Microsoft is holding a two-day event in London at the end of October called "Future Decoded." A range of speakers, including Azure CTO Mark Russinovich and Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth, will be speaking. Included among their number is Panos Panay, corporate vice president of Microsoft Devices. Panay's presence, according to sources speaking to The Verge, is because Microsoft will be releasing at least one new Surface-branded device at the event.

What that device may be isn't known. We know, because the company has told us, that a LTE version of the 2017 Surface Pro is planned , so Microsoft may use the unusual venue—most Surface events have been held in New York City—for a relatively minor release. Alternatively, the company may be moving away from using NYC for its Surface events; the 2017 Surface Pro itself was announced at an event in China.

Beyond the LTE Surface Pro, an updated Surface Book and a new generation of ARM-powered Windows devices are also possible candidates for the event. According to Mary Jo Foley, Microsoft is not yet ready to release updated versions of the Surface Hub whiteboard/conferencing system or the Surface Studio all-in-one PC, though both would be good candidates for a refresh once Intel's Coffee Lake processors are on the market.