All about Microsoft’s Surface event

It was a big day at Microsoft’s Surface event. Of course, plenty of new devices were launched but the event also marked another chapter in the slow demise of the 3.5mm headphone connector.

Last year’s Microsoft Surface Pro 8 sported significant upgrades, from a bigger and brighter display to low-light upgrades on the camera, Thunderbolt 4 ports to support for the Slim Pen 2. Those things stay on the new Surface Pro 9, plus now you can choose between two versions — a 12th Gen Intel Core processor (i5 or i7) or a 5G model powered by a Microsoft SQ 3 chip from Qualcomm. The main upgrades are to the CPU and a cut-it-out moment for the 3.5mm headphone jack.

The move is perhaps the result of the company bringing the Intel and Arm versions of the Surface Pro 9 together in the same chassis. The Surface Pro X didn’t have a 3.5mm jack and now the Intel version is falling in line.