Microsoft Surface Book 2 release date, news: Microsoft competing with MacBook Pro by delaying laptop?

General view of Microsoft Corporation headquarters at Issy-les-Moulineaux, near Paris, France.Reuters/Charles Platiau/Files

As much as users want to see Microsoft Surface Book 2 take on the MacBook Pro 2016, which is all but confirmed to be released later this month, the second iteration of the Microsoft laptop will not be out anytime soon.

As reported before, Microsoft will hold an event on Oct. 26, a day before Apple's own launch event, specifically for its Surface All-in-One desktop computer.

The Microsoft Surface Book 2, although expected to be released this month to mark one year after the launch of its predecessor, has been delayed to spring 2017.

Microsoft analyst Mary Jo Foley claims that Microsoft will unveil an upgraded version of the Microsoft Surface Book instead to tide fans over the wait for the next-generation model.

The Redmond-based company delayed the release of the Microsoft Surface Book 2 to wait for the Redstone 2 update coming to Windows 10, which fans might hear about at the upcoming launch event.

The update should allow Microsoft to integrate additional features to the Microsoft Surface Book 2, that will otherwise be impossible to pull off without the Redstone 2.

This should also buy them time to make full use of the Intel Kaby Lake processor, which will be an advantage over Apple, which started the production of the MacBook Pro 2016 prior to the availability of the seventh-generation chipset.

Intel Kaby Lake on the Microsoft Surface Book 2 should provide superior performance compared to the Skylake-powered MacBook Pros.

There is not a lot of available information when it comes to the design of the next-gen Surface Book. The MacBook Pro is getting a major cosmetic makeover, with a digital strip replacing the physical function keys on the keyboard.

Considering that the Microsoft Surface Book is just one-year-old, and the design is just new, the new iteration may not see a drastic change in appearance.