At Microsoft’s annual Build conference, the tech giant unveiled the execution of the huge bets it has placed on AI. The star attraction, for a change, wasn’t the new line of Surface devices but rather, a Copilot Plus PC branding that aims to transform the experience of using a computer.
What’s a Copilot Plus PC?
2024 marks the year Microsoft takes the full ARM leap, ditching Intel CPUs in favor of Snapdragon Elite X and Plus options. These Qualcomm SoCs ship with NPUs that are ideal for running the new AI features in Windows 11.
Windows PCs bearing these chips will be called Copilot Plus PCs; for now anyway, since options from Intel and AMD are also on the way. Microsoft boasts that the new chips make its computers 58 percent faster than M3-based MacBook Airs
Microsoft’s Surface devices will be the first Copilot Plus PCs but manufacturers like Lenovo, Dell, Acer, Asus, and HP have already committed to the platform.
What AI features does a Copilot Plus PC get?
Recall is the most prominent new AI feature and that’s largely due to its massive scope. This Windows 11 tool keeps logs of everything you see and do on your computer and lets you search through them with detailed queries. This way, you can go back to any activity from years ago, in an instant.
Recall also comes with a handy timeline that you can scroll through to get a recap of what you did on your PC on a particular day. Another feature of Copilot Plus PCs is Live Translate which uses AI to give real-time captions to videos in various languages.
These PCs will also be home to the Cocreator tool that is meant to generate refinements to your artwork with the help of prompts. You could use commands like “Make this house I just drew look like a 16th-century castle” and the AI tools will take over from there.
What do Microsoft’s new Surface models bring to the table?
The base Surface laptop will be sold with both Snapdragon X Elite and Plus chips, offering much longer battery life along with swifter performance. These Copilot Plus-branded PCs will ship with 13.8-inch or 15-inch displays bearing 120Hz refresh rates and Dolby Vision IQ support.
The new Surface laptop is 80 percent faster than its predecessor and offers up to 22 hours of local video playback. It will start selling from June 18 onwards, with the 13.8-inch model going for $999 and the 15-inch model selling at $1199.
As for the Surface Pro, this Copilot Plus PC is also powered by Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon X processors which makes it 90 percent faster than the previous model. It gets 14 hours of video playback time, which isn’t as good as the Surface laptop but is still quite impressive.
Challenging the OLED iPad Pros is the optional OLED screen that you can choose your Surface Pro to have. This device grabs a kickstand of its own, while the new Surface Pro Flex Keyboard with a haptic touchpad will need to be bought separately.
The Surface Pro will ship in 13-inch options and will sell at a starting price of $999.99 when it goes on sale on June 18.