Microsoft has announced the Surface Laptop Studio 2 rocking vastly upgraded internal hardware to deliver a welcome performance uptick in a likeable convertible form factor.
Whereas the first generation was often described as underpowered, Surface Laptop Studio 2 packs up to an Intel Core i7-13700H built, dedicated AI acceleration through an Intel Gen3 Movidius 3700VC NPU, alongside a choice of RTX 4050 6GB or RTX 4060 8GB graphics, all configured for 80W maximum power. Microsoft claims double the CPU and GPU performance compared to the original Surface Laptop Studio.
Dimensions remain familiar at 323mm (L) x 230mm (W) x 22mm (H) and Laptop Studio 2 weighs between 1.89kg and 1.98kg depending on GPU. The system carries a 58Wh battery rated for up to 19 hours of typical IGP use and comes with Windows 11 Home pre-installed.
Microsoft also offers a choice between 16GB, 32GB, or 64GB of LPDDR5X memory, plus 512GB, 1TB or 2TB of Gen 4 SSD storage. Note that the 2TB SSD seems to be available exclusively from Microsoft’s US store and is currently marked as out of stock. Unfortunately, Microsoft states these devices do not contain user-serviceable parts, even the hard drive (SSD) is only removable by an authorised technician.
For the display, Microsoft retains a 14.4in PixelSense 10-point touchscreen, boasting a 2400×1600 resolution (200 PPI) and offering 120Hz refresh rate, 1500:1 contrast, and DisplayHDR 400 certification, protected by Gorilla Glass 5. The screen can be positioned in three modes, laptop, tablet, and a hybrid between both.
I/O is bolstered with two USB 4 Type-C / Thunderbolt 4 with DisplayPort alt mode and power delivery, one USB 3.1 Type-A, a microSD card reader, a 3.5mm audio jack, and the Surface Connect port. Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 are present, and so is a quad Omnisonic speaker set with Dolby Atmos. Lastly, the 1080p webcam supports Windows Hello face recognition, automatic framing, background blur, and eye contact.
The Surface Laptop Studio 2 will be available on October 3, starting at £2,069 / €2,239 / $1,999 for an i7-13700H with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. Pricing can reach up to £3,669 / €4,159 / $3,599 for an i7-13700H with 32GB of RAM and pro-level RTX 2000 Ada graphics.
