Microsoft first announced its dual-screen Surface Neo tablet in October of 2019, and a lot has changed since then. First, Microsoft killed off Windows 10X, the Surface Neo’s intended operating system. And now, Intel says it’s discontinuing its Lakefield processors—yeah, the one that Surface Neo is supposed to run on.
Intel Lakefield processors were first announced in 2019. With a small footprint and x86 architecture, they seemed like the ideal solution for ultra-thin, ultra-portable Windows devices. Clearly, the processors were not a success, though they did appear in the Lenovo X1 Fold.
Is Microsoft stressed about the death of Lakefield? Well, it’s hard to say. The Surface Neo was delayed until 2022 and may never come out due to the smaller Surface Duo’s poor sales. Also, Microsoft’s growing confidence in ARM could influence its direction with the Surface Neo—Windows 10 on ARM sucked, but Microsoft has since committed to ARM support for its upcoming Windows 11 release, and things are looking a bit brighter for the company.
Of course, we need to bring Apple into this. Since the Surface Neo was announced in 2019, Apple has successfully transitioned macOS to the ARM architecture, reaping several thermal and power benefits without sacrificing performance. After its botched Surface Pro X release, Microsoft may feel pressure to release a more competitive, more revolutionary ARM device.
Source: Windows Central
