Microsoft’s Surface Laptop prototype leaks with Intel’s Lunar Lake chips inside

Microsoft introduced its Surface Laptop 7 earlier this year without Intel chips, in an effort to improve Windows on Arm and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite chips. Now, it looks like the Surface Laptop may arrive next year with Intel’s latest Lunar Lake chips.

A Surface Laptop prototype has surfaced from a now-defunct listing on Chinese second-hand marketplace Goofish, complete with what appears to be Intel’s Core Ultra 7 268V processor inside. Windows Central has seen the listing, but it’s unclear whether this will simply be a Surface Laptop 7 or Surface Laptop 8 variant.

In any case, the prototype laptop is clearly marked as such with a “large image – for sale” on the bottom of the device. While it’s easy to spoof the CPU listing within Windows, the look of the prototype label confirms that this is likely an unreleased laptop from Microsoft. It’s rare for such equipment to make a profit, let alone sell it online.

If Microsoft is considering Lunar Lake chips for its Surface Laptop line, it will ensure there is an Intel option for those looking for Copilot Plus PC features. The Surface Pro 10 and Surface Laptop 6 both shipped with Intel’s Meteor Lake processors earlier this year, but neither included an NPU powerful enough for Microsoft’s Copilot Plus features. Instead they were aimed at businesses, and lacked the updated designs found on the Surface Pro 11 and Surface Laptop 7.

The listing for this Surface Laptop prototype notes that the unannounced device should go on sale sometime in 2025, which could point to a CES 2025 announcement if Microsoft is reading this to consumers. Another possibility is that Microsoft also restricts Intel-based Surface devices to retail customers.

We asked Microsoft for comment on the leaked prototype, but the company did not respond in time for publication.