The Microsoft Surface Studio 3 is expected to launch before the end of the year, with Microsoft likely gearing up to unveil the desktop PC at its October Surface showcase event.
The Surface Studio 3 (or the Surface Studio 2+ according to Microsoft insider Zac Bowden) looks like it will share a similar design to its predecessor, with users able to tilt the screen back to use it like a giant sketching tablet.
Bowden claims the specs will be updated, featuring an 11th Generation Intel Core processor and an Nvidia RTX 3060 GPU to help speed up the performance to a modern standard. Microsoft will also apparently add Thunderbolt 4 to help speed up data transfer speeds over USB.
Unfortunately, it seems that Microsoft won’t be updating the design. An FCC report (spotted by Windows Central) leaked an image of the Surface Studio 3, showing it to have the same chunky bezel as the Surface Studio 2.
Release date
The Surface Studio 3 is expected to be announced during the upcoming Microsoft Surface showcase on 12 October 2022, alongside the Surface Laptop 5 and Surface Pro 9.
You may not be able to purchase the new desktop PC until a few weeks or months later, but Microsoft is expected to confirm the exact date of launch during the showcase.
Price
There’s no official word on price just yet, but Microsoft typically sticks to the same price structure when introducing new generations of products.
The Surface Studio 2 currently has a starting price of £3549, so we think Microsoft will go for something around that figure when it finally launches the Surface Studio 3.
Specs
Microsoft insider Zac Bowden claims that the Surface Studio 3 will feature an Intel Core i7-11370H processor and an Nvidia RTX 3060 GPU, with the possibility of 32GB RAM and 1TB storage too.
Those are realistic specs, although are a considerable leap from the outdated specs of the Surface Studio 2, which packs a 7th Generation Intel chip and up to a Nvidia GTX 1070 GPU. It’s hard to recommend the Surface Studio 2 with such old components, so the touted refresh is very much needed.
Bowden also claims there have been a few changes to the ports, with the SD card reader replaced by 3x Thunderbolt 4 connections, and the total number of USB-A ports scaled down to two.
Design
A leaked image from an FCC report (spotted by Windows Central) indicates that the Surface Studio 3 will look virtually identical to the Surface Studio 2.
That means it’s still rocking an unsightly thick black bezel around the screen, which looks outdated compared to the more streamlined Apple iMac.
With the Surface Studio 2 launching a whopping four years ago, it’s a big disappointment that Microsoft has decided against refreshing the design.
The good news is that it will still feature the clever hinge design, which allows users to spin the monitor back down into a horizontal position so you can use it like a tablet for sketching.
That’s all we know about the Surface Studio 3 right now, but we’ll be updating this article as soon as we hear more credible leaks and rumours ahead of the official reveal.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.