Microsoft is expected to launch the Surface Pro 8 sometime early next year and images of the device have already been making the rounds. The Redmond firm is expected to mildly refresh the Pro series offering with new processors. The leaked images suggest that there will be no major design tweaks to both the Pro 8 and the Laptop 4.
Now, the folks over at WinFuture have received more information about the possible storage and RAM configurations that the devices will be offered in, including for the rumored LTE variant that is supposedly set to be offered alongside the Wi-Fi-only models.
The Pro 8 is expected to be powered by Intel’s 11th-gen Tiger Lake chips with Iris Xe graphics, which today’s report corroborates. While the entry-level SKUs are expected to be offered with an 11th-gen Core i5 chip with 8GB of RAM, the top-spec model might be offered with a Core i7-1165G7 and 32GB RAM – a first for the Pro series devices –, and 1TB of SSD storage, similar to the model spotted for sale on eBay.
The LTE version, however, might only be offered with a Core i5 chip and with up to eight or 16GB of RAM. The LTE variant might also not be offered in black, making it available only in the traditional platinum color, the report adds. There is no word on what the prices for the LTE variants will be.
The exclusivity of 4G LTE to the Core i5 model was first seen in the fifth-generation Surface Pro"s cellular variant. Microsoft made the Core i5 configuration fanless, so it put the Snapdragon X16 modem where the fan would have been. If there is indeed no cellular option for the Core i7 models, it could hint at another fanless design for the Core i5 configuration.
Here are the expected configuration details as per the source, at least in the European markets:
| Processor | RAM | Storage |
|---|---|---|
| 11th-gen Intel Core i5 (LTE and Wi-FI-only models) | 8GB | 128GB |
| 256GB | ||
| 16GB | 256GB | |
| 11th-gen Intel Core i7 (Wi-Fi only) | 16GB | 256GB |
| 512GB | ||
| 1TB | ||
| 32GB | 1TB |
Both the Surface Pro 8 and the Laptop 4 are expected to be unveiled early next year without much fanfare. There are murmurs of a possible black version of the Surface Go 2 making its debut. The firm also announced yesterday that it will be launching the Duo in four new markets, so more details about the availability of that device can also be expected early next year.
Source: WinFuture