An attendee wearing Google glass uses the new Microsoft Surface Pro 3
An attendee wearing Google glass uses the new Microsoft Surface Pro 3, during the event in New York May 20, 2014 Reuters/Brendan McDermid

The Microsoft Surface Pro 3 that was released in June is still immensely popular and it pits well against newer competitors like the Dell XPS 13 and the 12-inch MacBook Air. However, it is due for to get replaced a more competitive. PC World claims that the Redmond giant may release an upgraded version of the Surface Pro 3 running on an ultra power efficient processor and finally release the Surface Pro 4 when the Windows 10 is unleashed in the market.

The upgraded Surface Pro 3 is likely to feature a 14 nm Broadwell chip from Intel. It will replace the 22-nm Haswell chip that is present on the current Surface Pro 3. This is an indication that Microsoft may release the upgraded SP3 with minor updates.

The current Surface Pro 3 is an outstanding performer but its performance like other mobile is marred with battery performance issues. PC World’s battery life test on the Surface Pro 3 showed that the device could last around 4 hours. The Intel Core M Broadwell chip when compared to the Haswell Core i5 chip can produce an additional battery performance of 1.7 hours.

The inclusion of Broadwell chip offer 19 percent better office productivity and the performance of web application will become 12 percent faster. The support for 3D graphics will improve by 47 percent and video conversion speed is expected to become quicker by 82 percent.

Intel’s all new Skylake processor is the successor of the Broadwell chip and is expected to arrive in the second half of this year, states the International Business Times report. According to the PC World, the Skylake chips require new and compatible motherboards to function. Hence, in order to include the Skylake processor, Microsoft will have to construct a new generation Surface slate.

The Skylake processor is expected with inbuilt LTE support, replace Ethernet connectivity with Wi-Fi 802.11ac and eliminate the use of power cords by introducing wireless charging. Another killer feature of the Surface Pro 4 will be arrival of a depth camera that can identity user through sight and sound. Lastly, it may also feature a stylus.

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