Microsoft Announces The Surface Dial

During the Microsoft October event, the company announced the Surface Dial, a wireless brushed aluminum puck that adds new gestures and functionality to a variety of Surface-friendly apps. It has the ability to quickly flip through document pages like a scroll wheel, adjust screen brightness or audio volume, and rewind through pen strokes like a rotating Ctrl-Z button. But the dial also has the ability to work directly onscreen for additional functions based on the app and the context, like changing paint color without picking up your pen (as seen in the video below). The Surface Dial work with the Surface Studio, Surface Pro 3, Pro 4 and Surface Book (though the on-screen functions will only work with the Studio.) At launch there will be 14 compatible apps, including Sketchable, Spotify and Microsoft Office apps. The Surface Dial is available to pre-order now for $100 and releases on November 10th.

Microsoft Announces The Surface Studio

During the Microsoft October event, the company announced a new desktop iteration of its tablet and laptop line called the Surface Studio. The Surface Studio features a touchscreen and a hinge that allows the 28-inch PixelSense display to be tilted at different angles, offering owners to operate the screen in the position best suited to their work. A Surface Pen is included with the Surface Studio, which features a 6 generation Intel Core i5 with 8GB of RAM (base model) but can go up to an Intel Core i7 and 35GB of RAM. Microsoft has full technical specs available on the Surface Studio's official page. The Studio is set for release on December 15.