An attendee photographs the new Microsoft Surface Pro 3, during the event in New York May 20, 2014.
An attendee photographs the new Microsoft Surface Pro 3, during the event in New York May 20, 2014. Reuters/Brendan McDermid

To rival Apple’s MacBook Pro 2016 line-up, Microsoft is rumoured to unveil the next iteration of its popular Surface Pro 4 as early as July. The new Surface Pro 5 may also be accompanied by the next generation of Surface Book.

However, the Redmond-based tech giant has not yet announced the official release date of Surface Pro 5 and Surface Book 2. Here’s roundup of expected specs and features of the rumoured Surface Pro 5.

1. Innovative rechargeable Surface Pen

According to Patently Mobile, a patent application published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office revealed that Microsoft is working on a rechargeable Surface Pen and Surface Dock.

“A charging circuit within the stylus may provide charging current for recharging the battery ,” as noted by Microsoft in the patent application. Schematic drawings also show a stylus with on/off button, charging terminal and indicator light. The stylus of the current Surface Pro 4 works with either a button cell a triple A battery.

2. Intel Kaby Lake Processor

Rumours are rife that Microsoft will use Intel’s 7th generation of Kaby Lake processor for the new Surface Pro 5, instead of Skylake chipset which powers its predecessor. The new processor is also believed to enhance battery life of the laptop-hybrid device.

3. Improved battery life

According to Trusted Reviews, the current Surface Pro 4 battery life drops with demanding tasks like streaming videos on Netflix as compared to other Android tablets.

The new generation of Surface Pro is believed to come packed with an improved battery life placing it at par with Apple’s iPad Pro, as reported by Inquisitr.

4. Fingerprint sensor

Currently, the Surface Pro 4 accompanies a Type Cover with fingerprint sensor, which has to be purchased separately. According to the BitBag, with the Surface Pro 5, Microsoft may incorporate the fingerprint scanner onboard.

5. ​4K Display screen

The Surface Pro 4 features a 12.3-inch display with a screen resolution of 2736×1824 pixels. Prevailing rumours indicate that Microsoft will introduce 4K display resolution with the new Surface Pro 5.

Related: Microsoft Surface Pro 5, Surface Book 2 release date reportedly in July - set to rival MacBook Pro, Air 2016 launch