This information comes from Piptell founder and ex-Neowin writer, Michael Gillett, who said he heard at the FutureDecoded event currently ongoing in the UK, that indeed, Brits wouldn’t get their hand on the popular convertible laptop until the end of Q1 2016.
Just been told at #FutureDecoded that the #SurfaceBook won't be available in the UK until March/April 2016
— Michael Gillett | michaelgillett1 on Threads (@MichaelGillett) November 10, 2015
Although not exactly official confirmation, there has been a distinct lack of information coming from Microsoft about more international availability of the Surface Book. The product has also suffered with stock issues in certain configurations when it comes to U.S. sales, so it may be that the software giant substantially underestimated the popularity of the device.
Related: Microsoft Surface Book review
As if to rub salt in the wound, Gillett later added to the previous Surface Book-based news with another tweet, one that suggested that there are other aspects of the UK launch that are problematic:
Just been told, there are currently no plans to bring the new Surface Type Cover with the fingerprint scanner to the UK #FutureDecoded
— Michael Gillett | michaelgillett1 on Threads (@MichaelGillett) November 10, 2015
As Microsoft and others continue to denounce age-old password security and champion new methods like biometric scanning and technologies like Windows Hello, fingerprint scanning has become a much more popular method of unlocking your hardware. It seems a shame that British users may need to pay an import tax and extra shipping to get their hands on this with the Surface Book.
It wasn’t all doom and gloom at the event though. Gillett also let the world know that we can expect the Lumia 950 and XL pre-orders to go live next week on the Microsoft store. But even more exciting than that, a Lumia -powered VR experience came complete with developers wafting scents under his nose mid-experience to further enhance immersion.
Olfactory VR equipment? Sign us up.
