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Apple MacBook 15-inch,Philippines Microsoft is coming for you.

On Tuesday, Microsoft unveiled the all new Surface Book 2 in two sizes: a 3.68-pound, 13-inch ($1,499) and a formidable 4.22-pound, 15-inch model ($2,499). It's also the first Microsoft Surface device to brandish a USB-C port.

Still instantly recognizable as Microsoft’s hybrid laptop with a removable tablet screen, the Surface Book 2 has been rebuilt from the inside-out and, according to Microsoft Corporate VP of Devices Panos Panay, is designed specifically for creators.

The Surface Book 2 will, it seems, have the power to support everything from the Mixed Reality promised with the new Windows 10 Fall Creators Update -- also released today -- to full-HD PC gaming at a buttery smooth 60 frames per second (fps).

Supporting that level of work and play will be Intel’s brand new 8th-Gen Quad-Core processors and some impressive graphics: Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 1060 GPU backed by 6GB of RAM (in the 15-inch) and GTX 1050 with 2GB of RAM (in the 13-inch). Panay said the new 15-inch model is five-times more powerful than the original Surface Book. “It pushes 4.3 teraflops,” he said.

For now, the larger system is only available in 8th-Gen Quad-Core i7-8650U (running at up to 4.2GHz) with up to 16GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive. The Surface Book 2 13-inch is also available with an Intel Core i5 CPU.

The configuration of these components is the same as in previous Surface Books. The core CPU and motherboard reside in the tablet and, in discrete graphics models, the Nvidia GPU sits in the base. All Surface Book 2 devices include Intel UHD 620 integrated graphics in the tablet.

Even with a Quad-Core i7 CPU, the tablet screen will, on the smaller, 13-inch Surface Book 2, retain its fanless design. The Nvidia GPU, though, will introduce a fan in the base.

Microsoft is also promising up to 17 hours of battery life. On paper, that is significantly more than what you can get with the 4.02-pound 15-inch MacBook Pro, which is running the previous-generation Intel Core i chips and claims 10 hours of battery life. However, it’s not clear how that plays out across the various component options. Can you achieve that much battery life if a portion of the base is devoted to a powerful Nvidia GPU? In addition, Microsoft's battery specs are for video playback, which is not the most processor-intensive task.

The tablet portion alone is rated for 5 hours of battery life.

While Microsoft did not change the look of the Surface Book, they did re-engineer key components like the keyboard, trackpad and dynamic fulcrum hinge. In our brief time with the system, we noted a solid-satisfying typing experience and a responsive trackpad. The hinge and decoupling mechanism for the table screen is much quieter than previous Surface Books.

Another big change: the introduction of a USB-C port. It joins two USB-A ports, an SD card slot, and the proprietary Surface connector. The USB-C port replaces the Surface Book’s DisplayPort and is there to support external displays. The system can drive up to two external 4K displays. It can also support external hard drives and, yes, be used to charge the Surface Book 2.

The screen resolution for the 13-inch model is unchanged: 3,000 x 2,000 for 267 ppi (pixels per inch). The 15-inch has a slightly higher overall screen resolution at 3,240 x 2,160, but a lower ppi at 260.

I spent a little time playing with the 15-inch model. I drew on it and played a game. This is a big machine, and, when you remove the monitor, the tablet you hold in your hand is almost unwieldy. However, when you detach it, flip it around, and then reattach the screen and fold it down into the keyboard, it’s a large and impressive drawing space.

With the Windows 10 Fall Creator’s Update’s focus on creative tasks like drawing, video editing and, especially 3D creation in the new 3D Paint, this could be quite an impressive Windows 10 rig.

To help drive home that point during the unveiling event last week, Microsoft’s Dona Sarkar, who runs the Windows Insider program, demonstrated how she used 3D Paint on Surface Book 2 to design the stylish, purple dress she was wearing.

Both versions of the new Surface Book 2 go on sale on Nov. 16.

clp

Expert writer and contributor. Passionate about sharing knowledge and insights on various topics.