A year after announcing that it was coming, Microsoft Corp. today finally released details of its next-generation Surface Hub mega tablet along with giving would-be buyers a release date and a price.

Called the Surface Hub 2S, the new range of megatablets will be offered in 50.5-inch and 85-inch screen sizes, with a big upgrade under the hood from the initial version released back in 2015.

Starting with the aesthetics, the 50.5-inch model is said 40% lighter than its predecessor with a 60% thinner display. The screen offers 4K multitouch capability with a custom 3:2 aspect ratio to deliver resolution of 3,840 x 2,560 pixels or 9.8 million pixels total, higher than the original model that offered a 16:9 ratio and 1920 × 1080 pixels.

Under the hood, the new Hub 2S gets an 8th-generation Intel Core i5 processor, 8 gigabytes of memory and 128GB of solid-state drive storage.

Although 128GB is not particularly high, Microsoft noted that the Hub 2S has been designed to operate in the cloud, including storage, though the device also includes UBS-C and USB-A ports with support for external storage.

For videoconferencing, one of the main uses Microsoft pitches for the product, the Hub 2S includes eight microphones, front-facing speakers and a detachable 4K webcam. The software powering the device is an updated version of the original Surface Hub platform, which is based on Windows 10 but does not support all Windows 10 functions. Pre-installed software on the device includes Skype for Business, Microsoft Teams and Microsoft Whiteboard with support for Office programs including Word, PowerPoint and Excel.

Surface Hub Monitor

In a surprise announcement, Microsoft also announced it will launch a Surface Hub Monitor. Essentially a Surface Hub 2S without any computing power, the monitor is simply a large monitor with multitouch support that works with Surface Pens and Surface Cameras when paired with an actual computer.

At the same time, Microsoft also said that it’s working on a new configuration option for Surface Hub 2S customers to run Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise on their devices for specialized app scenarios.

The 50.5-inch Surface Hub 2S will be available in the U.S. starting in June for $8,999.99 with other markets to follow. The 85-inch version will be available sometime next year, with no price given, while the Surface Hub monitor is coming later this year.

Photo: Microsoft