Microsoft is holding a media event in New York City on October 2, and it is widely believed that the company might finally reveal the long-rumored two-screen Surface Centarus device. Newly approved FCC filings, however, indicate that Microsoft could also possibly debut a new Surface wireless keyboard and mouse at the event to pair up with any new hardware.
Although the filings do not confirm whether the keyboard and mouse will be entirely new products or just a refresh, they do seemingly reveal two previously unseen model numbers. This includes 1898 for a wireless keyboard and 1929 for a mouse. Diagrams also speculate and show would-be designs for what could be the end products, as first obtained by the Italian blog, Windows Blog Italia.
Based on the diagrams, with the keyboard, it could be assumed there will be a battery chamber on the top left-hand corner of the device. This could be the spot for AAA batteries, as is with the current Surface Keyboard, or it could be a rechargeable internal battery.
As for the mouse, the design appears to be fairly similar to the current Surface mouse, but with the Bluetooth pairing button moving from the center to the bottom. The tracker and sensors could also move from the middle to the left side of the mouse. A housing for batteries is also absent, hinting at rechargeable technology similar to Logitech’s MX series. Again, this has not been confirmed and is just speculation based on the diagrams.
The filings were just approved on September 3, giving extra reason to believe that the new accessories are pending an October launch. Back in 2016, similar filings with the Bluetooth Special Interest Group had leaked in the leadup to Microsoft’s fall hardware event. Those filings had revealed all the details the current generation Surface Keyboard and Mouse, which were both revealed alongside the original Surface Studio.
Currently, Microsoft’s lineup of Surface-branded accessories is led by the Surface Keyboard, Surface Ergonomic Keyboard, and the Microsoft Modern Keyboard with Fingerprint ID. There is also the Surface Arc Mouse, Mobile Mouse, Surface Mouse, and Surface Precision Mouse. Other non-Surface branded keyboards and mice include the Microsoft Pro IntelliMouse, as well as the Microsoft Designer Bluetooth Desktop keyboard and mouse combo.
Alongside any new Surface accessories, Microsoft is also rumored to reveal the Surface Pro 7, as well as other updates or refreshes of the Surface Book and Surface Laptop during the October 2 event.