Audiophiles will still need to connect headphones or external speakers, but it’s an excellent experience for casual users. There’s a decent level of bass and it doesn’t become distorted at high volumes, while Dolby Atmos support enables room-filling sound. They deliver rich, punchy audio that you wouldn’t necessarily expect from a device this size. The Pro 8 continues with dual 2W stereo speakers, which output via large grilles on either side of the device. This should help conserve battery life, but it’s still not available at the time of writing in March 2022.

Microsoft advertised a Dynamic Refresh Rate (DRR) feature at the Windows 11 launch in 2021, which would allow the Surface Pro 8 and selected other devices to automatically adjust refresh rate depending on the situation. If you’re anything like me, that means connecting an adapter or hub on a regular basis – it feels like an unnecessary change. These support Thunderbolt 4 for fast data transfer, but the USB-A port has been ditched. Microsoft has stuck with the proprietary Surface Connect as the main charging method, although you can use either of the USB-C ports instead. It’s mostly business as usual on the sides of the device, where you’ll find the power button, volume rocker, 3.5mm headphone jack and docking station for keyboard covers. That makes it feel closer to a laptop than ever before, although the tablet itself is significantly lighter. The key design upgrade you’ll probably notice is much slimmer bezels, which allows for a larger 13in display within almost the same footprint. It’s your only option for biometric unlocking, with no fingerprint scanner on the device itself or either of the compatible keyboard covers. This is easy to set up and works extremely well, with an extra scan recommended if you wear glasses. Next to it, you’ll find a separate infrared lens, meaning the Pro 8 supports Windows Hello face unlock.

Windows surface pro 8 specs