SAN FRANCISCO, April 25 — Reports and rumours that the company is prepping an 8-inch version of its Surface Windows 8 tablet have been doing the rounds since September, but Microsoft has so far remained silent on the subject.

And although the company is still refusing to publicly confirm or deny that a new product is on the way, Amazon, or at least a company that uses Amazon to sell its goods, might have let the cat out of the bag.

Accessories made by Vostrostone specifically for the Microsoft Surface Mini have appeared on the online retailer’s US site, and according to the listings, will be available to order from May 18 — suggesting that an official launch is little more than three weeks away.

Thanks to leaks and well-placed sources, it appears that the smaller version of Microsoft’s tablet will use the same premium materials as the full-sized Surface slabs and is expected to come with a proper digitising pen for on-screen input rather than just a stylus — so it could well appeal to creatives as well as on-the-move executives — and will use a low power ARM-based processor.

If that is the case then the smaller tablet will not be running the full Windows 8.1 suite and won’t be compatible with legacy apps. However, it will be better suited to mobile use and to connecting to the web via 3G or 4G/LTE.

ZDNet, which first spotted the Amazon listing, approached Microsoft for comment but the response was “We have nothing to share.” — AFP-Relaxnews