The Microsoft Surface Event is over, and anyone hoping to see the Surface Laptop 6 will be disappointed - it's nowhere to be seen, with Microsoft instead revealing a slender lineup of two new devices, the Surface Laptop Go 3 and Surface Laptop Studio 2.
A great deal of the event was instead focused (a bit confusingly for a Surface-themed event) on Microsoft's machine learning efforts in Windows 11, most prominently the new Copilot AI assistant.
Earlier in 2023, there were some rumors about a reported two Surface Laptop 6 models as well as possible specs. The wellspring of information dried up after May, however, and we haven't heard a peep since. This is odd, considering that Microsoft usually has an annual release of the laptop, with the exception of 2020.
But there's still a chance that we could see the refresh before the end of 2023. And if that last report from May holds true, we could be looking at a laptop that could even challenge the 15-inch MacBook Air, which is a successor to what's considered one of the best MacBooks and even one of the best laptops on the market.
Now that it's over, you can see our blow-by-blow of the event by checking out our Microsoft Surface Event 2023 liveblog.
Microsoft Surface Laptop 6: cut to the chase
- What is it? The next Microsoft Surface Laptop device
- When is it out? Possibly Q3 or Q4 2023
- What will it cost? May sit at a higher price point than its predecessor
Microsoft Surface Laptop 6: Price and release date
Since the Surface Event will take place on September 21, 2023, we can expect the Surface Laptop 6 to make its debut later in 2023. The price is a bit easier to predict, as it's always been at the same $999 starting price point for every release, and there's no reason for Microsoft to deviate now.
The pricing for the higher-spec models is a bit more difficult to pin down. Last year, the 15-inch model was $1,399 with a jump to $2,499 for the 32GB RAM and 1TB of storage. A bit steep considering the GPU was the standard mobile Intel one and not a proper gaming GPU.
There haven't been any reports or rumors on the pricing so we'll see what Microsoft has cooked up for the event.
Microsoft Surface Laptop 6: Design
We can't imagine Microsoft changing much of the design between the Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 and Surface Laptop 6, especially since there has been barely any information on what the refresh could look like. We do have something to go by, thanks to the Wccftech report from May 2023.
There should be 13.5-inch and 15-inch models for the laptop, with the smaller model having four colors to choose from: Platinum with an Alcantara palm rest, Matte Black with a metal palm rest, Emerald Brown with a metal palm rest, and Sandstone with a metal palm rest. The 15-inch, however, only offers two: Platinum with a metal palm rest and Matte Black with a metal palm rest.
As for port selection, a USB-C Thunderbolt 4 port, two USB-A 3.1 ports, a 3.5mm audio jack, and of course the Surface Connect port are expected.
It seems that those who may have wanted a shakeup will be disappointed, as Microsoft seems to have found a classic design it wants to stick with. Hopefully, the bezels will be a little thinner for this model at least, since Microsoft is clearly trying to compete with Apple's MacBook Air, which already ditched the thick bezels.
Microsoft Surface Laptop 6: Specs and performance
The report from Wccftech back in May 2023 revealed plenty of possible specs for the Surface Laptop 6. According to the website, there should be two models, one with a 13.5-inch display and 2256 x 1504 resolution and the other a 15-inch model with 2496 x 1664 resolution.
The CPU options are rumored to be the Intel Core i5-1335U and the Core i7-1355U. The 13.5-inch can be configured with both options, while the 15-inch may only feature the more powerful i7 chip.
The 13.5-inch Surface Laptop 6 is reported to last for an hour longer than the 15-inch model. If true, this means that the former could possibly run for a massive 21 hours at best, though that claim would have to be thoroughly tested first.
Other specs revealed include 8GB, 16GB, and 32GB LPDDR5X RAM configurations, though unfortunately they cannot be user-upgraded. The SSD, however, which is offered in both 256GB and up to 512GB, can be upgraded.
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