The next iteration of Microsoft's Surface Pro "laplet" is believed to arrive as early as June, or take a little more time to debut in October. Dubbed to be the Surface Pro 5, the alleged device continues to tour the Internet grapevine despite absence of official word from the Redmond, Washington tech giant.
Followers would know that the Surface Pro 4 and Surface Book are both announced in October 2015. It must be noted, however, that earlier slates (such as Surface Pros 2 and 3) have launched in the first half of the year.
The Surface Pro 5 is expected to sport a 4K Ultra High Definition display, packing a resolution of at least 3,840 pixels wide. This is a definite jump from its predecessor which is already stunning at 2,736 x 1,824, the Daily Express notes. The latest, 12.3-inch convertible takes pride in its PixelSense technology, which matches high-contrast and low-glare visuals to come up with a "picture rivaling real life."
Under the hood, the rumored laplet is pegged to house Intel's new processor, which goes under the codename Kaby Lake. According to CNET, the Skylake successor is not expected to arrive until late 2016 at the earliest. If reports are to be believed, this could lead to a Surface Pro 5 launch set early in 2017.
The Surface Pro 4 uses Core m3, Core i5 or Core i7 Skylake processors and a full-size USB 3.0 port. Kaby Lake, a 14nm chip, is expected to come with support for USB 3.1, so it would be interesting if Microsoft adopts it for the upcoming slate.
Because it is the Surface Pro, there are also speculations over the stylus. The latest model impressed many when it came out with a more stylish and efficient Surface Pen, a clear upgrade from that of the Surface Pro 3. As for the anticipated Surface Pro 5, word has it that it may launch with a rechargeable stylus and dock. This comes from a patent unearthed by Patently Mobile in January, which states, "As a stylus may be easily misplaced due to the typical size and shape of the stylus, the stylus charger may take the form of a dock that holds the stylus in a particular location during charging and/or while the stylus is not being used."
For reference, the Surface Pro 4 comes with as much as 16GB of RAM, 1TB SSD, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0 and weighs at least 766g. It starts from $899, which is also the touted selling point of its successor.
