Microsoft will launch its family of Surface devices in South Africa “later this year”, the US technology giant said on Wednesday.

“Surface has many fans in South Africa who are eager to start using the products and purchase them for their businesses,” the company said in a statement.

“In addition, Surface has a large number of enterprise customers who do business globally. These global companies have been pushing us to expand into South Africa and we are excited to be able to expand our global coverage and serve customers in these critical markets.”

Microsoft has not provided a specific launch date yet. It is also launching the Surface line-up in Mexico, it said.

“Our intention is to bring our current Surface portfolio to South Africa by the end of the year,” it said. “We will have more information to share in the coming months.”

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The announcement coincides with news that Microsoft has made a range of Surface devices available for pre-order in markets where the devices are already available, including the new Surface Go 2, Surface Book 3, Surface Headphones 2, Surface Earbuds and accessories.

TechCentral reported in October 2019 about Microsoft’s intention to launch Surface products in South Africa. The company’s local MD, Lillian Barnard, said in an interview at the time: “It’s a question of when they’re coming, not if (they’re coming).”  — (c) 2020 NewsCentral Media