Microsoft Set To Announce Surface Pro 4 And Surface Mini At October Event

Microsoft is finally going to announce the release of the long-awaited Surface Pro 4. The Verge has the news.

“Microsoft is planning to hold a massive hardware launch event in October. Sources familiar with Microsoft’s plans tell The Verge that the software giant will use the event to unveil two new Lumia handsets, the Surface Pro 4, and a Microsoft Band 2.”

The Verge notes that Microsoft is also set to announce one or two additional products at the event, and many other sources believe one of those items will be the long-rumored Surface Mini. The device actually exists, and Brad Sams of Neowin, who says Microsoft killed the wrong product, played with it last year.

“As the rumors stated, and they were right, under the 8in display is a Qualcomm processor, 1 GB of RAM, Windows RT 8.1, USB support, and a microSD card slot as well.”

Sams goes on to note that the Surface Mini has the same pen that is used with the Surface Pro 3. As a matter of fact, he says the device looks very much like the Surface Pro 3, but in a much smaller format. The Surface Mini is said to be a digital notepad replacement.

It is rumored that Microsoft didn’t put out the device because the tablet market was already overcrowded. Perhaps, with the success of the Surface Pro 3, Microsoft now realizes there is a market for a Surface Mini. It’s likely that the consumer version of the Surface Mini will run Windows 10 instead of Windows RT.

Meanwhile, excitement over the Surface Pro 4 has hit an all-time high on social networks, especially since Tech Times revealed new information about the laptop/tablet hybrid last week.

“Among the speculated features, the MS Surface Pro 4 is said to come in 12-inch and 14-inch variants. The high-end variant of the tablet will reportedly cost around $1,300 and boast a 4K resolution screen and 16 GB of RAM.”

Tech Times goes on to note that there may be a $500 base model with 4GB of RAM and an 8,600 mAh battery. Some have accused Tech Times of fanning the flames with unverified information, but the tech blog usually gets things right. They were actually one of the very first blogs to discuss the Surface Mini, which people thought was a mythical device before several insiders revealed the Mini indeed exists.

Microsoft will have to face off Apple’s new MacBook Air and iPad Pro devices, which are said to be released around the same time. However, judging from the success of the Surface Pro 3, Microsoft really doesn’t have much to worry about.

[Photo by Roberto Machado Noa / LightRocket for Getty Images]