Surface Pro 4 Bulging Battery / Screen. 3 1/2 years old.

Anonymous

So, like many others on this forum, we have a Surface Pro 4, in which the battery has decided to self-destruct, destroying a £1,700 machine.

The screen hasn't popped off, but the battery has swollen enough to prevent the hinge from opening as it should and for the glass on the front to be very distorted, and it registers random screen input, all the while running hotter than the central heating.

I've spoken to support. They unhelpfully told me that because my warranty is up, I would have to pay several hundred pounds (£333) to replace the machine with a refurbished unit. To me, this is completely unacceptable. These devices are clearly flawed by design. This issue is too wide spread for it to be a coincidence. The batteries used in these devices are obviously flawed, and when I suggested as such, Sean L, the person dealing with my case, stopped responding (A few days after that, I wrote to Microsoft's twitter support who confirmed that the case had been closed. Thanks Sean L.)

If the device is dangerous (as suggested by the agent who I spoke to on the phone in the first instance) and it does catch fire while we are away this summer, and it subsequently burns down a multi-million pound Cambridge University building? What then, Microsoft? You'll wish you'd just replaced it then, won't you.

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

0 comments

220 answers

Anonymous

2021-10-16T17:44:35+00:00

I hear you Terry

The tech guy told me buy another machine. No way ever
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2021-10-16T17:43:36+00:00

I agree that just happened to my machine today. How can I back up the files before I do anything else.
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2021-10-13T15:39:25+00:00

Yep they told me there was "nothing they could do", so I am on the hook for their design flaw despite taking excellent care of my machine. I have replaced the device with an Asus Zenbook since then, even though I was originally planning to get a new Surface next year, because Microsoft does not seem to care if their laptop burns my house down.

Microsoft wants to compete with Apple with premium laptops, and while it is a nice laptop, the service is not. The difference is that when MacBook Airs had a similar problem, Apple replaced them. And that is why Apple keeps their customers and I have stopped buying Surface. The cost of reputation is far more than admitting a mistake and fixing a few machines.
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2021-10-13T15:25:52+00:00

Yes, I agree: the Dell XPS13 is excellent!
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2021-10-13T14:19:18+00:00

The problem is that Microsoft have decided they are not going to do anything about this serious design flaw. They arrogantly assume that when an expensive piece of hardware is three years old its only fit for the trash and everyone should buy a new one after that time. This does not say much for their hardware if it only has a three year lifespan!

The long and the short of it is they don't care about a small band of customers being alienated, they look at the bigger picture which is the Surface is selling well, so loosing a few customers is just a rounding error not worth worrying about.

Personally I will never buy Microsoft hardware again, I have put my money on a Dell XPS13 which has performed excellently, given no problems and has shown very little battery degradation in almost a year. On top of that the battery is easily replaceable, it just means removing a few screws to open the case rather than the sealed unit limited life Microsoft product which has been engineered as a throw away machine but not at a throwaway price!
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments