At long last, Microsoft’s Surface Book 3 and Surface Go 2 are now official following a long series of leaks. If we previously heard rumors about a Surface event this Spring, Microsoft ultimately announced its new Surface devices via a press release this morning.
Surface Book 3
The Surface Book 3 is probably the most interesting new device today, as this line hasn’t received an update since fall 2017. The design remains largely the same, including the displays that kept their 3:2 ratio, and the distinctive fulcrum hinge. That’s not really surprising coming from a company that has also been recycling the Surface Pro 3 design for many years now. Microsoft also kept the same ports including the proprietary Surface Connect port, two USB-A 3.1 Gen 2 ports, one USB-C port (with no Thunderbolt 3), and an SD card port.
The new 2-in-1 PC remains the most powerful Surface mobile device thanks to new quad-core Intel 10th-gen Ice Lake processors (there’s no AMD option, unlike what Microsoft did on the Surface Laptop 3). This time, the 13.5” Surface Book 3 will provide more CPU options with Intel Core i5 and Core i7 variants, coupled with an Intel G7 Iris Plus integrated graphics, or a dedicated Nvidia GTX 1650 GPU. However, 15” models will only come with more powerful Core i7 CPUs and an NVIDIA GTX 1660 Ti GPU, with the option to choose a more powerful Nvidia Quadro RTX 3000 GPU.
Under the hood, Microsoft also included up to 2TB of faster SSD storage, and up to 32GB of faster DDR4 RAM. The two variants also come with bigger batteries, with Microsoft promising up to 15.5 hours of battery life on the 13.5” model, and up to 17.5 hours on the 15” model.
The Surface Book 3 will start shipping on May 21, and it’s available for pre-order today in select markets. The base 13.5” model with 256GB of storage and 8GB of RAM will start at $1,600, while the base 15” model with the same amount of storage and 16GB of RAM will start at $2,300.
Surface Go 2
The original Surface Go was the most affordable Surface tablet when it launched in August 2018, and it was also the smallest Surface tablet with its 10-inch 1800×1200 screen. The Surface Go 2 comes with a slightly bigger 10.5-inch screen with a FullHD resolution, and the tablet also has slightly smaller bezels that give it a more modern design.
Just like on the Surface Book 3, the ports selection on the Surface Go 2 hasn’t changed: Microsoft kept its proprietary Surface Connect port, but a USB-C port can also be used for charging, and the tablet also kept its headphone jack and micro-SD port. If LTE connectivity is still optional, other minor changes include a bigger battery and the addition of dual Studio Mics. As expected, the Type Cover remains a separate $130 purchase, and you’ll be able to choose between Platinum, Black, Poppy Red, and Ice Blue colors.
The base model with just 4G of RAM still features a dual-core Intel Pentium Gold processor, but consumers will be able to choose a more powerful dual-core 8th gen Core m3 processor. On the storage front, the base model will keep the 64GB of slower eMMC storage, but Microsoft still offers an optional 128 GB SSD.
As for pricing, the Surface Go 2 will start at $399 for the base model with the Pentium Gold processor, 4G of RAM, and 64GB of eMMC storage. The Intel Core m3 model with 8GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD will be priced at $630. Both variants will be available for purchase on May 12, but you can pre-order them today.
Microsoft also unveiled the Surface Headphones 2 today, which will also be available on May 12 along with the Surface Earbuds. The company also announced new accessories including the Surface Dock 2 and a new multi-port Microsoft USB-C Travel Hub.
