Surface Laptop 3 Faint Buzzing Sound

Anonymous
2019-10-23T21:50:20+00:00

Hello,

I’ve got the i5 8GB Surface Laptop 3 (13.5-inch), and today, while browsing the internet, I noticed a fairly faint  buzzing sound coming from under the keyboard. It was faint enough you couldn’t hear it from a couple metres away, and sometimes buzzed continuously, other times buzzed in short repetitive bursts.

It didn’t sound like the fan to me, so I opened up the task manager to see if browsing was straining the computer in some way.

I have updated the computer completely, but the buzzing persisted.

Is this a normal electronics problem? Is it actually just the fan? Or is it possibly a defective unit?

Edit/Update:

I took the device into the MS Store today to see if there was something wrong. The staff took it into the back and tested it. They found increasing the computer's workload caused the sound to increase and described it as a popping static-y sound. They replaced the device and I have a new one now. Unfortunately, I've found through usage that this one is also making the sound. I am waiting to see if a firmware update reduces the noise since it seems pervasive across the devices.

Surface | Surface Laptop | Install and update

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  1. Anonymous
    2019-11-29T05:50:35+00:00

    I have the same issue in addition to some lags. I went to the Microsoft store in garden state plaza, NJ and they changed the laptop. But reading those reviews, I feel like they are aware of the issue, but instead of telling me that every laptop has this problem and being fully honest, they said that it may have been only my device that had this issue. Anyways I am using the surface laptop 3 right now, and the noise still persists. We are in 2020, my 2011 laptop doesn't have those issues. This challenges Microsoft's credibility.

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  2. Anonymous
    2019-11-28T18:22:22+00:00

    Same issue with my device. The Microsoft Support guided me to reinstall the OS, but - of course- the issue still persists. Then I was told to go to a store in my region to compare it to other SL3 devices. And -no surprise- same issue with these devices. It would be very helpful to know if this can be fixed with a firmware update or not. The Surface Laptop 3 is a great piece of hardware, but especially in quiet environment, when you have to focus on your work, it is hard to stay in flow.

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  3. Anonymous
    2019-11-27T04:56:25+00:00

    Hello,

    I just bought the SL3 i7 16gb and the first thing I notice is the loud buzzing sound that seems to be the fan (or a coil) under the laptop. I am very concerned because I bought it hours ago... I am thinking of returning it after reading all these comments. 

    I check updates and ran the Surface Diagnostic Toolkit and everything is fine. It will make the noise at best performance but it seems to slowly fade when I put it on Recommended power mode, but the noise comes back when I open a few apps like Skype and email. It definitely heats up the laptop as well whether plugged in or not.

    Any tips or recommendations...? Seems like a common issue for a lot of people

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  4. Anonymous
    2019-11-25T10:21:31+00:00

    same!!!!! I thought the fan is defective. Took to store staff was nice changed for me. Sadly it does the same thing! Hope there is new drive to fix this ASAP. So annoying this is a defects! my 8 year old laptop is not as loud.

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  5. Anonymous
    2019-11-24T21:01:40+00:00

    I have the same issue. I bought 13.5 inch, 256Gb / 8Gb  i5 yesterday.

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