Microsoft will show what's next for Surface hardware on September 22

[nanoguy]

In brief: Windows 11 isn't ready yet, but we'll be able to see the first devices that showcase the new operating system at an online-only event later this month. In the press invite, Microsoft is hinting at a new Surface Pro X, but the star of the show could turn out to be a Surface Studio in laptop form.

Microsoft announced that it will host its next Surface event on Wednesday, September 22, where the company is expected to unveil new hardware to showcase the upcoming Windows 11 operating system.

The Redmond giant says the event will be held virtually and has already sent out press invites. Still, anyone excited about what's next for Surface and the next generation of Windows will be able to watch it on the Microsoft Events website.

As for what you can expect to see during the webcast, the image attached to the invitation suggests the company will unveil a successor for the Surface Pro X, which hasn't been updated beyond a minor chipset revision. The device was meant to showcase Windows 10 on Arm thanks to custom silicon built in collaboration with Qualcomm specifically for this form factor, but it turned out that Windows 10 runs better in a virtual machine on Apple's M1-based Macs.

Microsoft has been working on an in-house Arm-based chipset for a while, but there's been no indication it's ready to ship in a commercial product, so we're likely looking at another Snapdragon SoC. On that note, Qualcomm is readying its first Nuvia-designed chip for a 2022 reveal, and that is expected to have 40 to 50 percent more IPC performance when compared to current mobile chips from Intel and AMD.

Another device that could appear at the event is the Surface Duo 2—the second take on the company's exotic dual-screened Android phone with an underpowered chipset and a less-than-palatable price. The new device is expected to have a more capable Snapdragon 888 inside, support for NFC payments, and a much better camera to boot.

Finally, Microsoft may launch a Surface Go refresh with a more powerful Intel Core i3 processor and a thinner Surface Pro 8 with a high-refresh-rate screen. There are even rumors of a redesigned Surface Book with a non-detachable screen and a new hinge that looks almost like a portable Surface Studio.

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[Irata]

Finally, Microsoft may launch a Surface Go refresh with a more powerful Intel Core i3 processor

That makes sense - launch a small / thin and light device with a mobile CPU that scales well with high power but much less so the other way around.

That‘s not much of an issue in larger models but in a small device that would be disappointing, although chip supply could certainly be a factor here, as well.