The filing mentions a pen with a “charging coil”, the internal tech used in phones and accessories to receive power wirelessly. A similar method has been used in Samsung’s S-Pen, as well as the Apple Pencil 2. As a result, it would make sense for Microsoft to match the competition. You’d be able to snap the Pen onto your Surface Pro and have it charge automatically when you aren’t using it. This would drain some battery from the 2-in-1, but it’s unlikely to be a significant amount. We’ve previously seen an update to one of Microsoft’s patents that switched from a charging loop design to inductive charging. It described ways to make the coil smaller and flat, letting the comments be placed on the screen for charging, for example. Then again, patents have also surfaced of a pen with an Apple Touchbar-like screen, or one that doubles as an earpiece. While the FFC filing is a larger signal it will make it to market this year, it’s not a guarantee. For that, we’ll have to wait for the Surface event. If the new pen is announced, we should also get an idea of pricing, as it’s likely to be sold separately. A Surface Pen will currently set you back $99, so it’ll be interesting to see if Microsoft can keep the same pricing.
