Even more problems with Surface Pro 4 batteries and Surface TypeCovers

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I’ve been covering “flickergate” since last April, and there’s still no resolution from Microsoft — in spite of a recent flare-up in tech blog covera
[See the full post at: Even more problems with Surface Pro 4 batteries and Surface TypeCovers]

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We are customers of Microsoft who have invested $1500+ on new Surface Pro devices

I truly feel sorry for all of the people who shelled out big bucks for this disposable piece of junk.

I’ll bet Bill Gates would never have allowed a piece of junk like the Surface Pro to ever see the light of day. Whatever Microsoft would have sold would have been thoroughly tested in-house before even going to the beta testers. And said testing would have included tearing down and reassembling the device.

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4 users thanked author for this post.

flackcatcher, Karlston, Elly, FakeNinja

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Here’s a challenge… name one Microsoft technology that’s market-leading rather than stagnant, dead or dying.

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Microsoft Mouse.

One could say that Windows is market leading, and not stagnant. That is, if you think the new direction that Microsoft is going is “market leading”. I think Microsoft will continue to prosper with large corporations that have deep pockets.

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Remember the Surface/Surface Book and Windows 10 release back in October 2015? And the subsequent deluge of owner problems and complaints on Reddit and other forums? Microsoft’s enthusiastic [sic] support for Windows phones? Thought things couldn’t get worse?

Anyone who has a choice, but still buys into MS products and services deserves what they get. Unfortunately, most do not have a viable alternative.

 

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I really liked the Pro 4, now I rarely use it- 1/4 of the screen no longer responds while in tablet mode. I’ll never buy MS hardware again.

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MrJimPhelps wrote:

Microsoft Mouse

“It’s taken three and a half decades, but Microsoft has finally made the ultimate mouse.”? (https://www.cnbc.com/2017/12/01/microsoft-just-made-the-ultimate-mouse.html)

With all its bajillions, if its last successful hardware product is a mouse… then so be it.

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The switchable warp scroll this mouse has that has the CNBC cooing is a feature my Logitech G500 has had since it was launched in 2009.  I use it daily with my Asus laptop of similar vintage.

The USB charging cable that turns it into a wired mouse while charging (or permanently, if you want) was a feature on the G500’s successor, the G700, from 2011.  I used mine in wired mode exclusively; I don’t much care for wireless peripherals.

Both of those Logitechs also had or have side buttons that are programmable from within Windows.  The G700 boasted onboard memory that could be used to assign macros or keypresses (or strings of them) to any of the buttons from hardware, so the mouse could then be moved to any PC (or Mac) and still retain those functions.  You would still need a Windows installation (perhaps in a VM?) to assign the buttons for a Mac or Linux, but at least you can do it somehow.

As for the ability to pair with more than one computer… well, I did a quick search for that, and I see a product called the Logitech Triathlon M720 that has that ability also.  The article describing it’s a year old, so the feature’s existed at the very least since then.

The article’s author says that “some” of the mouse’s features have been found in Logitech or Razer mice previously.  I’d like to know which ones haven’t been; other than the rest of that statement about how the MS product “just feels right,” it doesn’t seem to offer anything new that I can see.  “Just feels right” is highly subjective, and it’s a safe bet that not everyone is going to think this mouse feels better than everything else out there.

It may well be a quality product, but I don’t see any innovation.

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Hi.

I had purchas a surface pro. Even b4 the warranty ended. I was having problem with it.  Took back they fix once and change second time around.  Last summer after warranty ended my split screen no longer works.  In October my computer went dead. I thought it was sleeping because I keep charging hoping it would turn on.  Now several months later same problem not turning on.  I then realize that the battery is dead.  I am so angry. I regret buying this tablet.  If you all have any more answers regarding these issues please post

 

Thanks

Gerre

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In EU we have two years of warranty. Ha-ha!

And EU is underway with legislations against “artificial aging” of products. When the laws become active, even after two years, the manufacturer would have to fix an issue like the dead battery, unsupported software updates etc….

The battery problem should be easy and cheap to fix for Microsoft and customer. Take out the battery, send it in, recieve a replacement. Plug it in, charge and – Voila!

…

Oh… wait…

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ryegrass, woody

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Has anyone else experienced continual curser jumping.  I have never been able to type a sentence without having the curser move somewhere other than where I’m typing.

 

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That’s more symptomatic of a bad touchpad (or possibly a bad pen).

I’d start here: https://www.lovemysurface.net/troubleshoot-surface-type-cover-touchpad-issues/

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If it were just a matter of replacing faulty parts, Microsoft would have had these Surface problems fixed by now. They have a design problem. The design is being stressed beyond its capabilities.

The executives have to be aware of the issues. It is odd that they have let this fester for this length of time. I can only assume that there has to be a design fault that they can not solve. It is possible that it is proving difficult to maintain the form factor, the unique look and deliver on the specs they desire.

Failure is not an option or eat crow!

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I’ve been raked over the coals for not providing enough supporting evidence for the bad battery claims. It’s true that the Computerworld article “only” pointed to four detailed accounts. But there are many, may more. For example:

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/surface/forum/surfpro4-surfperf/surface-pro-4-plugged-in-not-charging/7e0c1974-be7d-4ed2-bfc6-c57310a2c56e?auth=1

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/surface/forum/surfpro4-surfperf/surface-pro-4-not-charging-when-plugged-in/00516272-6fa5-4401-ac2e-707a33dded14

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/surface/forum/surfpro4-surfperf/surface-pro-4-plugged-in-not-charging/99961c38-b50c-4598-bcb1-f58e1886705b

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/surface/forum/surfpro4-surfperf/surface-pro-4-charged-overnight-still-flashes/2ead3a2d-12cd-4ff6-8190-8ab86f1968ef

https://www.reddit.com/r/Surface/comments/7rxesy/how_to_check_sp4_battery_health_and_behaviours/

https://www.reddit.com/r/Surface/comments/6xretl/surface_pro_4_does_not_charge/

Anybody care to add to the list?

