A new generation of Microsoft Surface tablet PCs and laptops, complete with 120Hz displays and a unique pull-forward hinge, is now available for pre-order ahead of next month’s Windows 11 launch. After a few years that saw Microsoft mostly issuing iterative updates to its existing Surface Pro and Surface Laptop lineup, the new Surface Laptop Studio and Surface Pro 8 represent exciting new options for on-the-go computing.
Surface Laptop Studio
The most intriguing new offering is the Surface Laptop Studio, which Redmond is positioning as a replacement for the revolutionary yet niche Surface Book 3. Both products are aimed at creative professionals who also like to indulge in a bit of gaming, so they come with powerful CPUs and graphics cards. But unlike the Surface Book’s detachable design, the Surface Laptop Studio instead uses a permanently attached 14.4-inch touch screen that you pull toward you to cover the keyboard when you want to use it as a tablet or an easel. While other manufacturers like HP and Asus have tried this laptop concept before, Microsoft now sees the “pull-forward” Surface Laptop Studio, which starts at $1,600, as a necessary evolution in a world in which its other mainstream Surface devices have become ever more capable.
“With the increased performance to our 2-in-1s and Laptop 4, and the advancements within Windows 11, the team stepped back to re-imagine what a mobile powerhouse workstation could be,” says Microsoft’s head of communications, Frank Shaw. “It’s a successor to Surface Book, engineered for versatility with multiple modes of use.”
The key benefit of a pull-forward design over a detachable one like the Surface Book is the ease of transition. The Surface Book requires an occasionally cumbersome process to detach its display from the keyboard dock. Sometimes, the PC prompts you to quit certain apps that are using the discrete graphics chip in the keyboard base before it’s ready to release.
The Surface Laptop Studio should eliminate this requirement, since its display remains connected at all times. Microsoft notes that you can “make seamless transitions from powerful laptop, to perfectly angled stage for entertainment, to creative canvas for drawing and sketching.”
Other similar pull-forward laptops currently on the market include the Acer ConceptD 3 Ezel and the HP Elite Folio. In our review, we noted that the Ezel’s cantilevered hinge design is striking and futuristic, enabling you to move the bottom edge of the display forward to form an easel, hiding the keyboard and leaving just the palm rest and touchpad, or all the way forward, face up and flat to form a tablet.
The Ezel’s downside is its weight and bulk, which might also be an issue for the Surface Laptop Studio. The Studio weighs 4 pounds, which is rather heavy for a laptop with a 14-inch screen. In return, however, you get powerful Intel H-series Core i5 or Core i7 CPU options, as well as options for Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050Ti or RTX A2000 graphics cards. The processor muscle isn’t needed for mainstream use, but Shaw notes that it will make the Surface Laptop Studio an “ideal product for creative pros, developers, weekend gamers, designers, and architects.”
Other unique Surface Laptop Studio features not often found on Windows laptops include a touchpad with virtual haptic feedback for clicks instead of a physical hinge. The touchpad, designed in-house by the Surface team, has six independent force gauges to determine precise click and gestures. Microsoft says that you’ll be able to adjust the haptic feedback sensitivity or turn it off completely using a utility built in to Windows 11, similar to how Force Touch trackpads work on Apple’s Mac laptops.
The Surface Laptop Studio also features a front-facing camera with 1080p resolution rather than the more common 720p, and a total of four speakers with Dolby Atmos support.
Surface Pro 8 With 120Hz Display
The new Surface Pro 8 is intended for mainstream use. It’s the first major form factor update to Microsoft’s venerable detachable 2-in-1 tablet in several generations. Microsoft notes that it’s the most significant leap forward since the Surface Pro 3, which launched in 2014. The main update is a larger 13-inch screen, which is 11% larger, 12.5% brighter, and boasts 10.8% higher resolution than the preceding Surface Pro 7.
