Microsoft Surface event 2021, which was held virtually on 22 September 2021, introduced five new Surface devices. Microsoft called it the largest update to the Surface portfolio in its history. The refreshed lineup of Surface products included the hotly anticipated Surface Pro 8, Surface Duo 2, Surface Laptop Studio and more.
Everything Microsoft Announced at September(Surface) 2021 Event
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Microsoft’s highly anticipated Surface product event took place on 22 September 2021. Most of the surface products below are available for preorder now at Microsoft' website with general availability starting October 5. It was an extremely hardware-focused event.
Surface Laptop Studio
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Surface laptop studio is the 14.4-inch touchscreen laptop with resolution of 2400 x 1600 (201 PPI) and 10-point multi-touch support. It has up to 120-Hz refresh rate. It comes equipped with a 1080p front-facing camera. Microsoft devices blog introduces Surface laptop Studio as "Designed in concert with Windows 11, Surface Laptop Studio is the most powerful Surface we’ve ever built". It has quad-core powered 11th Gen Intel® Core™ H Series processors (you can choose between Core i5 or Core i7). Graphics specification are NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 3050 Ti laptop GPU with 4GB GDDR6 GPU memory (for Core i7 model) and Intel® Iris® Xe Graphics (for Core i5 model). On the memory front it has 16GB or 32GB LPDDR4x RAM. It has a Solid-state drive (SSD) with different options: 256 GB, 512 GB, 1TB, 2TB SSD.
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Microsoft describes it "Built as the ideal product for developers, creative pros, designers and gamers, bringing you the power of a desktop, the portability of a laptop and a creative studio all in one". Surface Laptop Studio features a new ultra-durable Dynamic Woven Hinge, allowing it to transition from one mode to another seamlessly. There's Laptop Mode, with full access to the keyboard and touchpad. In Stage mode, the 14.4” PixelSense touchscreen display is pulled forward to the perfect angle for gaming, streaming, docking, or presenting to clients. Studio Mode (Tablet Mode), for drawing and writing. It's compatible with Microsoft's new Surface Slim Pen 2.
Surface Duo 2 (Folding SmartPhone)
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Microsoft updated its Surface Duo smartphone with improved design and defined it as "a modern premium smartphone". It is a folding device with two displays, actually not 2, joined by a sturdy hinge, instead of one big display that’s made of plastic and bends like other foldable devices. In theory, that should make it more durable than true foldables. According to Microsoft blog "Surface Duo 2 is much more than a phone. From the integration with Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Teams, to entertainment scenarios like TikTok, Kindle and gaming, Duo 2 enables countless app pairings and unmatched multitasking capabilities". It now has a third display but not where most people expect it to be. Microsoft added a small strip screen to the hinge on the side.
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It features Dual PixelSense™ Fusion Displays open: 8.3 inch AMOLED 2688x1892 with 401 PPi, 90Hz adaptive refresh rate and protected with Corning® Gorilla® Glass Victus™. It has a Dynamic triple lens rear-facing camera setup with Dual led - dual color flash. Wide: 12MP, f/1.7 aperture, 27mm, 1.4µm, dual pixel PDAF and OIS. Telephoto: 12MP, f/2.4 aperture, 51mm, 1.0µm, PDAF, OIS and 2X optical zoom in. Ultra-Wide: 16MP, f/2.2 aperture, 13mm, 1.0µm, 110 degree diagonal field of view with distortion correction. On the front side(camera), it has 12MP, f/2.0 aperture, 24mm, 1.0µm. The performance of Surface Duo 2 is powered by Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 888 5G Mobile chip Platform, the top-end smartphone chip found on most flagship Android phones today. The "unmatched multitasking capabilities" is enabled by a 8GB DRAM LPDDR5 Memory and it comes with 128GB, 256GB, 512GB storage variants. For Network and Connectivity this foldable smartphone has WIFI: WiFi-6 802.11ax (2.4/5GHz) Bluetooth: Bluetooth® 5.1 and NFC for payments and provisioning. All of this is supported by 4449mAh (typical) dual battery which according to Microsoft gives "All Day Battery Life". Fast Charging available using the Microsoft Surface 23W USB-C Power Supply which is sold separately.