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I’ve owned a Ms pro4 since July and haven’t had so much as a Dead pixel, I frequently update with Windows Insider, the drivers claim to increase the life of certain hardware.  They have a specific Insider Beta specifically for surface devices.

Its I definitely Not passed the warranty date so I can’t conclusively say one way or other on the device.

What I can say is that it’s an amazing piece of hardware.  I draw constantly without lag or slowdown of any kind..  as of now I’m extremely happy with my sorry.

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How come smartphones and tablets cannot be powered directly from the AC electrical wall outlet? Planned Obsolescence of rechargeable batteries?
Laptops, radios, blood pressure monitors, solar panel powered systems, etc can be powered directly from the AC electrical wall outlets.

Remember, M$ Surface Pro devices are tablets that can only be powered directly from the rechargeable batteries. The AC wall outlet is only used to recharge the tablet batteries.

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Elly

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You would have a thicker box shaped device or other curiously shaped container; And it would require a power supply that generates enough power or more energy than the built-in lithium ion based can supply.  You’d also need detachable power cable or a case with a place to store it inside with the phone.

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Is this really the norm now?

The only rechargeable devices I have that operate as you describe are an electric razor and my cordless phones (that connect to landlines).  It’s quite evident in the razor, as when its battery is low, it can be plugged in but still operate too slowly to be of any practical use, exactly the same as if I unplugged it and tried to use it with the nearly depleted battery.

The phone, as you might expect, simply hangs up if it is placed in the charging base, so it is not possible to even try to use it while charging.

My Android tablet, though, can be run from the AC adapter without any problems.  If the battery is totally discharged, I can plug the adapter in and instantly turn the tablet on and get full use of the device.  Given that this is how laptops and other rechargeable devices have performed since the start, I find it appalling that it would ever not be the case.  On an electric razor, I can overlook it, but anything more expensive or more sophisticated should do better.  Even my ancient Samsung slider feature phone can be powered from the adapter and used flawlessly with a completely dead battery.

That’s not the same as saying that the AC adapter of the tablet is able to meet the power demands of the unit under all circumstances, which it isn’t.  When playing games or otherwise taxing the unit, the unit will sometimes show a net discharge state (a red X through the battery icon), meaning that the unit is drawing more wattage than the adapter is supplying.  It’s a transient state, though; as soon as power demand drops, the unit will again enter a charging state, and throughout all of this, it functions flawlessly from the user experience standpoint, unless the battery is discharged to the point that the combination of that battery and the AC adapter can’t meet the power demands of the tablet, in which case it will throttle or shut off.

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1 user thanked author for this post.

Elly

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I agree with the reports. Although, I’m a fan and surface pro owner,

1. I’m immensely disappointed with MS for poor  after sales and customer service . It’s no different than picking up a bootleg copy of something off the street with no guarantee?

**And I live in China where Service standards are already questionable. MS fared poorer than local Chinese vendors.?

2. After buying 2 Type covers for almost a $150 each ($300) ?, Stopped working in less than 2 months without any use. Unbelievable. I’ve been using a $40 Bluetooth mouse and keyboard which seems like a better quality option?

3. Customer Service is completely useless,  just for namesake. They never seem to know or understand what’s wrong when it comes to Hardware or software. Every time I call them I feel slightly confused whethet I’ve called the wrong company ?

On multiple occasions, I’ve end up resolving the issue by myself and i’ve let ’em know so they can help some other poor soul like me.

4. My device got bent out of shape while in my bagpack never had this experience with any other device manufacturers.

5. Constant updates make thing worse by causing hardware and driver glitches

ScreenCast ?

wifi ?

6. I think officially the hardware ranking has been downgraded as poor quality issues have become common knowledge.

7. All these complications make it hard to recommend it to anyone especially with the price ?

 

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@ Ascaris

AFAIK, you cannot run a smartphone or tablet on AC wall outlet power(or the AC adapter/charger) with its rechargeable battery removed/unplugged. You can do so with a laptop = the user can even opt to not replace a dead laptop rechargeable battery, ie you cannot do so with a smartphone or tablet.

Laptop batteries usually last longer than phablet batteries, especially when the laptops are often powered directly from the AC wall outlet = the laptops use less number of battery recharge cycles.

_

@ anonymous #166141 – It is not true that a phablet has to be thicker in order to accommodate the plug/port direct power from the AC wall outlet.

The electrical power supply(= Wattage and Amperage) from the AC wall outlet is always very much higher that the power supply from the phablet rechargeable batteries. The AC adapter/charger for phablets actually work by reducing greatly(via transformer-rectifiers) the voltage, wattage/amperage and converting to DC power from the AC wall outlet(= 220/110V, 13A).

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My Surface Pro 2 Type Covers are bricked now. No issues until 2018. Can’t roll back to old firmware, updates killed my device. I tried with multiple covers, restored factory image, cleaned the connector contacts, etc. Such timing that End of Life of SP2 was April 2018.

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