Microsoft's $400 Surface Tablet Reportedly Launching This Week

microsoft surface 2
All signs are pointing to the impending release of a new, entry-level Surface tablet. The device has been talked about for months and the latest report suggests that the new Surface will be released by Microsoft this Friday.

The information comes from an alleged internal Microsoft document that leaked to a Surface subreddit. According to the leak, the tablet and a complimenting Type Cover will be available via the Microsoft Store. There is no indication if this will simply be a preorder phase for the tablet or if they will actually start shipping on 7/13.

Microsoft's newest Surface device made an appearance at the FCC earlier this month, and it was surmised that it would be equipped with Intel processors (due to the appearance of a separate Qualcomm Wi-Fi/Bluetooth module). It was later revealed that base systems will come powered by a Gemini Lake-based Intel Pentium Silver N5000 processor. The mid-range option will be a Pentium Gold 4410Y, while range-topping models will come equipped with a Pentium Gold 4415Y processor clocked at 1.6GHz.

A Surface tablet equipped with a Pentium Gold 4415Y made an appearance in OpenCL benchmarks last week where it put up comparable numbers to a 2017 Apple MacBook equipped with an Intel Core i5-7Y54 processor.

The budget Surface device is said to be equipped with either 4GB or 8GB of RAM, and will be available with up to 128GB of internal storage. It will reportedly have a 10-inch display with a 3:2 aspect ratio, USB-C port, and will be available with optional LTE connectivity. 

As we previously reported, the base $400 system will likely be equipped with the Pentium Silver N5000 processor, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage.