It's 2024 – the era of artificial intelligence – and no one seems to be betting harder on the AI future than Microsoft. The company is shipping out two new AI-powered products for Businesses: Surface Pro 10 for Business and Surface Laptop 6 for Business. These units won't be available for customers directly, though.
These new Surface laptops will be powered by Intel's latest Core Ultra Processors (one of the first products to ship out with them) and have the Copilot key that Microsoft is introducing to the keyboards.
They will also have a dedicated Neural Processing Unit (NPU) that improves the performance of Surface PCs when it comes to powering the existing AI features like Windows Copilot, Live Captions, etc., as well as any new AI features in the future.
The new Surface Laptop 6 is reportedly 2x faster than its predecessor, Laptop 5, while the Surface Pro 10 is 53% faster than the Pro 9. While the new units don't enjoy any upgrades in looks – the screen bezels and the design are largely the same – there are other changes. The new Surface laptops will deliver better performance and battery life, more ports, and anti-reflective displays.
Theoretically, Microsoft Copilot should also work faster on these devices since it can run locally, thanks to the Meteor Lake Intel chip in the Core Ultra Processors that's been spearheading the talk of the "AI PCs" since its release. The actual difference in speeds remains to be seen after the devices are released, though. They will start shipping on April 9th.
Surface Pro 10
The Surface Pro 10 is powered by the latest Intel Core Ultra processors (13th Gen) with NPU to handle demanding AI tasks for increased efficiency and performance. The 13-inch PixelSense Flow Display boasts improved brightness and an anti-reflective coating, providing a better viewing experience even in challenging lighting conditions, whether you're in the office or outside.
Microsoft is also bringing 5G to the Intel Platform for the first time with the Surface Pro 10, so you can keep connected on the go.
The Surface Pro 10 uses a front-facing Ultrawide Studio camera capable of 1440p video with a 114° field of view, ensuring you'll be perfectly framed during video calls. The video calls across Teams, and other apps will also be improved by AI-driven Windows Studio Effects.
Surface Pro 10 will work with keyboards and Surface Slim Pen (both sold separately) as expected. But what's new is that all input methods have been made easier to use with Copilot on Surface Pro 10. If you take handwritten notes in OneNote, for example, Copilot will be able to analyze them using AI.
The device will also have an NFC reader to make password-less authentication easier.
Surface Laptop 6
Surface Laptop 6 for Businesses is powered by Intel's Core Ultra H-Series processors designed to deliver desktop-grade performance, making them twice as powerful as their predecessors. No matter what resource-intensive tasks your team needs to undertake, from complex data analysis to creative workflows, the device is equipped to handle it all.
It's available in two variants – 13.5" and 15" PixelSense touchscreen displays. There are also improvements to the camera with the new hardware capable of capturing 1080p video, which is further enhanced by the AI effects that the NPU can handle, which leaves the CPU and GPU free for handling more critical apps on your system. However, there's no wide-angle camera for Surface Laptop 6.
In select markets (US and Canada), a variant of Surface Laptop 6 will also offer an integrated smart card reader for customers in highly secure settings like government agencies to sign in without passwords.
Microsoft's latest Surface AI PCs are an exciting sign of things to come. If AI becomes as prevalent in our daily lives as the tech world in general, and Microsoft in particular, believes it will, the new Surface laptops are well-equipped to rise to the challenge.
Member discussion