New Surface Pro Release Date, Specs News: New Generation Tablet Gets Kaby Lake Chips, LTE Connection to Arrive Later
Microsoft surprised the world when it announced the new Surface Pro recently, which is powered by the latest Intel Kaby Lake chips and will soon get LTE Advanced network support.
Quiet, Fan-less Kaby Lakes
Having the Kaby Lake chips for the new Surface Pro was almost a given as many speculations about it have been surfacing since last year. However, what Microsoft is most proud of about its new Surface Pro's CPUs is of it being "the quietest Surface yet."
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According to Microsoft, the Core m3 and i5 chips on the new Surface Pro were built without any fans, thus the silence of the machine. "In fact, this is the first i5 ever with fan-less architecture. And at an unprecedented 18dB, even the core i7 can't be heard," Microsoft added on its blog.
LTE-powered Units Arrive Later This Year
Another major upgrade applied to the new Surface Pro was the addition of a LTE Advanced connection. However, it will only be available to units that will be shipped later this year. Later versions of the new Surface Pro will support micro SIM cards and eSIM and comes with a slightly higher price.
Microsoft skipped on giving details about the technical specifications and pricing of the LTE-powered Surface Pro models. However, The Verge speculated that they might use a different processor, possibly with ARM (from Qualcomm) architecture.
Other Specifications, Release Date and Price
There will be three variants of CPU and graphics card pairing for the new Surface Pro. These are: Intel Core m3-7Y30 (1.0 to 2.6 gigahertz) with Intel HD 615 (300 to 900 megahertz); the Intel Core i5-7300U (2.6 to 3.5 GHz) with Intel HD Graphics 620 (300 to 1,100 MHz and 24 Execution Units); and the Intel Core i7-7660U (2.5 to 4.0 GHz) with Intel Iris Plus Graphics 640 (300 to 1,100 MHz and 48 EUs).
The new Surface Pro sports a 12.3-inch screen powered with an improved PixelSense Display technology that has "50% more pixels than a 12" MacBook," according to Microsoft. Buyers can choose which memory option they want from 4 GB, 8 GB, to 16 GB, while the storage capacity varies from 128 GB, 256 GB, 512 GB, and 1 TB solid-state drive (SSD).
The newest 2-in-1 tablet from Microsoft is designed with front-facing stereo speakers powered by Dolby Audio Premium. In terms of connectivity, it has ports for USB 3.0, a mini DisplayPort, and a Surface Connect port for charging and docking, connecting a keyboard, and a headset. Meanwhile, Microsoft claimed that its battery life can last up to 13.5 hours.
Price starts at $799.99 and can go as much as $2,699 based on the buyer's preferred configurations. The non-LTE models can now be pre-ordered at Microsoft's online store and will be shipped by June 15.
Microsoft has yet to announce the pre-order selling schedule for the LTE-powered tablets.
