Surface Hub 2S 50 inches: $ 8,999, shipping in June; 85 inch version next year

Announced last year for the first time, Microsoft's second-generation Surface Hub now has a price and release schedule, as well as two new siblings.

Surface Hub is the Microsoft hardware dedicated to collaboration within meetings. It combines multiple roles, including digital whiteboard and video conferencing, with Teams, Skype, and OneNote integrated into a single, integrated package. The 50-inch 2S is only vaguely specified: it is equipped with a specially designed 3: 2 (3840 × 2560 with 10 bits per pixel) 4K screen, with built-in touch sensors that work with both the stylus and the finger. Inside is an 8th generation Core i5 (Microsoft does not offer more details than that) with 8 GB of RAM and 128 GB of SSD storage; Although it may seem confusing, the Surface Hub 2 software is designed not to store data locally. Therefore, 128 GB should be abundant. To support videoconferencing, it includes a set of eight microphones, front speakers and a detachable 4K webcam. It will be available in the United States from June, then on other markets, at a price of $ 8,999. A pen and a camera enter the box.

As we expected from Microsoft, the screen is superb. It has a matte finish (reflections are too difficult to avoid otherwise), so it's not quite the punch that a glossy finish would get, but it's way better than most 1080p screens that I've seen in offices around the world. . Using advanced construction techniques for its portable Surface devices, the Hub 2 display incorporates tactile sensing layers into the screen glass, a design that makes the screen much thinner and reduces the error of parallax when using a stylus the first generation, up to 1.7 mm in this).

The software stack it runs is an updated version of the original Surface Hub platform. Although based on Windows 10, this is not Windows 10; it can not run arbitrary Win32 applications, but only applications from the universal Windows platform, especially because of its specialized nature: when you end a meeting, everything you have drawn on the whiteboard or in OneNote, discussion transcripts, etc. , is saved in a network location, and then your entire session is ignored, leaving no trace of what you did. The machine is therefore blank for the next meeting.

But here is where things get complicated. The original announcement of last May did not concern the "Surface Hub 2S". This was for the "Surface Hub 2", and Microsoft demonstrated a number of interesting features: the rotation of the screen between its portrait and landscape modes was perfectly fluid and up to five of the systems could be placed in portrait mode to create a giant display. . Indeed, the Surface Hub 2S integrates a rotation mechanism. Try to rotate the screen, however, and it will not move.

This is due to something announced last September: the Surface Hub 2 has been split into two models, the 2S being available this year and the 2X next year. It is believed that the underlying cause of this split is the software. Surface Hub 2 should come with a modernized version of Windows 10 and a new version of its custom user interface. This version will not be ready this year. Features such as regular updating of the screen during rotation and the multiple display capability depend on this new software. Therefore, as it is not finished, Surface Hub 2S does not have them.

However, Microsoft does not want to leave out Surface 2S buyers. When the Surface Hub 2X is released next year, it will be possible to classify the 2S units according to the specifications and features of the 2X. It will not be a simple software upgrade; this will also require a hardware upgrade. Surface Hub 2 places its processor, memory and storage in a removable module inserted at the back of the system. Owners of 2S will be able to install a 2X computing module as soon as it is available, which will provide them with updated system software and new rotating / multi-screen installations.

The current 2S calculation module is designed to lock the rotation mechanism in place; it has a small protrusion that prevents the rotation of the screen. As far as I know, it's still possible and supported to switch between portrait and landscape modes, but this requires removing the 2S compute module, rotating the screen, and then reinserting the compute module 2S to lock it again in its new orientation.

Specifications of the 2X calculation module? Unknown. Availability? Also unknown. Price? Not zero, but how much does he guess? What will companies do with all their obsolete 2S compute modules after upgrading to 2X? Once again, a mystery.

Microsoft said, quite plausibly, that the system would still have a modular computing unit even though the 2S / 2X split had not been necessary. This is due to the general observation that computer technology is growing faster than screen technology, and that widescreen displays are expected to last many years once installed. The display could last for ten years, for example, but after five years, the initial calculation unit will look a little old and obsolete. Replacing with a new unit would be a good way to ensure that system buyers can use the full life of the screen.

The module system has been designed in such a way that it is easy enough to replace the "blind" modules, which reach the back of the machine while leaving it mounted on a wall.

The extension ports are distributed between the calculation module and the base unit; module ports include USB Type-A, USB Type-C, HDMI input, mini-DisplayPort output, and yes, no Thunderbolt 3. The type C port can support both USB and DisplayPort ports but not more. The monitor adds four Type C USB ports to the webcam.

Microsoft is also trying to create an ecosystem of accessories around Surface Hub. His launch presentation was made today in collaboration with Steelcase, which manufactures all kinds of office furniture. Steelcase showed a specially designed circular mount for Surface Hub 2. The latter was paired with a $ 1,400 APC battery pack that could mount on the cradle and power the Surface Hub 2 for a few hours. The roller stand recalls the school memories and excitement you felt when the teacher put the TV and VCR in the classroom, indicating that no learning was going on. Would take place because you would rather watch a video.

The first-generation Surface Hub featured two versions, one with an 84-inch screen and the other with 55-inch screens. Long after its launch, the 84-inch machine was very difficult to buy because the demand was much higher than expected by Microsoft (this lack of expectation led the company to not build enough quickly). Originally, Surface Hub 2 was only announced in its 50-inch form, but today, Microsoft has revealed and presented very briefly an 85-inch model with a 16-inch display : 9 non-rotating. This will launch in 2020.

If you want to use the modular screen, but you do not like it much, Microsoft will market this year the Surface Hub 2 Display: a 55-inch Surface Hub 2 with the computer (and a few other things, like Wi-Fi).

And finally, later in the year, Microsoft will also start selling Surface Hub 2 with Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise Standard. This will imply the loss of the Surface Hub's special user interface, but will allow the use of arbitrary Win32 applications. I think at some point, Microsoft will offer software that offers the Surface Hub interface while supporting classic Win32 applications, but we're not at this stage yet. No price information is available at the moment.