Microsoft Surface Pro 95G

A bigger screen and day-beating battery life move the Surface Pro in the right direction, but the ARM chip brings hiccups

- ANDREW E FREEDMAN

PRICE 8GB/128GB, £1,083 (£1,299 inc VAT) from microsoft.co.uk

Microsoft is planting a stake here: that ARM chips are ready for prime time. Sure, M Microsoft has flirted with ARM chips in previous Surface machines, including the Surface Pro X (see issue 306, p68) to which the Pro 9 bears a striking resemblance, but for the first time Microsoft is giving you the choice of Intel or ARM in its flagship tablet.

To be specific, the Surface Pro 9 5G (£1,299 with 8GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD, £1,599 with 16GB and 256GB) includes Microsoft's custom SQ3 chip, or you can buy a non-5G Surface Pro 9 with Intel processors. The Core i5 version starts at £1,099, Core i7 from £1,599. We explain the key differences between the models on p46, but they share the same dimensions, the same 120Hz display and, if you buy one, the same keyboard.

So the big question is whether Microsoft is right: is ARM ready for the spotlight?

Familiar formula

Microsoft may have ripped up the internals, but the external design is instantly recognisable. Even the brooding Platinum finish is familiar, and if you choose a Surface Pro 9 5G then that's your only choice. The only marking on the system is a reflective Windows logo on the kickstand.

You get a tall, 3:2, 13in display with thin bezels on the sides, though there remains room for slimming on the top and bottom. But that top does house a 1080p webcam and infrared sensors, so the space is being put to good use. You'll also find power and volume buttons on the top, which makes great sense when used as a tablet, less so when in laptop mode.