First Details Of Microsoft Surface Pro 5 Suggest It To Be A Major Disappointment

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So far, we have not heard much about the Surface Pro 5; thus, many believed that Microsoft is busy giving it major updates and wants to keep it a hush-hush affair until it is ready. However, now there are reports that all the secrecy was for nothing, as the Surface Pro 5 may just be an iterative update over its predecessor.

Surface Pro 5 is “nothing dramatic”

Citing unnamed sources, journalist Paul Thurrott tweeted that like the Pro 4 or the Surface Book, the upcoming Pro 5 will use a proprietary charger. However, the only major upgrade will be Intel’s Kaby Lake CPU. The Surface Pro 4 – similar to the Book – comes with Intel’s last-gen Skylake chips.

“Surface Pro 5 will not change the Surface Connect power connector, I was just told,” Thurrott tweeted, adding, “Kaby Lake, nothing dramatic.”

In a follow up tweet, he suggested it “sounds like Surface Pro 4.5.”

Previously, Microsoft has said that it would ensure that the Surface Pro 3 power adapters, Type Covers and docks will be fully compatible with the Pro 4. Now with Thurrott’s comments, it seems the company aims to continue this backward-compatibility trend moving forward. So if you were expecting big changes like USB Type-C charging (standard among high-end Windows 10 devices), you may be disappointed. But this is just speculation for now, as there is no official word on this.

The only possibly good thing that can be gotten from the tweet (apart from Kaby Lake) is that the price of the Surface Pro 4 may drop considerably, provided that the company does not decide to end support for it, notes Wccftech.

No hints yet from Microsoft on the release date

Fans are eagerly waiting for the device. Initially, it was believed that the company would announce it at a press event held on October 26, 2016. As it turned out, the Surface Pro 5 made no appearance, although the Surface Studio all-in-one PC and a Surface Book refresh were announced. Next, many expected to hear about the next-gen Pro device at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January, but again, nothing came up.

Thus, both the Surface Book and Surface Pro line are already overdue for an update. They were last updated about 18 months ago. Though both devices are selling well (thanks to deals and discounts), they are also facing greater competition from rival gadgets with new features. Microsoft has already removed the Surface Pro 3 page from its U.S. store, and in the U.K., though the page still exists, it is showing out of stock. This could mean that the company is making way for the Surface Pro 5.

Thurrott has not shared any more details on the gadget, so we will have to wait for the Microsoft hardware event, which is expected in the coming weeks. Microsoft is not expected to showcase the Surface Book 2 at the event. Only last week, the company took pre-orders for the Surface Book with Performance Base in some markets, so the company could wait a while before announcing a new one.

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