Surface Book is Microsoft’s latest attempt to bring the ultimate hybrid laptop to the market. While it has received a lot of praise, it has also fuelled fan anticipation regarding the next instalment, the Surface Book 2.

Even though Microsoft hasn’t revealed any details about the highly-anticipated Surface Book 2, rumours suggest that the ultimate hybrid laptop may be released sometime between March and June. It is difficult to know whether there is any truth behind the rumours, though fans have only these reports to go by. Tech experts have also stated the possibility of the device getting released alongside the Microsoft Surface Pro 5. It has already been reported that the company has slashed prices of Surface Pro 4 and Surface Book to clear its inventory.

This has commonly led everyone to believe that Microsoft is making way for the new Surface products. The Surface Book 2 could thus be released in March itself. However, this seems unlikely as the next generation Surface devices are expected to come with the Windows 10 Creators Update, expected to be released in April. The Microsoft Surface Book 2 is widely believed to come with the Intel Kaby lake chipsets. It will also come with an improved battery. It could utilise the same screen as that of the Surface Book.

However, a bump in resolution is definitely anticipated. The Surface Book 2 could be made 4K compatible. It will also be VR-ready and will come with an improved Surface Pen and graphics card, writes Channel Pro. Meanwhile, Microsoft has also launched a new Surface Book model without the discrete Nvidia graphics solution. It is essentially a fresh spin on the most-expensive variant of the convertible. It has the Core i7 processor, 1TB of storage and 16GB RAM. Due to the dropped GPU, the price has also come down to US$2,999 (AU$3,940 approx).

The original Surface Book costs US$3,199 (AU$4,200 approx). The new model was released only in the US, though it’s already out of stock, writes Tech Radar. It will be interesting to see how the new hybrid laptop is accepted by fans. Tech experts argue that the price drop is not as significant when compared to the drop in performance. Thus, it is perhaps better for fans to hold back on their urge to own a Surface Book, and wait instead for the Microsoft Surface Book 2. Stay tuned on IBT AU for more updates on Microsoft’s Surface products.

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