Microsoft brought along minor refresh for the Surface Book, the Surface Studio, and the Surface Dial at its Surface event back in October; ignored was the product that started it all: Surface Pro.
Now, a new report from the Chinese daily Economic Daily News suggests that Microsoft might be planning to launch the Surface Pro 5 at some point in the first quarter of 2017.
Of course, it’s only a report – and thus a rumor; the report also suggests that the device will be manufactured by Pegatron – the same folks who are, once again reportedly, manufacturing the Surface Phone.
Pegatron also helped Microsoft build the Surface Studio and has manufactured the previous Surface Pro devices; it’s clearly a good partnership.
There is, however, more about that: Quanta Computers might join in with Pegatron in the manufacturing effort. If true, Pegatron perhaps can’t supply enough volume for the device; it wouldn’t be the first time a device would be manufactured by two separate Original Design Manufacturers – or ODMs, for short.
The Specs
There are very few details about the device; the report suggests that the device will have a UHD display – that’s 4K – and a “magnetic charging stylus.”
A magnetic charging stylus sounds like an odd development, but Microsoft has been quite unpredictable in recent times.
The Surface Dial, for example, wasn’t something anybody could have thought of – it’s an entirely new way to interact with a computer. A stylus that can charge while magnetically stuck on the tablet’s side? Why didn’t anybody think of that before?
Of course, that’s only what it sounds like – we don’t know if it’s anything like that.
The Creators Update
The Insider Program comes back in January; while the leaked Build 14977 showed us a bit more than Microsoft had given to the Insiders – it certainly needs a lot of work.
Microsoft gave the Creators Update an “early 2017” release window during the announcement; if the rumors are right and Surface Pro 5 is meant to show up sometime during Q1 2017, then it could align with the Creators Update.
So, perhaps, it might even include those fancy cameras that can convert real-life objects into virtual ones. Microsoft showed that at the Surface event in October, using a prototype device.
Speculation is fun, but only time will tell what Microsoft has planned for the Surface Pro lineup.
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