Microsoft has quietly updated the base configuration of its 13.5-inch Surface Book 2 with a quad-core eighth-generation Intel Core i5 processor.
Back in 2017 when it was first released, the entry-level model was available only with a dual-core seventh-generation Core i5 processor, but now the company is giving it a little spec bump, essentially adding a new midrange option to the mix.
Refreshed Surface Book 2
The new configuration of the Surface Book 2 is for the 13.5-inch model with 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of internal storage — 16 GB of RAM can only be mixed and matched with the eighth-generation Core i7 chip and 512 GB or 1 TB of native storage, for the record.
With this new quad-core eighth-generation Core i5 chip or i5-8350U, the machine's top clock speed is increased to 3.6 GHz, which should be a significant improvement compared with the previous dual-core seventh-generation Core i5 processor.
Reading The Fine Print
Now the new midrange model will cost $1,499. That's the same price as the old base configuration with 256 GB of storage, which is discounted to $1,299 at the time of this writing.
Just to throw it out there, the most affordable option is still the 13.5-inch variant with the seventh-generation Core i5 chip, 8 GB of RAM, and 128 GB of storage. It's available for just $1,149.
The new configuration is already available at the Microsoft Store, where customers can customize their order. The 15-inch model remains the same in that it's still available only with 16 GB of RAM and an eighth-generation Core i7 processor.
It's also worth mentioning that this refresh wasn't completely unexpected. The Surface Book 2 has been rumored to get an update for some time now, and needless to say, it turned out to be true.
In other related news, Microsoft is scheduled to hold a Surface event on April 17 in New York City (via ZDNet). There, the company is expected to take the wraps off the new Surface Hub 2 devices.
