Just a day after it was leaked in a retail listing, Microsoft officially unveiled the Surface Laptop Go 2, the successor to its compact laptop that was released two years ago as an attempt to compete with Chromebooks. Not much has changed on the outside as the company has generally retained the same design and form factor but the new laptop does feature updated internals for a more powerful device in the same small package.
The Surface Laptop Go 2 sports the same 12.4-inch PixelSense touchscreen display with a resolution of 1536 x 1024 pixels and an aspect ratio of 3:2. Similarly, the display continues to provide 10-point multi-touch and a maximum brightness of 330 nits.
Under the hood, it runs on an 11th Gen Intel Core i5-1135G7 processor as opposed to its predecessor’s 10th Gen chip and can be configured with either 4GB or 8GB of RAM. It might be odd seeing Microsoft going with an 11th Gen chip given that the 12th Gen option has already been rolled into the market since earlier this year but as you may notice, this happened to the original Surface Laptop Go.
But unlike the first-generation model which was shipped with a base storage of 64GB eMMC, Microsoft has dropped that option altogether and moved forward with a larger 128GB option that utilizes a solid state drive. For those who prefer larger storage space, the 256GB solid state drive option remains available.
Meanwhile, Microsoft has also noted that the laptop’s SSD, as well as the display, keyset, trackpad, and battery, are replaceable. While the removable hardware may help extend the life of Surface Laptop Go 2 since they are easier to be replaced, we reckoned that it is not something that is meant to be done by end-users though.
Speaking of the battery, the laptop’s battery life has been upgraded ever so slightly from 13 hours to 13.5 hours. It has a 720p webcam just like the previous model but Microsoft claims that its performance has been improved. The Surface Laptop Go 2 also has dual Studio Mics alongside Omnisonic speakers that support Dolby Audio Premium.
As for I/O, it is equipped with one USB Type-C port, one USB Type-A port, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and a Surface Connect port. Additionally, the power button doubles as a fingerprint scanner and the laptop also support Wi-Fi 6.
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 comes in Sage, Ice Blue, Sandstone, and Platinum with a starting price tag of US$599 (~RM2630). It will begin shipping in certain markets on 7 June but Microsoft has yet to announce local pricing and availability.
Despite that, we have noticed that the new laptop is one of the highlighted products on the homepage of Microsoft Malaysia’s website. In addition to that, the product site for Surface Laptop Go 2 is already online on the website as well.
When the original model was launched in Malaysia, it carried a starting price of RM2,758, albeit with a 64GB storage. We predict the price tag is going to be slightly higher this time around but nevertheless, let’s see what Microsoft Malaysia has to say once Surface Laptop Go 2 makes its way to our market.
(Source: Microsoft.)
Chief Chapree contributed to this article.