Surface Pro 8
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The Surface Pro 8 brings improvements to both the inside and out. According to Microsoft "This update to our iconic 2-in-1 represents the most significant leap forward since Pro 3". It brings a redesign in the form of slimmer bezels on the sides. Surface Pro 8 is more than twice as fast as Pro 7. It features a vibrant 13-inch PixelSense™ Flow Display with resolution of 2880 x 1920 (267 PPI) and Up to 120Hz Refresh Rate (60Hz default). It supports 10-point multi-touch. With Dolby® Vision™ and Adaptive Color Technology users can enjoy a viewing experience that’s comfortable on the eyes and true to life. Microsoft's blog describes "This is the most technically advanced display we’ve ever built".
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It has 5.0MP front-facing camera with 1080p full HD video and 10.0MP rear-facing autofocus camera with 1080p HD and 4k video. Performance of this device is powered by Quad-core 11th Gen Intel® Core™ Processor (you can choose between Core i5 or Core i7). Graphics specification is Intel® Iris® Xe Graphics (Core i5 and Core i7). Microsoft says the Surface Pro 8 is more than twice as fast as its predecessor, offering 40 percent higher CPU performance and 74 percent faster graphics. On the memory front it has 8GB/16GB/32GB LPDDR4x RAM variants. It has Removable solid-state drive (SSD) options: 128GB or 256GB (Wi-Fi or LTE3) and SSD: 512GB or 1TB (Wi-Fi only). It also comes with 2W stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos®6 and 2 x USB-C® with USB 4.0/Thunderbolt™ 4. It works with the Slim Pen 2 (sold separately).
Surface Pro X
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Microsoft debuted a new Surface Pro X. While nothing drastically changed with the Surface Pro X this year, it does come in a more affordable Wi-Fi variant now. The new Surface Pro x has a 13 inch PixelSense™ Display with resolution 2880 x 1920 (267 PPI). It supports 10-point multitouch. Talking about the cameras, it has 5.0MP front-facing camera with 1080p full HD video and 10.0MP rear-facing autofocus camera with 1080p HD and 4k video. Consumers have the choice of Microsoft SQ®1 and Microsoft SQ® 2 CPU variants. On the graphics front it has Microsoft SQ® 1 Adreno™ 685 GPU and Microsoft SQ® 2 Adreno™ 690 GPU variants. It is equipped with 8GB or 16GB LPDDR4x RAM and has Removable solid-state drive (SSD) options: 128, 256, or 512GB. It has 2W stereo speakers with Dolby® Audio™. Users can get Up to 15 hours of battery backup considering typical device usage.
Surface Go 3
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Microsoft describes Surface Go 3 as a product perfect for businesses, schools, students, and families. The Surface Go 3 isn't all that different from last year's model on the outside but you may find the main upgrades under the hood. Microsoft’s Surface Go received a minor update to deliver more on performance. It has a 10.5-inch PixelSense Display with resolution 1920 x 1280 (220 PPI) and protection of Corning®Gorilla® Glass 3. This device supports 10-point multi-touch. It is equipped with a 5.0MP front-facing camera with 1080p HD video and 8.0MP rear-facing auto-focus camera with 1080p HD video. Its performance is powered by Dual-core Intel® Pentium® Gold 6500Y processor and Quad-core 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i3-10100Y processor variants. It has Intel® UHD Graphics 615. To power multitasking it has 4GB/8GB RAM variants. Talking about the storage, it has 64GB eMMC and 128GB Solid State Drive (SSD) variants. Surface Go 3 supports Microsoft Pen Protocol (MPP) and has 2W stereo speakers with Dolby® Audio™. Battery can last Up to 11 hours of typical device usage.
Surface Slim Pen 2
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Surface Slim Pen 2 features improved haptics and interaction feedback. It gives you the feel of pen on paper with the built-in haptic motor. Tactile signals is a new digital pen experience that uses the built-in haptic motor. Tactile signals can make it easy for you to know when you've successfully used natural gestures like circling to select and crossing out to delete in Microsoft Word or tools in Adobe Fresco. Haptic feedback functionality compatible only with Surface Pro 8 and Surface Laptop Studio with Windows 11. It is equipped with a Rechargeable Lithium Ion battery that lasts up to 15 hours of typical usage. It supports Bluetooth® Wireless 5.0 technology.