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      Microsoft debuts major Surface overhauls that regular people can’t buy

      news.movim.eu / ArsTechnica · Thursday, 21 March - 16:00

    Microsoft is debuting major updates to two of its Surface PCs today: both the Surface Pro 10 and the 13.5- and 15-inch Surface Laptop 6 are major internal upgrades to Microsoft's mainstream Surface devices. Both were last updated nearly a year and a half ago , and they're both getting new Intel chips with significantly faster integrated GPUs, upgraded webcams, the Copilot key , and better battery life (according to Microsoft's spec sheets).

    The catch is that both of these Surfaces are being sold exclusively to businesses and commercial customers; as of this writing, regular people will not be able to buy one directly from Microsoft, and they won't show up in most retail stores.

    These aren't the first Surface products released exclusively for businesses. Microsoft introduced a new business-exclusive Surface Go 3 tablet last fall, and a Surface Pro 7+ variant for businesses in early 2021. It is, however, the first time Microsoft has introduced new versions of its flagship tablet and laptop without also making them available to consumers. You can find some of these business-only PCs for sale at some third-party retailers , but usually with extended shipping times and higher prices than consumer systems.

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      Microsoft overhauls its pricey Surface Laptop Studio with new CPU, GPU, and RAM

      news.movim.eu / ArsTechnica · Thursday, 21 September, 2023 - 17:07 · 1 minute

    The Surface Laptop Studio 2.

    Enlarge / The Surface Laptop Studio 2. (credit: Andrew Cunningham)

    NEW YORK—Two years after announcing the original, Microsoft has announced a much-needed refresh of the Surface Laptop Studio , the company's convertible touchscreen laptop that also serves as its most powerful notebook for people playing games or doing any kind of 3D rendering or GPU-accelerated AI work. The new Laptop Studio 2 will start at $1,999.99 and is available for preorder now; it will ship on October 3.

    Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio 2

    (Ars Technica may earn compensation for sales from links on this post through affiliate programs .)

    The Laptop Studio 2 is a substantial internal overhaul, swapping out a quad-core 11th-generation Intel Core CPU and a GeForce 3050 Ti for a 13th-generation CPU and GeForce RTX 4050 and 4060 options (with an RTX 2000 also available for people who need a "pro" GPU). Microsoft continues to refresh Surface devices toward the end of Intel's product cycles, and next-generation Meteor Lake Core processors should be coming soon, but this is still a welcome upgrade over the old model. It's also the first x86 Surface that Microsoft sells with an NPU for accelerating AI and machine learning workloads, specifically an Intel Gen 3 Intel Movidius 3700VC .

    Unfortunately, the base $2,000 version gets you very few of those perks. It includes an i7-13700H with six P-cores, eight E-cores, and 16GB of RAM, but it only comes with integrated graphics and a 512GB SSD.

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      Microsoft is selling screens, batteries, SSDs, and more for DIY Surface repairs

      news.movim.eu / ArsTechnica · Wednesday, 14 June, 2023 - 19:44

    The Surface Pro 8's replaceable SSD.

    Enlarge / The Surface Pro 8's replaceable SSD. (credit: Andrew Cunningham)

    Microsoft offers first-party service manuals for several generations' worth of Surface hardware, in keeping with a commitment to improve its repairability and sustainability efforts. Today, Microsoft is taking the next step , listing dozens of replacement parts for Surface tablets, laptops, and all-in-ones on the Microsoft Store.

    The screens, kickstands, batteries, keyboards, camera modules, and other odds and ends are available for the Surface Pro 8, 9, and X; Surface Laptops 2 through 5 plus the Go 2 and the Studio; and the Studio and Studio 2+ all-in-one desktops. Most of the major components are pretty expensive—the display for a Surface Studio 2+ is $1,750 all by itself—but they're cheaper than buying a new device, you won't have to pay for labor costs, and you can be sure you're getting genuine first-party components.

    "When purchasing a replacement component, you will receive the part and relevant collateral components (such as screws if applicable)," wrote Microsoft VP Tim McGuiggan. "Tools needed for the repair are sold separately through iFixit. It is essential to follow the instructions in the applicable Microsoft Service Guide or article."

