We"ve known for some time that Microsoft is working on a Qualcomm-based Surface Pro, and now it"s official. It"s called the Surface Pro X, and it"s powered by a custom Microsoft SQ1 chipset, Qualcomm"s newest flagship chipset that"s custom-built for PCs. It"s meant to be comparable to an Intel Core i5.
The Surface Pro X is called that since it"s a newer form factor, and you"ll likely see next year"s Intel-based models look the same. It"s not dissimilar to what Apple did with the iPhone X, while still producing the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus.
The new Pro X has narrower bezels that we"ve ever seen on a Surface. The keyboard still magnetically attaches to the bottom bezel, but the Surface Pen, which is a special "Slim Pen" is actually stored in there, where it will recharge wirelessly. The screen is 13 inches with a resolution of 2880x1920, giving it a 267ppi pixel density.
And while most were expecting a Snapdragon 8cx chipset inside of it, Microsoft said that the Surface Pro X uses a custom chipset called the Microsoft SQ1. It"s a 7W chipset that Surface chief Panos Panay said is three times more performant, per watt, than the Surface Pro 6, which had a 15W chip. Panay said it has nine teraops of computational power, and the GPU pushes two teraflops.
And of course, an ARM PC is all about battery life, portability, and connectivity. It supports 4G LTE Advanced, and it only weighs 1.68 pounds at 5.3mm thin.
You can pre-order it starting today, and it will be available on November 5 starting at $999.