Microsoft is branching out. WinFuture reported Monday that, per "dealer listings," both models of the Surface Laptop 4 will offer configurations featuring AMD CPUs. The Surface laptops may not be the best gaming laptops, or even make our list of the best ultrabooks and premium laptops, but they're still quite popular.
The entire Surface line was Intel-exclusive until Microsoft released the Surface Laptop 3 in 2019. That was the first tentative step toward expanding the line's processor offerings, because AMD CPUs were only available in the 15-inch model. But there were signs that Microsoft's partnership with AMD wouldn't end there, starting with the discovery of a Surface device featuring a Ryzen 5 4500U APU and Radeon RX 5300M mobile graphics card in the 3DMark 11 database in March 2020.
The 3DMark 11 database offered another hint at Microsoft's plans in June 2020 with a listing for a Surface device equipped with a Ryzen 7 4800U. The Surface Laptop 4 would be the obvious choice for the Zen 2 microarchitecture's Surface debut.
The Surface Laptop 4 remained a no-show throughout 2020. It's likely to be announced this year, however, and the WinFuture report suggests Microsoft has finalized its specs. The report claims that the Surface Laptop 4 will offer these configurations:
| Processor Type | AMD | Intel |
| CPU | AMD Ryzen 5-4680U or Ryzen 7 4980U CPU | Intel Core 11th Generation i5-1145G7 or i7-1185G7 |
| Graphics | Radeon Graphics | Iris Plus Graphics 950 |
| Memory | 8 or 16GB | 8, 16, or 32GB |
| Storage | 128, 256, 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD | 128, 256, 512GB or 1TB PCIe NVMe SSD |
| Display | 13.5": 2,256 x 1,504 / 15": 2,496 x 1,664 | 13.5": 2,256 x 1,504 / 15": 2,496 x 1,664 |
| Ports | Surface Connect, USB A, USB C | Surface Connect, USB A, USB C |
| Battery | 6513 mAh, 49 Wh | 6513 mAh, 49 Wh |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home | Windows 10 Home |
| Dimensions (WxDxH) | 13": 308 x 223 x 14.5mm / 15": 339.5 x 244 x 14.5mm | 13": 308 x 223 x 14.5mm / 15": 339.5 x 244 x 14.5mm |
| Weight | 13": 1.25kg / 15": Unknown | 13": 1.31kg / 15": 1.54kg |
A few things worth noting: Configurations featuring Intel processors will reportedly increase the memory and storage limits from 16GB and 512GB, respectively, to 32GB and 1TB. The higher specs do appear to result in some weight gain, however.
These are just preliminary specs; nothing has been made official. It's not clear when Microsoft plans to reveal the Surface Laptop 4, either, since it missed the October 2020 reveal many expected. We expect more details to leak in the coming weeks.
