The Surface Laptop 4 has appeared on Microsoft support pages
Cyber Security07/04/2021

The Surface Laptop 4 has appeared on Microsoft support pages



With so much attention on the Surface 2-in-1s, it can be easy to forget how accomplished Microsoft’s traditional clamshell laptops are. The Surface Laptop line has been extremely well received since launching in 2017, providing a lightweight alternative to the high-end Surface Book. 

An update to the latter came in the form of June’s Surface Book 3, and it now looks like the next Surface Laptop is just around the corner. But with the Surface Pro 7+ exclusive to business and education customers, could we get a Surface Laptop 3+ instead? Here’s what the rumours are telling us. 

When will the next Surface Laptop be released?

The release schedule of the previous Surface Laptop generations suggested a new one would arrive before the end of 2020: the original launched in June 2017, the second generation in October 2018 and then the Surface Laptop 3 in October 2019.

However, that didn’t materialise, and now and WinFuture are suggesting April 2021 as a potential release date. Twitter user WalkingCat, who found the Surface Laptop 4 support pages detailed below, suggested Microsoft could hold an event in the week of 12 April 2021.

That’s still speculation at this stage though, with nothing confirmed by Microsoft itself. 

What will the next Surface Laptop be called?

When we first wrote this article, it felt almost certain that the Surface Laptop 4 would be the next iteration in Microsoft’s ultrabook line. 

However, much has changed since then, including the release of the company’s new Surface Pro 7+ 2-in-1. That device is exclusively available to business and education customers at launch, so there’s a chance Microsoft could go the same way with a potential Surface Laptop 3+. If this materialises, we’re far less likely to see the wholesale changes that consumers would be hoping for. 

There’s also a chance it’ll simply be called “the new Surface Laptop”, as was the case for the largely unchanged 2020 Surface Pro X.

How much will the Surface Laptop 4 cost?

Again, details are lacking in this area, so we’ll have to speculate using previous models as the example. Here are the what the base models of the last three versions cost when they were launched:

  • Surface Laptop 1 – £979/$999
  • Surface Laptop 2 – £979/$999
  • Surface Laptop 3 – £999/$999

However, there’s a chance prices will rise, especially if the next Surface Laptop adopts 4G LTE connectivity. Either way, economic uncertainty due to the coronavirus pandemic may also make prices more volatile. 

What will the Surface Laptop 4 specs be?

The biggest leak so far comes courtesy of German tech publication , which revealed a number of key specs. The site’s strong reputation means we can be fairly confident with how the Surface Laptop 4 is shaping up. Here are the key takeaways.

Microsoft will continue to offer a choice between Intel 11th-gen and AMD chips, although the latter will be available on both the 13.5in and 15in models for the first time. However, this looks set to be from the 2019’s Ryzen 4000 series and not the recently-introduced Ryzen 5000 series. These will be ‘Surface Edition’ processors, though. 

That’s all but confirmed now, after popular Twitter leaker WalkingCat spotted placeholder support pages for both Intel and AMD Laptop 4 models on the Microsoft website.

Both have since been taken down, but it only adds to the feeling that the new devices are imminent. 

Back to the report, which suggests both will stick to the increasingly popular 3:2 aspect ratio, with resolutions of 2256×1504 (13.5in) and 2496×1664 (15in) respectively. The high-end Intel model will max out at 32GB of RAM and 1TB, but AMD versions will only go up to 16GB and 512GB respectively.

from November 2020 suggested both the Laptop 4 and Surface Pro 8 had passed certification in China, although the latter turned out to be the 7+. That’s based on a tweet from user @cozyplanes, with this usually a key indicator that the devices aren’t far away. 

A subsequent from January 2021 suggests the next Surface Laptop has passed through Bluetooth certification in the United States. In the official listing details, there appears to be four new models, which could equate to two for each screen size (13.5in and 15in).

One of the few other concrete rumours so far comes courtesy of hardware leaker @TUM_APISAK, who tweeted a 3DMark score for what looks like the Surface Laptop 4:

A February 2021 reports on benchmarks featuring a ‘Microsoft Surface Edition’ of the Ryzen 5 3500U, as well as a separate Intel version. We also saw this chip in an , with both likely to be the Surface Laptop 4.

In our review of the Surface Laptop 3, we found the higher end Intel i7 outperformed its AMD Ryzen counterpart both in speed and battery life. It’ll be interesting to see if it’s the same story this time around. 

An earlier Twitter leak quoted 3DMark scores when showing the performance of a 2.7GHz Tiger Lake chip, which hadn’t been released at the time. 

Tiger Lake processors are intended to work with Project Athena objectives outlined by Intel in 2019, with the aim of providing always-on connectivity, waking from sleep in less than a second, all-day battery life, and the same performance capabilities when working from either battery power or a mains connection. High-end devices may also be eligible for the Intel Evo Platform.

Although we’re hoping for a slimming of the bezels and a potential new 14in screen size, there’s currently no evidence such a move is in Microsoft’s plans.

If you can’t wait until it comes out, check out the best laptop chart to see some great alternatives that are already available to buy. We also have a separate guide to the best Microsoft Surface. 





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