Details of Microsoft’s rumored successor to the Surface Laptop 3 have been making the rounds on the web for a while now. Benchmarks of what were believed to be the Laptop 4 and the Pro 8 were spotted late last year. However, with the introduction of the Surface Pro 7+ – a refreshed version of the Pro 7 sporting Intel’s 11th-gen chips – aimed completely at businesses, it is possible that the Redmond firm is readying a version of the Laptop 3 as well that is aimed at businesses.
A new Bluetooth SIG certification listing (spotted by WinCentral) provides credence to that theory, as it mentions versions of the Surface Pro 7 and the Laptop 3 listed for certification on January 18. The descriptions in the listing also point to 13.5-inch and 15-inch models. Additionally, the model numbers specified in the certification for the devices coincide with a now deleted tweet from Twitter user cozyplanes. The “1950” model number was the rumored one for the Laptop 4. The certification listing contains models 1952, 1953, 1958, and 1959 – possibly pointing to two variants of the 13.5-inch and 15-inch devices each. The two Pro 7 models might also point to the recently released Wi-Fi-only and LTE versions of the Pro 7+.
Reports from last year suggest that the company is planning on equipping the 13.5-inch versions of the device with AMD processors for the first time, in addition to refreshes to the Intel variants. It is anyone’s guess if these devices will be called the Laptop 3+, or if there are plans to offer the new devices to consumers as well with the Laptop 4 branding.
The advantages of offering the Pro 7+ to businesses without any design and dimension changes include compatibility with older peripherals and accessories, without compromising on performance. However, with Surface Laptop sporting a more traditional form factor, it will be interesting to see what the company’s strategy is with that lineup.
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