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The Microsoft Surface Pro 4 and Surface Book now cost more in the UK thanks to the fall in the pound post EU referendum. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
The Microsoft Surface Pro 4 and Surface Book now cost more in the UK thanks to the fall in the pound post EU referendum. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian

Microsoft raises prices of some PCs by up to £400 due to Brexit

This article is more than 7 years old

Move follows Apple and Sonos rises, with cost of Surface and Surface Book computers increasing by 15%

Microsoft has increased the price of its Surface and Surface Book computers in the UK by more than 15%, or £400 for some models, due to sterling’s drop in the value post-EU referendum.

The price increase comes in the wake of similar moves by Sonos and twice by Apple, which saw the cost of computers, speakers and apps rise by as much as 25%, adjusting for the falling value of sterling against the dollar, the currency in which Microsoft and other US technology firms do their accounting.

A Microsoft spokesperson said: “In response to a recent review we are adjusting the British pound prices of some of our hardware and consumer software in order to align to market dynamics. For indirect sales where our products and services are sold through partners, final prices will continue to be determined by them.”

From the Microsoft Store, the Surface Book now starts at £1,449, up £150 and 11.5% from £1,299 a week ago, while the top-end Surface Book now costs £400 more. While the starting price of the Surface Pro 4 remains at its original £749 mark, some models are up to £160 more expensive.

Microsoft is expected to release a new version of its tablet-first Surface Pro Windows 10 computer in the near future, although whether it will be more expensive than these post-Brexit referendum adjusted prices remains to be seen.

The Redmond, Washington-based company came out in favour of the UK staying within the EU in May 2016 and employs more than 5,000 people in the UK, working in partnership with around 25,000 British businesses. The company announced in October last year that it would be forced to increase the cost of its enterprise software and cloud services as the pound fell against the US dollar and the Euro.

The cost of Amazon Web Services, one of Microsoft’s largest cloud services competitors has also increased for UK customers in the wake of the referendum as it is billed in US dollars.

  • This article was updated on 17 February to clarify that the increase in the cost of Amazon Web Services for UK customers was due to the change in the exchange rate.

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