Forget all the M4 MacBook leaks – Microsoft Surface Laptop with Intel Lunar Lake CPU has just appeared in the wild and it could be a dream notebook

Microsoft’s latest Surface Laptop has been very well received and is actually at the top of our list of the best laptops right now, although some people may still not be convinced by the Arm CPU and the drawbacks that come with it – but if you’re on a model wait with an Intel chip Instead, it looks like the wait may soon be over.

Windows Central has noted that a purported Surface Laptop 7 with an Intel Lunar Lake mobile CPU – as opposed to the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (Arm-based) processor that powers existing models – has surfaced (ahem) on Reddit.

The pre-release model (sample?) is actually for sale on a Chinese auction site (Goofish) and the listing describes it as having an Intel Core Ultra 7 268V chip (as mentioned Lunar Lake) with 32GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD has.

Of course, let’s add a few generous helpings of salt at this point and we can have our usual doubts about such leaks, but the listing does appear to be authentic and is supplemented by photos of the alleged Surface Laptop 7.

Additionally, reliable leaker Zac Bowden at Windows Central tells us that his sources have said that Microsoft is indeed testing a Surface Laptop with Intel Lunar Lake – but it’s not clear if this is a variant of the existing Surface Laptop 7 or a new Surface Laptop (probably a version 8).

However, as stated in the sales listing, the design remains the same, so the former seems to make more sense. Bowden further notes, “It is likely that Microsoft intends to offer both Intel and Qualcomm variants of the Surface Laptop with its updated design by 2025.”

That’s consistent with the Goofish seller, who informs potential buyers (who shouldn’t actually risk going anywhere near this laptop, we might add) that the Core Ultra 7-packaging notebook won’t be available until 2025 the trade will come.

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Analysis: Business as Usual? We hope not

What’s the big deal with an Intel version of the Surface Laptop 7 (or actually 8)? As mentioned, with the Snapdragon these compatibility issues are bugbears that don’t affect an Intel (x86) approach on the Surface Laptop.

Best of all, the Lunar Lake CPUs have really impressed since their launch, and these chips won’t let you down when it comes to the Snapdragon chip’s strengths – you should still get great battery life and performance with Intel.

So the downside could be the price and this leak doesn’t bring good news in that regard.

The Goofish seller tells us that the Microsoft Store price for the model in question will be around 19,000 Chinese Yuan, which is about $2,700 (or £2,000 / AU$4,000). We’re assuming this applies to the 32GB plus 1TB model mentioned anyway, but it also gives a “list price” (the translation might be wonky) of 10,990 Chinese yuan, converted is around $1,500 (or £1,200 / AU$2,300). Could this be the starting price?

We don’t know, but we’re pretty skeptical about these numbers considering the current 32GB plus 1TB Surface Laptop 7 has an MSRP of $1,600 in the US, so it seems inflated by two-thirds a bit ridiculous. However, we assume that a Lunar Lake chip will increase the price significantly – but certainly not by that much.

Finally, Bowden mentions a potential major criticism here: Could this Intel-equipped Surface Laptop be a pure business device? That’s what Microsoft did with Meteor Lake (in the Surface Laptop 6), and could the same be true for Lunar Lake? Could this perhaps be an explanation for the breathtaking prices?

Honestly, we’d forget about the prices mentioned here, but we can’t dismiss the idea of a business-focused launch so easily. Let’s just hope that consumer models come along, because if they aren’t an option it would be very disappointing.

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