The Surface Pro pioneered the 2-in-1 form, but its design has stayed the same over the last seven years and is showing its age by 2019 standards. Meanwhile, the Surface family has seen all sorts addition over the years, including a clamshell, an all-in-one, an ultraportable, and even Surface headphones. Will the Surface Pro 7 change all that?
Here’s everything we know so far.
Price and release date
During the October 2019 Surface Event, it was confirmed that the Surface Pro will begin shipping on October 22 and is currently available for pre-order. Pricing for the Surface Pro 7 starts at $749.
Still the same display size
While the Surface Laptop 3 does offer a new 15-inch display, the Surface Pro 7 will continue on with the same display size: 12.3 inches. The display itself will be a PixelSense 10-point multitouch display with a 2,736 x 1,824 resolution.
Surface Pro 7’s touchpad, keyboard, and digital pen
Not much information was divulged about the state of the Surface Pro 7’s keyboard, touchpad, or use of a digital pen at the Surface event in early October 2019. Updates to these aspects of the Surface Pro were expected but none were mentioned during the Surface Event announcement. But the fact sheet Microsoft published about the Surface Pro 7 after the event, did give up a few more details. The keyboard will still be a removable Signature Type Cover and the digital pen will still be a Surface pen, which Microsoft says will have a 0.1mm precision. No new information was mentioned about the touchpad. Stay tuned, though, as we’ll update this story as more information comes in.
USB-C is confirmed
Most Windows 10 laptops or tablets come with USB-C Thunderbolt 3 ports, alongside USB-A. And now, Microsoft’s Surface Event announcement has confirmed that the Surface Pro 7 will feature USB-C. According to Microsoft, the Surface Pro 7’s port selection will include the following: USB-C, USB-A, a mini display port, Surface Connect, and a 3.5mm headphone jack, among others.
Surface Pro 7 will still feature an Intel processor
The Surface Pro 7 will feature an Intel processor, rather than Qualcomm. The Surface Pro 7 will offer 10th-generation Intel Core processors with a choice between Core i3, i5, and i7 models. The i3 model will be a dual-core processor. The i5 and i7 are both quad-core.
Months after the smaller Surface Go launched, reports indicated that Microsoft had planned a Qualcomm-powered version before Intel dissuaded it with “deep discounts” on its Pentium Gold processors.
Updated on October 2: Added news from the Surface event and information from Microsoft’s fact sheet.
Correction: An earlier version of this article misstated the Surface Pro 7 announcement would not have a mini display port. The Surface Pro 7 will include a mini display port.
