Microsoft introduces Surface Pro 9 with Intel or Arm soc
Microsoft has announced the Surface Pro 9, a 2-in-1 that is also available with Arm-soc for the first time. Previously, only the Surface Pro X with Arm-soc was for sale, but Microsoft is merging that model with the numbered Pro line. Inside the Pro 9 is a modified Qualcomm soc.
The SQ3 soc is according to Windows Central a modified Qualcomm Snapdragon 8xc Gen 3 and comes with 5G support. For that 5G support, there is a nano SIM card and an e-SIM. In addition, the SQ3 has an npu, or neural processing unit, which should enable additional AI functions at the camera and microphones to, for example, blur the background or make the voice sound clearer.
The Arm version has further a longer battery life with up to 19 hours instead of 15.5 hours of the Intel version. This SQ3 variant can be specified with less storage and memory than the Intel version. The SQ3 variant gets 8 or 16GB Lpddr4x memory and 128 to 512GB storage. The Intel version gets 128GB to 1TB storage and 8 to 32GB Lpddr5 memory.
Microsoft supplies the Intel-Surface Pro 9 with a Core i5-1235U or Core i7-1255U, both of the Alder Lake generation. The GPU is always an Intel Iris Xe copy. The Intel version does not get an npu and therefore lacks the AI functions. This version will also not get a 5G modem.
Other than that, the two versions are largely the same. They both have a 13″ screen with a resolution of 2880×1920 pixels and an aspect ratio of 3:2. The dynamic refresh rate goes up to 120Hz and there are two 2W speakers. The tablets support Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.1 and have a 1080p front camera and a 10-megapixel sensor on the rear Both models have two USB 3.2 ports, the Intel version supports Thunderbolt 4.
The two versions have the same housing and are 287×208.3×9.4mm in size. Both models also weigh around 880 grams. The Arm version is only available in platinum, the Intel version also in sapphire, forest green and graphite. The SQ3 version costs 1299 euros and is available from November 8. The variant with Core i5 costs at least 1639 euros, the i7 version is available from 2189 euros.