026

Friday January 9, 2026 8:17 am PST by
2026 could be a bumper year for Apple's Mac lineup, with the company expected to announce as many as four separate MacBook launches. Rumors suggest Apple will court both ends of the consumer spectrum, with more affordable options for students and feature-rich premium lines for users that seek the highest specifications from a laptop. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. ...
iOS 18 Siri Personal Context

Apple Confirms Google Gemini Will Power Next-Generation Siri This Year

Monday January 12, 2026 7:38 am PST by
In a statement shared with CNBC today, Apple confirmed that Google Gemini will power the next-generation version of Siri that is slated to launch later this year. "After careful evaluation, we determined that Google's technology provides the most capable foundation for Apple Foundation Models and we're excited about the innovative new experiences it will unlock for our users," the statement...
iOS 26

Here's What's New in iOS 26.3 So Far

Monday January 12, 2026 1:15 pm PST by
Apple today seeded the second beta of iOS 26.3, nearly a month after the first beta. So far, the update includes a couple of new features for iPhones. iOS 15.3 through iOS 18.3 were all released in late January over the years, so it is thereby likely that iOS 26.3 will be released towards the end of this month as well. The update is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and newer. Below,...
iPhone Top Left Hole Punch Face ID Feature Purple

10 Reasons to Wait for This Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Thursday January 8, 2026 2:56 am PST by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
fcp pcp iwork creator studio

These Apple Apps Will No Longer Receive All New Features Without a Subscription

Tuesday January 13, 2026 10:50 am PST by
If you are not interested in subscribing to the new Apple Creator Studio bundle introduced today, you will officially start to miss out on some new features. Apple said some "exciting new intelligent features and premium content" in Final Cut Pro, Pixelmator Pro, Keynote, Numbers, Pages, and Freeform will only be accessible with a Creator Studio subscription. In the U.S., a subscription...
iOS 18 Siri Personal Context

Elon Musk Reacts to Apple and Google Teaming on Gemini-Powered Siri

Monday January 12, 2026 11:38 am PST by
Elon Musk today expressed concern about Apple and Google partnering on a more personalized version of Siri powered by Google's generative AI platform Gemini. "This seems like an unreasonable concentration of power for Google, given that [they] also have Android and Chrome," wrote Musk, in a post on X. Musk serves as CEO of xAI, the company behind Gemini competitor Grok. It is unlikely...
airpods pro 3 design

Apple Releases New AirPods Pro 3 Firmware Update

Tuesday January 13, 2026 11:29 am PST by
Apple today released a firmware update for the AirPods Pro 3. The latest firmware has a version number of 8B34, up from the previous version 8B30. Apple has a support document for AirPods firmware updates, and it indicates that the 8B34 update contains unspecified "bug fixes and other improvements." No other AirPods models received firmware updates today. How to install AirPods Pro...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2.1 Update Coming Soon for iPhones

Monday January 12, 2026 8:19 am PST by
iOS 26.3 will likely be released to the public later this month, but it appears that Apple is preparing to push out another software update in the interim. Apple's software engineers have started testing iOS 26.2.1, according to the MacRumors visitor logs, which have been a reliable indicator of upcoming iOS versions. The update will likely be released at some point this week or next week. ...

Top Rated Comments

levitynyc Avatar
122 months ago
Remember when Apple made laptops?

I used to love them before they stopped updating them.
Score: 36 Votes (Like | Disagree)
newdeal Avatar
122 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
122 months ago
That's the most desperate sounding ad I have ever heard.
Score: 28 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dannys1 Avatar
122 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
122 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
122 months ago
removing the headphone jack might boost sales figures
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)