Listings appear for new Surface Book 2, Surface Pro 6 configurations

By Dan Thorp-Lancaster
last updated

A little more wiggle room on price and hardware.

Microsoft Surface Book 2
Microsoft Surface Book 2 (Image credit: Windows Central)

What you need to know

  • New configurations for the 15-inch Surface Book 2 (opens in new tab) and Surface Pro 6 (opens in new tab) have been spotted in retailer listings.
  • The new 15-inch Surface Book 2 model represents a new entry point, with a Core i5 CPU, 256GB of storage, and 16GB of ram for around $1,960.
  • The Surface Pro 6 model packs an Intel Core i5 processor, 16GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. This model has so far been limited to business buyers.

Microsoft has gained a reputation for gradually refreshing its Surface PCs with new hardware configurations as they age, and it looks like it's getting ready to do just that with the 15-inch Surface Book 2 and Surface Pro 6. In retailer listings first spotted by German blog WinFuture.de (via Neowin), both Surface devices appear to be getting fresh configurations with Intel's 8th Gen Core i5 processors.

Specifically, the new 15-inch Surface Book 2 variant appears on Best Buy Canada's (opens in new tab) website, listed with an Intel Core i5-8350U processor, 256GB of storage, and 16GB of RAM. Crucially, this model doesn't include discrete graphics, relying on Intel's integrated graphics instead.

The Surface Book 2 listing has a June 18 release date and is available for preorder at a price of CA$2,600, which translates to around $1,960.

Meanwhile, the new Surface Pro 6 configuration packs the same specs, coming with an Intel Core i5-8350U processor, 16GB of RAM, and 256GB of storage. As Neowin notes, this model has previously only been available for business customers. There's no release date attached to the Surface Pro 6 model, but it has a recommended price of $1,400.

Both additions will add a little more variety to Microsoft's current lineup. But if you're interested in other configurations, you can pick up the Surface Book 2 (opens in new tab) and Surface Pro 6 (opens in new tab) starting from $1,150 and $900, respectively.

Top 2-in-1

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Microsoft Surface Pro 6

The 2-in-1 refined as only Microsoft can

The blueprint device for the 2-in-1 category, the Surface Pro 6 is a high-end laptop stuffed into the body of a tablet. Toss in digital pen support and an optional keyboard and you have quite the portable computer.

Convertible Power

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Microsoft Surface Book 2

The most versatile a laptop can be

The Microsoft Surface Book 2 is the best convertible you can buy thanks to its laptop-first form factor, along with its detachable display turning it into a great tablet for inking.

Our favorite Surface accessories from Microsoft

Every one of these valuable Surface accessories is Windows Central Approved and guaranteed to please.

Surface Precision Mouse (opens in new tab) ($77 at Amazon)

The Surface Precision Mouse is not only one of favorite Surface accessories, it's one of our favorite mice for any PC. It's packed with valuable features and customizable buttons. Its scrolling and tracking are seamless and spot-on. And it's rechargeable so you never have to buy new batteries for it.

Surface Pen (opens in new tab) (From $72 at Amazon)

Every Surface owner needs this Pen. Period. It supports 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity, tilt support for shading density, and enjoys supremely low latency. When paired with a Surface PC, the potential is endless. And it comes in a bunch of cool colors.

Surface Dock (opens in new tab) ($136 at Amazon)

With two Mini DisplayPorts, four USB-A 3.0 ports, an Ethernet port, and a 3.5mm audio jack, this dock gives you the ports you need to stay connected to all your favorite devices. Plus, it easily turns your Surface into a desktop power hub. We highly recommend it.

Dan Thorp-Lancaster
Dan Thorp-Lancaster

Dan Thorp-Lancaster is the former Editor-in-Chief of Windows Central. He began working with Windows Central, Android Central, and iMore as a news writer in 2014 and is obsessed with tech of all sorts. You can follow Dan on Twitter @DthorpL and Instagram @heyitsdtl. 

8 Comments
  • Does this mean the Surface Book 3 isn't coming until 2020? I was really hoping for a fall 2019 release. I'm really wanting to upgrade from my SP4.
  • Really too early to tell. A lot going on with Intel in the coming weeks and months with shift to 9th and 10th gen CPUs.
  • Yeah, our SP 4 is long in the tooth as well. Holding out for a new release with 9th Gen CPU's, LTE and Wi-Fi 6. Need to upgrade the kids tablets with something using the 8CX Wi-Fi 6 and LTE. 😬
  • FINALLY!!! This is the configuration I've been waiting for. I don't need an I7 or the extra storage but that 16GB of RAM is going to be very useful, now I just have to save my pennies.
  • That being said, they also just dropped the price on the 8GB model in Australia, so I can get it plus a Signature type cover for $1579 AUD, that's a pretty big saving and seeing at the 16GB will go for around $2000-$2100 tablet only I don't know if I can really justify spending the extra $500.
  • RAM makes more of a big deal than people realize (for power users - especially if you use stuff like Visual Studio). Swapping really impacts SSDs negatively and in my personal experience, UWP and Windows 10 use swap and disk caching much more aggressively than Windows 7 and earlier did (i.e. this started with 8/RT technologies). For example, on the old Edge, if you have a gig or more of RAM in use (multiple tabs open), as soon as you press minimize, it'll try to write it to disk and unload from memory even if you have a bit left.
    The $500 might mean your device lasts a year or two more. The SSD on my SP4 died in 2 years. Pretty sure it was due to excessive swapping. I used the poor 4GB model for Visual Studio and the old Edge. Now I have an SP6 with 8GB RAM. Swapping is rarer but happens. The System process (PID 4) will aggressively write to the pagefile and swapfile sometimes even when I'm at only about 70% of RAM usage. It's not as bad as how I was on 4GB obviously but I'm now careful. I try to avoid too much of it.
  • I've got a SP3 at the moment, I run a lot of stage lighting software and I need a bump to my GPU and RAM for the visualisation software. Especially as I design bigger and bigger shows.
  • I am holding out for a Surface Book with thunderbolt 3 so I can run it with my EGPU. Surface are such great devices with great screens and build quality..but I have stopped buying them because of lack of thunderbolt 3. I am running a Matebook X Pro with Aero 2070 EGPU but would sure love a 15" SB2 to run it and it would be perfect!