Microsoft has just announced the successor to its popular 2-in-1 device, the Surface Book. Called the Surface Book 2, the new iteration offers users desktop class processing power, the flexibility of a tablet, and the mobility of a laptop all in one device.
Photo: Microsoft
The Surface Book 2 comes in 2 screen sizes: a 13.5-inch and 15-inch variant at 3000 x 2000 and 3240 x 2160 pixels respectively. Both come with multi-touch, and support for Surface Pen and Surface Dial.
Photo: Microsoft
It also comes with 2 USB 3.1 ports, a USB Type C Port, a 3.5mm headphone jack, a card reader, and 2 Surface Connect Ports.
Photo: Microsoft
The 13.5-inch variant is powered by either a 7th Gen i5-7300U or an 8th Gen i7-8650U processor, along with 8GB/16GB of RAM, while the 15-inch variant also houses the same i7 Processor coupled with 16GB of RAM. Storage options can go from a 256GB to a 1TB SSD.
Where these devices shine even more however, is in the graphics department. The inclusion of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 and 1060 discrete GPUs ensure that the Surface Book 2 is capable of 1080p gaming, and is VR Ready.
For imaging, both the 5MP front camera and the 8MP rear camera are capable of 1080p Full HD video recording. The front camera in particular, is also equipped with infrared capability for Windows Hello, which lets you sign in to your device via facial recognition.
Other features include front-facing stereo speakers with Dolby Audio Premium, Dual Mics, and Dolby Atmos for Headphones.
The Surface Book 2 is priced starting at $1,999 for the 13.5-inch variant with 8GB/256GB of RAM and storage, along with a GTX 1050 GPU. The 15-inch variant is priced starting at $2,499 for 16GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, and a GTX 1060 6GB GPU.
Microsoft Surface Book 2 Specs:
- Intel Core i5-7300U dual-core processor/ Intel Core i7-8650U quad-core processor
- 8GB/16GB of LPDDR3 1866MHz RAM (13.5-inches), 16GB of RAM (15-inches)
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 with 2GB GDDR5 VRAM/NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 with 6GB of GDDR5 VRAM
- 13.5-inch PixelSense Display (3000 x 2000), 15-inch PixelSense Display (3240 x 2160)
- 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB SSD
- 8MP Rear Camera
- 5MP Front Camera
- Dual Microphones, Dual Front-Firing Speakers with Dolby Audio Premium
- Dolby Audio for Headphones
- Windows 10 Pro Creators Update 64 bit
- Ports: 2 x USB 3.1 Ports, 1 x USB-C, 1 x 3.5mm Headphone Jack, 2 x Surface Connect Ports, Card Reader.
Emman has been writing technical and feature articles since 2010. Prior to this, he became one of the instructors at Asia Pacific College in 2008, and eventually landed a job as Business Analyst and Technical Writer at Integrated Open Source Solutions for almost 3 years.
