Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing
  3. News

Leaked specs suggest a powerful Surface Book 3 could be in the works

Arif Bacchus
By

Those hoping to upgrade from the nearly 2-year-old Surface Book 2 might soon finally have what they’ve been waiting for. Recent leaks reveal that Microsoft could be working on a powerful Surface Book 3 model.

Recommended Videos

Although its authenticity can not be verified, Twitter user @_rogame, known for previous hardware leaks, recently revealed alleged 3D Mark benchmarking listings and supposed configurations of what many have come to believe as the Surface Book 3. The device mentioned in the listings is classified with Intel’s Core i7-1065G7 Ice Lake processor, and Nvidia’s GTX 1650 Max Q graphics card.

Related

As the results lists Microsoft as a vendor, and the Surface Book is the only device in Microsoft’s lineup that features such a mobile and dedicated GPU, there appears to be an added reason that this could indeed be a Surface Book 3. However, such listings are easy to manipulate, so it is best to be taken with a grain of salt.

According to Notebookcheck.net, however, this alleged Surface Book 3 model mentioned in the listing could be a high-end 13.5-inch option. An additional 15.5-inch model with the Intel Core i7-1065G7 and GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q GPU could also be in the works as well.

If this is true, this would be an upgrade from the existing Surface Book lineup. Currently, the Surface Book 2 is stuck on significantly older 7th- and 8th-generation Intel processors. That’s well behind the 10th-gen Ice Lake processors found elsewhere on the Surface lineup, such as the Surface Pro 7 or the Surface Laptop 3. The existing Surface Book 2 devices also come with options for the GTX 1050 GPU, or the Nvidia GTX 1060 GPU, both of which are around 3 years old.

An upgrade for the Surface Book lineup is long overdue. Microsoft last held a hardware event in October 2019, which revealed the Surface Pro X, Surface Laptop 3, Surface Pro 7, and dual-screen Surface Neo and Duo. The Surface Book 3 was noticeably absent.

Combined with this listing, there could be a reason that a release or Surface Book refresh might be coming later this spring. Microsoft last quietly updated the Surface Book 2 in April 2019 with newer an eighth-generation quad-core Intel Core i5-8350U processor. It could remain a possibility that the Surface Book 3 might launch in a similar way, as Microsoft usually only holds hardware events in the fall.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Arif Bacchus
Arif Bacchus
Computing Writer
Arif Bacchus is a native New Yorker and a fan of all things technology. Arif works as a freelance writer at Digital Trends…
The Surface Pro 10 sounds amazing, and it may be coming soon
The back of the Surface Pro 9, with the kickstand pulled out.

Microsoft could be getting ready to reveal the Surface Pro 10 and Surface Laptop 6 sooner than expected. Reporting from Windows Central's Zac Bowden indicates the devices might be announced on March 21, and could feature both Intel Core Ultra and Snapdragon X Elite chips under the hood, along with some design tweaks.

These new Surface devices are expected to go all-in on AI features in Windows 11. More important is that we could see the next Surface Laptop in a new ARM-based variant in addition to one with a traditional Intel Core Ultra CPU. This change in chips should not only bring more choice like the Surface Pro 9 did, but also performance gains that can help the devices rival what Apple has accomplished with the iPad Pro, as well as the new MacBook Pro with the M3 chip.

Read more
The MacBook Air M3 has one change that fixes its biggest flaw
The screen of the MacBook Air M2.

With surprisingly little fanfare — no spring event this time — Apple has dropped an update to the MacBook Air a bit sooner than expected. The incredibly thin MacBook Air 13- and 15-inch models both received updates to the Apple Silicon M3 chipsets, but that's not all.

There's one surprising new feature in the mix that could make a big difference in purchasing decisions: support for multiple monitors with the display closed. As this was the major complaint of the previous MacBook Air, this change is a pretty big deal. While it still supports only a total of two screens, it's a positive change for those that want to connect to two large, external monitors for work.

Read more
Whatever you do, don’t buy a MacBook Air right now
Apple's 15-inch MacBook Air placed on a desk with its lid closed.

Got your eye on a shiny new MacBook Air? We can’t blame you, they're fantastic laptops. But before you pull the trigger, you should consider holding off for a few more weeks.

At some point in March, Apple is expected to unveil a new generation of the MacBook Air, either at an event or via a press release. This forthcoming laptop will reportedly come loaded with Apple’s new M3 chip, giving the MacBook Air a notable performance boost.

Read more