It’s been ten years since the original Microsoft Surface debuted and showed the world that a Windows tablet was possible. It’s since been supplanted by the Surface Pro lineup, and the Redmond giant has just revealed the latest flagship tablet of theirs, the Microsoft Surface Pro 9 series.
The biggest shake-up here is that the Surface Pro 9 now offers both a regular Intel-powered version as well as one with an ARM-powered processor, dubbed the Surface Pro 9 with 5G. The latter is seen as a successor to the previous Surface Pro X series with also had ARM processors under the hood. This time, the Surface Pro 9 with 5G will feature the Microsoft SQ 3 processor, which is more or less a custom version of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 system-on-chip. There’s also an additional neural processor mated with the Microsoft SQ 3 chip, offering some additional features such as enhanced real-time video conferencing background blurring.
Meanwhile, the regular Surface Pro 9 will come with your choice between the 12th Gen Intel Core i5-1235U or the Intel Core i7-1255U. They will come with up to 32GB of LPDDR5 RAM and up to a 1TB SSD, while the Surface Pro 9 with 5G will come with up to 16GB of LPDDR4X RAM and up to a 512GB SSD. Just to be clear though, despite the differences under the hood, both the Intel and the SQ 3 versions of the Surface Pro 9 will be using the exact same chassis built of aluminum and measuring 9.3mm thick, as well as weighing just 879g and 883g respectively.
As for the display, Microsoft has equipped the Surface Pro 9 lineup with a 13-inch, 2880 x 1920p PixelSense Flow display in its now iconic 3:2 aspect ratio. It offers 10-point multitouch support, adaptive colour, a contrast ratio of 1200:1 and has a layer of Corning Gorilla Glass 5 over it too for scratch resistance. The Intel-powered Surface Pro 9 will also feature a dynamic refresh rate of up to 120Hz. You’ll also be able to use the Surface Slim Pen 2 stylus with it, along with the Surface Pro keyboard that you tack on via a pogo pin. And as usual, there’s the kickstand behind the device to prop up the display too.
Other features of note include an up to 15.5 hours of battery life on the Surface Pro 9, with the more efficient ARM processor able to drive the Surface Pro 9 with 5G up to 19 hours of use. There’s also Windows Hello authentication using the front-facing FHD webcam, with an additional 10MP camera on the rear. The Surface Pro 9 lineup packs a pair of 2W stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos too, along with a dual far field studio microphone setup and support for WiFi 6E and Bluetooth 5.1; the Surface Pro 9 with 5G also supports 5G of course. As for I/O, they both have the Surface Connect port for charging, with the Surface Pro 9 getting two USB-C 4.0 ports while the Surface Pro 9 with 5G has two USB-C 3.2 ports and a SIM card slot.
The Surface Pro 9 will come in Forest, Platinum, Sapphire and Graphite colourways, with the Surface Pro 9 only available in Platinum. There will also be a special edition Surface Pro keyboard that comes in a vibrant blue floral design inspired by Windows 11 Bloom. Designed by the London design house Liberty, it will only be available in select markets while supplies last. There’s no word just yet on local availability and pricing, but we do know that in the US, the Surface Pro 9 will start at USD999.99 (~RM4,691.45) while the Surface Pro 9 with 5G will start at USD1,299.99 (~RM6,098.90).
