Panos Panay, corporate vice president for Surface Computing at Microsoft Corp, unveils the new Microsoft Surface Pro 3 in New York May 20, 2014.
Panos Panay, corporate vice president for Surface Computing at Microsoft Corp, unveils the new Microsoft Surface Pro 3 in New York May 20, 2014. Reuters/Brendan McDermid

Speculations indicate that Microsoft would unveil the next iteration of its popular Surface Pro 4 in July 2016. The new Surface Pro 5 may also be accompanied by the next generation of Surface Book.

At the same time, Apple is also rumoured to bring in its new MacBook Pro 2016 models in June. However, the Redmond-based tech giant has not yet announced the official release date of Surface Pro 5 and Surface Book 2.

Here’s an attempt to pen down 5 most rumoured features of the Microsoft Surface Pro 5:

1. 4K Display screen

According to prevailing rumours, Microsoft will introduce 4K display resolution with the new Surface Pro 5 lineup. This will result in a stunning resolution of 3840 X 2160 pixels. The Surface Pro 4 features a 12.3-inch display with a screen resolution of 2736×1824 pixels.

2. Onboard Fingerprint scanner

The new generation of Surface Pro tablet will house a fingerprint scanner onboard, as reported by the Bitbag. The current generation of Surface Pro 4 accompanies a Type Cover with fingerprint sensor, which has to be purchased separately.

Related: Microsoft Surface Phone release date: Device may house a new processor

3. Latest Intel chipset

Intel’s 7th generation of Kaby Lake processor might make its way to the Microsoft Surface Pro 5. The latest Skylake processors power the current Surface Pro 4 lineup.

The new Kaby Lake processor is believed to enhance the battery life of the laptop-hybrid device.

4. Rechargeable Surface Pen

Schematic drawings appearing on a patent application published by the US Patent and Trademark Office revealed that Microsoft is working on a rechargeable Surface Pen and Surface Dock.

“A charging circuit within the stylus may provide charging current for recharging the battery,” reads the patent application, first spotted by Patently Mobile.

5. Longer battery life

For long, the current Surface Pro 4 has been facing negative reviews as far as the battery life is concerned. According to Trusted Reviews, the battery life of the Surface Pro 4 drops significantly with demanding tasks like streaming videos on Netflix as compared to other Android tablets.

Microsoft is expected to equip the new generation of Surface Pro with an improved battery unit placing it at par with Apple’s iPad Pro.

Also read: Surface Phone price, release date reports: Top variant estimated at US$1099, year 2017

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