Microsoft found plotting Surface Pro 11 refresh with more powerful CPU and GPU

Microsoft was one of the first companies to release Snapdragon X Plus and Snapdragon X Elite-powered devices in May when it presented the Surface Laptop 7 and Surface Pro 11. Since then, Qualcomm has introduced new Snapdragon X Plus variants, one of which we analysed earlier this month. Right on cue, Roland Quandt has revealed that a refreshed Surface Pro 11 is in the works.

However, it is not a cheaper Snapdragon X Plus X1P-42-100 variant. Instead, Quandt has discovered that Microsoft may be working towards delivering an X1E-84-100 powered version of its latest 2-in-1, which currently tops out at the X1E-80-100 (curr. $1,399.99 on Amazon). For reference, the X1E-84-100 has a higher boost CPU clock speed than the X1E-80-100, as well as a more powerful Adreno X1-85 GPU.

Nonetheless, the X1E-80-100 trails the X1E-84-100 by 1% in our benchmarks. By contrast, the former's GPU proved about 16% less powerful than the latter in our tests. Although Microsoft has not officially announced anything yet, an X1E-84-100-powered version of the Surface Pro 11 has now appeared across over half a dozen retailers in Europe, all with the model number 'ZIA-00007'. Unfortunately, an official release date remains unknown for now, but ZIA-00007 should retail between €1,849 and €1,929 across the Eurozone, with 16 GB of RAM and a 512 GB SSD.