What you need to know
- Microsoft's new Surface Pro 11th Edition and Surface Laptop 7th Edition devices are available to preorder now, and are expected to begin shipping in June.
- Both Surfaces are "Copilot+" PCs, and feature Qualcomm's new Snapdragon X Plus and Elite chips that offer major performance boost over other system-on-a-chips (SoCs). Their NPUs also power a number of special AI features and enhancements.
- Some of these include visual and contextual awareness for Microsoft Copilot, a special feature called Windows Recall that can help you find something you've looked at on your PC previously based on searches and clues you provide, and a tool called Live Captions that transcribes and translates audio into text in real time.
- Both the convertible 2-in-1 Surface Pro 11th Edition and clamshell Surface Laptop 7th Edition have a starting price of $999.99, with the former getting an OLED option for the first time and the latter sporting an overhauled design with thinner bezels and a 120Hz Adaptive color PixelSense display.
The age of powerful AI-powered Windows PCs is dawning, and it's being ushered in by two new devices Microsoft announced during the Microsoft Event 2024 on Monday: the convertible 2-in-1 Surface Pro 11th Edition and the clamshell Surface Laptop 7th Edition. Both devices have been officially designated as "Copilot+" PCs, and they're now available to preorder from the Microsoft Store.
Both new Surfaces are powered by Qualcomm's new Snapdragon X Plus and Elite chips that offer significant performance improvements over the best of what Intel has on the laptop market today, cementing Windows on Arm as the tip of the spear for Microsoft's next-gen design efforts. Additionally, the devices have several advanced AI features designed to enhance productivity and assist users in a variety of valuable ways. Some of these include:
- Improvements for Microsoft Copilot to make it visually and contextually aware, and able to be used for help in things like video games
- Recall, which uses AI to help you find something you've previously viewed on your PC and its applications based on what you're able to remember and what you search
- Cocreator, which helps you make the image you're trying to create in Paint based on markings you make and words you use to describe the image
- Live Captions, a tool that transcribes and translates audio into on-screen English captions in real time
The Neural Processing Unit (NPU) in these devices also powers and accelerates AI features found in creativity and productivity apps, making them faster and more efficient. In DaVinci Resolve, for example, the NPU boosts Magic Masks and makes it easy to add special visual effects while editing. It also improves the responsiveness of adaptive input controls in the accessibility software Cephable and allows you to instantly cut backgrounds from videos in CapCut with its Auto Cutout option.
The Surface Pro 11th Edition starts at $999.99, with the option for an OLED display available; notably, this is the first Surface Pro from Microsoft with OLED availability. The Surface Laptop 7th Edition also starts at the same price, and is available in 13.8 or 15-inch sizes. It also sports an overhauled design, complete with thinner bezels and a 120Hz HDR Adaptive color PixelSense display.
Both Surfaces can be configured with either the Snapdragon X Plus or Elite and up to a 1TB SSD, with options for up to 32GB with the Surface Pro and up to 64GB with the Surface Laptop. Additionally, both have four colorways available: Platinum, Black, Dune and Sapphire. Currently, preorders are available from the Microsoft Store, which you'll find in the links below. Starting June 18, they'll be purchasable from "key retailers worldwide."
