Microsoft has announced the updated Surface Book i7 laptop, which the company says is twice as powerful as the current top-end MacBook Pro model.
The name derives from the presence of the Intel Core i7 processors on board, but it’s last year’s Skylake processor rather than the forthcoming 7th-generation Kaby Lake.
Although not an official Surface Book 2 (which will probably arrive next Spring) Microsoft says the i7 is twice as powerful as last year’s original edition.
The 10-point multi-touch hybrid laptop, famed for its fulcrum hinge design, boasts a GPU that’s twice as powerful as the first Surface Book.
There’s 30 per cent longer battery life than the 2015 Surface Book, with Microsoft promising 16 hours.
Microsoft sticks with the 13.5-inch PixelSense display, which has 6 million pixels (3000 x 2000/267 PPI), a higher resolution than the 13-inch MacBook Pro.
Naturally, the Surface Pen comes as standard.
The new Surface Book is out next month on the 10th November, but it’s already up for pre-order on the Microsoft Store.
The Surface Book with Performance Base laptop starts at a rather substantial $2,399 (256GB / Intel Core i7 - 8GB / dGPU) right up to $3,299 for a 1TB HD. That's around £1,962/£2,700 in worthless Brexit money.
The price is also a substantial leap on the original, which is now available for as little as $1,349.
Your move, Apple.
