The last-gen Surface hardware you should watch out for this Black Friday

Black Friday is fast approaching, and that means it's time to start thinking about the expensive products you could save money on. Surface is one such product line that all-year-round is super expensive, but you may be able to save a few bucks on select last-gen Surface hardware on Black Friday if you keep your eyes peeled.

You're likely going to have the best chance at saving money on last-generation Surface hardware such as the Surface Pro 6, Surface Laptop 2, and even the Surface Book 2. An important question then is whether or not it's worth considering a last-gen Surface product when there are newer ones out on the market.

So here are our recommendations for Surface products we think are still excellent buys, especially if you can find them on a Black Friday sale.

Surface Pro 6

The Surface Pro 6 is a product Microsoft released in 2018 and features Intel's 8th-gen Intel Core i5 or Intel Core i7 processors. These are still excellent processors in 2019, with high performance that should be more than fine for most productivity and light creativity tasks. The Surface Pro 6 is also available in the traditional platinum or new black colors, and the black one looks super clean with the magnesium chassis.

The Surface Pro 6 is also configurable with 8GB or 16GB of RAM, 128GB, 256GB, or 512GB of storage, and has support for a keyboard cover and pen accessory, both of which are sold separately. Ports wise, the Pro 6 features one full-size USB-A 3.0 port, and a Mini-DisplayPort for output to an external monitor. It also has a magnetic Surface Connect port for charging, and a microSD card for expandable storage.

Externally, there isn't much difference between the Surface Pro 6 and the new Surface Pro 7. The only notable changes are the inclusion of USB-C, and better performance on the Pro 7. Everything else is pretty evenly matched on the Pro 6, and performance on the Pro 6 is still excellent. In fact, the Surface Pro 6 technically gets better battery life, because the CPU in the Pro 7 is a little more power-hungry.

So if you can find the Surface Pro 6 for a reasonable price on Black Friday, we absolutely recommend it. It's still a fantastic 2-in-1 laptop that features the best of Microsoft and should last you many years to come.

Surface Laptop 2

Just like the Surface Pro 6, the Surface Laptop 2 is still a fantastic laptop in 2019. Also released last year, the Surface Laptop 2 features Intel 8th-gen processors, 8GB or 16GB RAM, and 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB storage. It's available in four great colors; black, platinum, burgundy, and cobalt blue. This is still a competent machine for productivity and light creativity work, and with that excellent keyboard and trackpad, you're going to enjoy using it.

It features an Alcantara cover for the keyboard, which is built-in and non-removable. Microsoft does say the Surface Laptop 2's Alcantara is more resistant to dirt, but we recommend getting one of the darker colors to ensure dirt doesn't show up as easily. Unlike the Surface Laptop 3, the Surface Laptop 2 is only available in a 13.5-inch model, which is plenty large for most people.

Externally, the Surface Laptop 2 is the same as the Surface Laptop 3; it's just the larger 15-inch model, and the ability to remove Alcantara that are different cosmetically. The Laptop 3 also has a slightly larger trackpad, but the trackpad on the Surface Laptop 2 is still excellent regardless. We think this is an outstanding laptop to buy if you can get it on discount this Black Friday.

Surface Book 2

This is one we think you should keep a very close eye on, because the Surface Book 2 is the oldest product we're recommending on this list, but is also the most powerful, and still the most recent Surface Book on the market. It's technically not a last-generation product because of this, but since it launched in 2017, you can expect to see some good discounts this Black Friday.

On the inside, the Surface Book 2 features an Intel 8th-generation processor with integrated or dedicated graphics in the form of a GTX 1060. You can get it configured with 8GB, 16GB, or 32GB of RAM with 128GB, 256GB, 512GB or 1TB of internal storage. The Surface Book 2 is also available in either 13.5-inch or 15-inch configurations and features two USB-A 3.0 ports, one USB-C port, a full-size SD card reader, and a magnetic Surface Connect port.

This is the powerhouse Surface that Microsoft makes and is even more powerful than the current generation Surface Pro 7 and Surface Laptop 3. The base is detachable, meaning you can use it as a tablet if you want, and it supports pen, which is sold separately. If you can get the Surface Book 2 on sale this Black Friday, we don't think you'll be disappointed.

It is worth noting that we are expecting the Surface Book 3 at some point next year, so keep that in mind.

Surface Accessories

It's also worth keeping an eye out for any Surface accessories that might go on sale this Black Friday. These include the Surface Type Cover, Surface Pen, Surface Keyboard and Mice, and even the Surface Headphones. We really love the Surface Headphones, and they've been known for going on steep discounts, so Black Friday may be a great time to grab a pair.