Surface Laptop 3 screen flickering issue - I had this with the Surface Pro 4 too

Anonymous

Hello everyone,

I just noticed a problem with my two-month old Surface Laptop 3 (i7/16/256): there is screen flickering in the lower left corner of the screen. The flicker disappears when I move the mouse or play a video. I immediately panicked since I had a similar issue with my previous Surface Pro 4 and it turns out it was a hardware issue. The biggest issue is that on the Surface Pro 4 it has gotten worse over time.

Returning at this time is out of question for me, I need it for work.

Anyone else has this issue ? I'm not expecting an easy fix but who knows.

PS: Below is a video with the issue:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zE4oI9wfAk

Thanks !

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Anonymous

Ok everyone, I have great news ! (edit: not so great)

I managed to fix the issue (edit: nope).

Just as I suspected, it is indeed a power management issue where the panel tries to optimize power consumption by utilizing a technology called "panel self-refresh" which basically allows the screen electronics to refresh its current image independent of the graphics card if nothing has changed on the screen. You must disable that.

Here are the steps:

Open Microsoft Store, then search for and install "Intel® Graphics Command Center".
Open the app, go the "System" vertical tab, then go the "Power" horizontal tab
Disable the "Panel Self-Refresh" option on both "On Battery" and "Plugged In" modes.

The problem should instantly disappear, even before you leave the app.

EDIT: Unfortunately, the problem will only lessen in frequency, but will not disappear completely. But I will leave this post here, maybe it helps in some cases.

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45 additional answers

Anonymous

2020-04-11T03:51:39+00:00

Hi Catalin Stavaru1,

Thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Community.

Screen flicker on the new Surface Laptop 3 is not like what happened to the Surface Pro 4. This might just be a software glitch on the device. Please follow these steps to troubleshoot the issue:

1: Run Surface Diagnostic Toolkit and check Windows Update

2: Update drivers and firmware

                               Check what is the current OS Build of your Windows version by going to Settings > System > About.

                               Go to Download driver and firmware for Surface, choose Surface Laptop 3 then click Download on the next page.

                               Choose the .msi file that matches your current OS Build and click Next.

                               After downloading, run and install the .msi then Restart.

3: Run System File Checker Tool in Windows 10

If this answer your question, we highly encourage you to inform our Community by clicking on Yes or marking my post as an answer. This will help other members who may have the same issue as you. Otherwise, don't hesitate to update us so we can further assist you.

Kind Regards,

Marrion Y.
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