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      C’est la fin pour les périphériques Microsoft classiques

      news.movim.eu / JournalDuGeek · Monday, 1 May, 2023 - 15:00

    microsoft-surface-pro-9-test-12-158x105.jpg

    Changement d'époque. Microsoft arrête la production de ses périphériques PC classiques pour se concentrer sur sa gamme Surface, y compris les claviers, les souris et les webcams. Un changement qui intervient alors que les résultats financiers du premier trimestre montrent une baisse des revenus des dispositifs et des ventes de licences de Windows.

    C’est la fin pour les périphériques Microsoft classiques

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      Microsoft-branded mice and keyboards are going away after 40 years

      news.movim.eu / ArsTechnica · Friday, 28 April, 2023 - 16:42

    Microsoft's "green-eye" mouse, the first Microsoft-branded mouse the company sold.

    Enlarge / Microsoft's "green-eye" mouse, the first Microsoft-branded mouse the company sold. (credit: Microsoft )

    If I asked you to name Microsoft's best-known and longest-lived product, you'd almost certainly say "Windows." But another one of the company's products has been on the market for even longer: its mice.

    Microsoft started selling its first computer mice in 1983 , a year or two before the Macintosh and other computers made pointing devices standard-issue and two years before the first version of Windows was released. The Microsoft Natural Keyboard followed in 1994 . Since then, the company has offered a range of Microsoft-branded PC accessories, from successful ones like the Microsoft Ergonomic Keyboard to short-lived experiments like Microsoft SideWinder gamepads and joysticks .

    Microsoft-made mice and keyboards aren't going away, but the Microsoft brand name is. The company told The Verge that it will stop selling Microsoft-branded keyboards, mice, and other accessories following a series of layoffs that affected its hardware division. The company will refocus its efforts on higher-end Surface-branded keyboards and mice, which represent just a tiny fraction of all the accessories Microsoft currently sells .

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      Dealmaster: Microsoft’s Surface laptops and tablets are on sale today

      news.movim.eu / ArsTechnica · Tuesday, 7 March, 2023 - 00:41 · 1 minute

    Microsoft's Surface Pro 9.

    Enlarge / Microsoft's Surface Pro 9. (credit: Andrew Cunningham)

    If you're in the market for a Microsoft Surface computer or tablet, now's a good time to grab some deals on the lineup.

    Microsoft Surface Pro 9 13-inch tablet PC with keyboard cover for $900 ( $1,080 ) at Best Buy

    The Surface Pro 9 is the best tablet-laptop on the market. It succeeds in mixing the best of the tablet and laptop experience, being a tablet PC that runs Windows 11, uses a backlit detachable keyboard cover, and is optimized for use with a digital pen (the Surface Pen). It's lightweight and has a smaller footprint than most 2-in-1 laptops while packing enough power to edit media and handle light gaming at higher configurations.

    The entry-level Surface Pro 9 (Intel Core i5, 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD) is currently on sale for $900 at Best Buy, down from $1,000, and it comes with a free Surface Keyboard cover which typically runs you an extra $180. That's $300 less than the entry point for Apple's 12.9-inch iPad Pro , which can't run full programs (only apps) and doesn't include its separately sold Magic Keyboard, which costs $350. This 13-inch Surface Pro model has an Intel i5 processor, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB storage, which is great for those who simply want a device to edit documents and surf the web without sacrificing the ability to use full programs.

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      Surface Studio 2+ : Le PC tout-en-un de Microsoft revient plus puissant que jamais

      news.movim.eu / JournalDuGeek · Wednesday, 12 October, 2022 - 14:18

    studio1-158x105.jpg

    Le tout-en-un de Microsoft s'offre une mise à niveau significative qui devrait considérablement améliorer ses performances.

    Surface Studio 2+ : Le PC tout-en-un de Microsoft revient plus puissant que jamais

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      Pour Prime Day, Amazon pulvérise le prix de la Surface Pro 8 (-480€)

      news.movim.eu / JournalDuGeek · Tuesday, 11 October, 2022 - 06:46

    surface-rpo-8-microsoft-158x105.jpg surface-pro-8-microsoft

    La Surface Pro 8 de Microsoft est probablement le meilleur PC hybride sous Windows. La tablette tactile, qui se convertit en ordinateur avec ses accessoires, est idéale pour des usages professionnels et personnels. Elle est aujourd'hui à un excellent prix chez Amazon pour Prime Day.

    Pour Prime Day, Amazon pulvérise le prix de la Surface Pro 8 (-480€)