As part of its Copilot+ PCs push, Microsoft has introduced two new Surface devices featuring new hardware and AI software capabilities.
The Surface Pro and Surface Laptop models for 2024 will be available from mid-June.
Microsoft unveiled new devices it's adding to the Surface lineup during its Build keynote address this week, refreshing its options and integrating AI even further into the hardware.
It's going big on its all-new Copilot+ PCs category, which centres on its AI assistant and suite of tools, and there are a few new features on that side of things for the new flagship, the Surface Pro.
While the last few years have seen the Surface lineup perhaps focus as much on laptops as the 2-in-1s that launched the brand, the Surface Pro is a return to those roots, and Microsoft says it's 90% faster than the Surface 9.
The tablet-come-laptop will be powered by either the Snapdragon X Elite or Snapdragon X Plus depending on which configuration you opt for, and looks like it has an attractive design with that familiar kickstand.
It has a 13-inch display that can be outfitted with an OLED panel if you pay for the optional upgrade, and can now power up to three external 4K displays, with two USB 4 ports for connectivity.
That OLED, of course, means that it once again will be duking it out with Apple's newest iPad Pro model for the "pro-grade tablet" market.
That might make it an ideal professional hub, especially since it can obviously fulfil all of the things you'd want from a tablet, including using a stylus and full touch-screen capabilities.
To go with this all, though, Microsoft unveiled a whole new pack of features for Copilot, which will have its own button on the keyboard, as most new Windows machines now do.
Recall will let you search for things you remember seeing on your computer without needing to have saved files. Cocreator in Paint will let you instruct the app to help you get to a desired endpoint while you create an image. Finally, Live Captions will bring the option of live subtitles for any English-speaking audio coming through your computer's speakers.
Each sounds fairly powerful, although whether they're system sellers is a question that will take longer to answer.
Meanwhile, Microsoft also took the wraps off the new Surface Laptop, a more conventional device that still looks nice and slick.
It gets a 120Hz refresh rate display and the choice between a 13.8-inch or 15-inch version depending on what you want.
Both the Surface Pro and Surface Laptop are available to pre-order now from Microsoft if you're interested, and they both start at $999 for their most basic version, so there's plenty of comparing to be done.
