Microsoft's new laptop may have missed the chance to beat Apple's MacBook

The new Surface Book is called the i7, after Intel's Skylake microprocessor range, and the hybrid device will be running on the same chip as its closest competitor, Apple's MacBook laptop range.

However, Microsoft may have messed up the Surface Book's chances of competing with the MacBook Pro, at least in terms of speed, by not going for Intel's seventh generation Kaby Lake processors, even though it already made an unverified claim that the Surface Book is three times faster than the older Macbook range.

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Microsoft is yet to release sales numbers for the Surface Book since its launched, but it is estimated that its various models - all together - have a 25% share of the hybrid laptop/tablet market. The IDC estimates that 16.6 million hybrid laptops were sold in 2015.

The base model of the Surface Book i7 (256GB SSD, 8GB RAM) costs $2,399 compared to the $1,799 price tag for the new MacBooks with Touch Bar display instead of function keys. The highest priced Surface Book model (1TB SSD, 16GB RAM) will retail for $3,299.

Pre-orders are already on for the new Surface Book before shipping starts in November. Microsoft will start selling its newest laptop in stores from November 10, 2016.