Microsoft’s new Copilot+ Surface Pro has an OLED screen and a redesigned keyboard

Microsoft’s Surface Pro strategy has been, shall we say, a little odd lately. The 2022 Surface Pro 9 came in both Intel and Arm configurations, but the Arm-powered device was both slower and significantly more expensive. Then, earlier this year, Microsoft announced and Intel-powered Surface Pro 10, a fine but boring device focused on IT professionals. 

Finally, Microsoft has a new Surface Pro that may get the average person in the market for a laptop to sit up and pay attention. The new Surface Pro Copilot+ PC (no more model numbers!) is another Arm-powered device, but Microsoft says that performance will not be compromised this time. In fact, thanks to a re-architected version of Windows 11, Microsoft claims these machines are 58 percent faster than “the fastest MacBook Air” with an M3 processor. 

Specifically, Copilot+ PCs must hit at 40 trillion operations per second, compared to the 18-ish trillion Apple claims with the M3. The Surface Pro itself hits 45 TOPS. The company further clarified that peak performance is 23 percent faster, while “sustained” performance is 58 percent faster. Notably, Microsoft made no mention of the M3 Pro or M3 Max chips here. 

It’s also a whopping 90 percent faster than the Surface Pro 9, and Microsoft is promising 22-ish hours of battery life for these new Copilot+ PCs. Physically, it’s similar to what you’d expect — a tablet with a kickstand and keyboard attachment. But it does look like it has thinner bezels, and an 13-inch OLED screen for the first time. Finally, there’s a “quad-HD” front-facing camera which seems the same as the one we saw on the Surface Pro 10 for business.

There’s also a new keyboard called the Flex Keyboard that is meant to be used both attached to the device or removed and set somewhere more comfortable for you. The trackpad is 14 percent larger than before, as well.

Of course, there are a host of AI-powered features on board here, thanks to the NPU in all the new Copilot+ PC devices announced today. And much of it is happening on device, so you won’t have to wait for data to hit the cloud or pay for various “pro AI subscriptions. One of the more interesting ones is Recall, which uses natural language prompts to pull data from your PC to resurface it based on whatever you remember about it. Other features include live translations on video chats in more than 40 languages as well as a Windows Photos tool called Super Resolution to improve old images.

We haven’t heard yet how much the new Surface Pro or its Flex Keyboard will cost just yet, but stay tuned for more details as Microsoft announces them. We also haven’t heard specifics like RAM, storage, ports or screen resolution yet, but after today’s event wraps we expect Microsoft to drop all those details.

Pre-orders start today, and they’ll be available on June 18.

Microsoft Surface Pro (2024)
Photo by Devindra Hardawar / Engadget

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Catch up on all the news from Microsoft’s Copilot AI and Surface event today!

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/microsofts-new-copilot-surface-pro-has-an-oled-screen-and-a-redesigned-keyboard-175611698.html?src=rss

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Microsoft’s Surface Pro strategy has been, shall we say, a little odd lately. The 2022 Surface Pro 9 came in both Intel and Arm configurations, but the Arm-powered device was both slower and significantly more expensive. Then, earlier this year, Microsoft announced and Intel-powered Surface Pro 10, a fine but…

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