The Surface Studio 2+, although it is the most expensive, and arguably the most powerful computer Microsoft sells, has received the fewest upgrades over six years. Due to a relatively small number of modifications, the Surface Studio 2+ features some notable downgrades. The upgrade is even more head-scratching. In this Specs Appeal article, we compare the Surface Studio 2+ to the previous model and its original version, which was first introduced in late 2016.
Microsoft has chosen the 11th Gen Intel Core i7-11370H instead of a 12th Gen processor with brand-new architecture. Despite the fact that the Surface Laptop 5 and Surface Pro 9 are compatible with the 12th Gen Intel Core i5 and i7 processors, it is a significant improvement.
Another reason some Surface Studio owners will consider upgrading to the Surface Studio 2+. Microsoft has swapped the old Nvidia GTX 1060 and 1070 in favor of a more modern and significantly powerful RTX 3060 with 6GB of memory.
The Surface Studio 2+ isn''t limited to a new CPU+GPU combo, as all other aspects of the computer are unchanged. Moreover, there is only one SKU with no customization, no SD card slot (why, Microsoft), and no Xbox Wireless built-in. All this makes Surface Studio 2+ look like a placeholder device to fill the gap while Microsoft prepares a more significant upgrade.
Here are a few key changes grouped up in a list:
| Surface Studio 2+ | Surface Studio 2 | Surface Studio 1 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Display | 28-inch 3:2 PixelSense 4500 x 3000 (192 ppi), 60Hz 10-point multi-touch1 billion colorsAuto Color Management sRGB and Vivid profile DCI-P3Dolby Vision Gorilla Glass 3 | 28-inch 3:2 PixelSense 4500 x 3000 (192 ppi), 60Hz 10-point multi-touch sRGB and Vivid profile DCI-P3 | |
| OS | Windows 11 | Windows 10 Windows 11 | Windows 10 |
| Colors | Platinum | ||
| Processor | Intel Core i7-11370H | Intel Core i7-7820HQ | Intel Core i5-6440HQ Intel Core i7-6820HQ |
| GPU | Nvidia RTX 3060 6GB | Nvidia GTX 1060 6GB Nvidia GTX 1070 8GB | Nvidia GTX 965M 2GB Nvidia GTX 980M 4GB |
| Memory | 32GB DDR4 | 16GB, 32GB DDR4 | 8GB, 16GB, 32GB DDR4 |
| Storage | 1TB SSD | 1TB, 2TB SSD | 64GB SSD + 1 TB HDD 128GB SSD + 1 TB HDD 128 GB SSD + 2TB HDD |
| Security | TPM 2.0 Chip Windows Hello face sign-inWindows 11 Secured-core PC | TPM 2.0 Chip Windows Hello face sign-in | TPM Chip Windows Hello face sign-in |
| Network | Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.1 Gigabit Ethernet | Wi-Fi 5 and Bluetooth 4.1 Xbox Wireless Gigabit Ethernet | Wi-Fi 5 and Bluetooth 4.0 Xbox Wireless Gigabit Ethernet |
| Camera | Front-facing camera with 1080p video and Windows Hello | ||
| Ports | 3x Thunderbolt 4/USB-C 4.0 2x USB-A 3.1 1x 3.5mm headphone jack 1x Gigabit Ethernet | 4x USB-A 3.0 1x Full-size SDXC 1x USB-C 1x 3.5mm headphone jack 1x Gigabit Ethernet | 4x USB-A 3.0 1x Full-size SDXC 1x Mini DisplayPort 1x 3.5mm headphone jack 1x Gigabit Ethernet |
| In the box | Surface Pen Surface Keyboard Surface Mouse | ||
| Price | $4,499 | $3,000 | |
Full-size SDXC 1x USB-C 1x 3.5mm headphone jack 1x Gigabit Ethernet 1x USB-A 3.0
Full-size SDXC 1x USB-C 1x 3.5mm headphone jack 1x Gigabit Ethernet 4x USB-A 3.0 1x Full-size SDXC 1x USB-C 1x 3.5mm headphone jack 1x Gigabit Ethernet
True, the Surface Studio 2+ is more capable than its predecessor, and it is a good idea to purchase the new model because to desire a more powerful processor or graphics card. But is it possible that a soon-two-generation-old processor and a mid-range graphics card give an incentive to purchase such a costly computer with so few modifications? This is the topic we have to be wary of.