In February, Microsoft increased the price of its Surface devices in the UK, raising the cost of its Surface Book by up to £400, in response to currency fluctuations, following the country"s Brexit referendum decision to leave the European Union. In practice, Microsoft has been running almost continuous "special offers" to bring their prices back down, sometimes also throwing in added freebies.
For the last few weeks, Microsoft has been offering up to £665 off its Surface Book i7 models, along with a free pair of Bowers & Wilkins headphones worth £119.99. It"s also currently offering £150 off the most affordable Surface Book in its range, cutting its price from £1,449 to £1,299 until the end of the month.
But UK department store John Lewis has gone even further in reducing the price of the entry-level Surface Book, which has a sixth-generation Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage, but lacks the discrete GPU available on other models in the range. That device is now available for £1,229 - that"s £220 below its full price, and £70 less than the Microsoft Store"s current discounted price.
Additionally, John Lewis is including a free two-year guarantee with the device, and buyers can also add two years of accidental damage cover for an extra £75.
Meanwhile, Microsoft is preparing to announce a "refreshed" version of its Surface Pro 4 tablet, images of which leaked this week. The updated device - which is expected to be known simply as the "Surface Pro" - appears virtually identical to the current model, but will feature some upgraded specs, including Intel"s latest seventh-generation Kaby Lake processors.
Having recently launched its upgraded Surface Book with Performance Base models in 13 new markets a few weeks ago, an all-new Surface Book is unlikely to be announced anytime soon.
Source: John Lewis