Teardown Reveals Surface Studio Doesn’t Have Upgradable Processor and RAM
The iFixit teardown of the Microsoft Surface Studio, the company’s first desktop ever, reveals, among other things, that the processor and working memory are not upgradeable, but the sata-300-hdd and m.2-ssd are.
The soldered working memory and processor are drawbacks in an otherwise very modular device, according to iFixit, according to the editors of the repair website. Where the Apple competitor of the Surface Studio, the iMac, has to lose all its parts in the screen, Microsoft’s new all-in-one desktop also has space in the foot. This is therefore used to accommodate some of the components.
In the foot, iFixit finds a fan for the CPU and one for the GPU, both connected to an extensive system of radiators and heat pipes. The psu also has its own fan. In addition, both the SSD and the HDD are located here. The m.2 SSD should be easy to replace. IFixit has the 64GB version and reports that this SSD has two 32GB flash modules with room for two more. In theory, this SSD could be delivered with a capacity of 128GB. The hdd has a sata-300 connection, so there may be performance gains to be made by replacing it with a sata-600 drive. Furthermore, the motherboard with soldered ram and cpu can be found here. These parts vary.
Although the foot can be taken apart without any real force, it is a bit more challenging with the display. It is glued shut and the glue must be heated and then carefully loosened. IFixit says this has been harder at times, but also easier. The screen is also secured with screws on the back, hidden behind the hinge. However, these come off easily, which also means that replacing the entire display will not be difficult. Behind the screen is also an ARM Cortex M7-32bits processor and other secondary parts, including the chips for wireless communication and the USB 3.1 controller.
IFixit notes that the hinge itself has a considerable weight. The pictures also show that this part consists of several large springs and counterweights that make it very easy to tilt the heavy screen. iFixit does not mention exactly how heavy the screen is, but the whole weighs almost 10 kilograms. “The hinge is clearly the crown jewel of Microsoft’s engineering skills,” said iFixit.