The Surface Pro 8’s larger screen also comes with a 120Hz refresh rate, double the 60Hz standard of most other Windows PCs. High-refresh-rate screens are all the rage these days on phones and gaming PCs, which can range north of 300Hz. In addition to making on-screen movement silky smooth, the faster refresh rate will help writing and drawing on the screen feel more like using pencil and paper, Microsoft notes.
The Surface Pro 8 will ship by default in 60Hz mode; you’ll be able to activate the 120Hz option in the Windows settings app. Higher refresh rates typically consume more battery power. The Surface Laptop Studio also features a 120Hz screen that’s enabled by default, with a 60Hz optional setting.
The improved screen and its smaller bezels helps the Surface Pro 8 look far more futuristic than its ancestors, and more similar to the ARM-powered Surface Pro X. The other main physical update is a redesigned Surface Pro Signature Keyboard cover that also borrows design cues from the Surface Pro X. The new keyboard cover includes a magnetic holder for the Surface Slim Pen 2, which means you won’t have to find a separate place to store the digital stylus when you’re not using it. The Slim Pen 2 is also new, featuring a haptic motor that works with certain apps to both mimic the feel of pen and paper and add functionality for gesture controls. You’ll get a tactile alert from the Slim Pen 2 when you successfully cross out a word to delete it in Microsoft Word, for instance. Other haptic functionality is enabled in apps like Adobe Fresco and 3D CAD software Shapr3D.
As ever, both the Slim Pen 2 and updated Signature Keyboard will cost extra. The Surface Pro 8 by itself—just the tablet—starts at $1,100 and is now available for pre-order. It uses the latest Intel 11th-generation Tiger Lake processors. The Slim Pen 2 is an eye-watering $130 add-on, but it could be worth it if you’re a dedicated digital artist.
The new Surface Pro 8 design and features seem to leave little room in Microsoft’s lineup for the Surface Pro X, but Microsoft appears to remain committed to this niche product. The company is now offering a cheaper model without LTE connectivity for $900, and notes that Windows 11 should improve app compatibility on the ARM-based Microsoft SQ2 processor thanks to support for both x86 and x64 emulation.
Surface Go 3: More Power, Still Starts at $400
If you’re on a stricter budget but still want a Surface tablet, Microsoft has you covered with the Surface Go. Noteworthy for its $400 starting price, the first-generation Surface Go suffered from sluggish performance, but that was rectified somewhat with the Intel Core m3-powered Surface Go 2 introduced last year. Now, Microsoft is launching an updated Surface Go 3, which will continue to start at $400, but will add the option for a more capable Intel Core i3 processor. The company notes that this version will be 60% faster than the Surface Go 2.
The increased speed could prompt some prospective Surface buyers to choose higher-end Surface Go 3 configurations over the entry-level Surface Pro 8. In our review of the Surface Go 2, we praised the silent, fanless operation but noted that the tablet quickly becomes pricey once you outfit it with more storage and a faster processor. A 60% speed increase might take some of the sting out of the more expensive configurations.
At 10.5 inches, the Go 3’s screen is smaller than the Surface Pro 8’s, and its resolution of 1,920 by 1,280 pixels is also much lower than the 2,880-by-1,920-pixel screen on the Surface Pro 8. The Go 3 also misses out on a 120Hz screen, instead sticking with the more common 60Hz.
While other companies offer devices similar to all the new ones Microsoft announced this week, one of the key benefits of a Surface PC or tablet is that it’s finely tuned to work with Redmond’s most famous product: Windows. The company notes that general availability of most of the new products will start on Oct. 5, the same day that Windows 11 launches.
To sweeten the deal for people who pre-order the Surface Pro 8 or Surface Laptop Studio in the meantime, Microsoft will throw in an Xbox controller and three months of the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription service.
At Wednesday’s launch, the company also teased new sustainability and accessibility features, like using salvaged plastic in its new $25 Ocean Plastic Mouse and a kit with keycap labels and port indicators to make it easier for disabled people to use Surface devices. Microsoft also remains committed to its controversial Surface Duo folding phone, launching an updated Duo 2.
