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

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

375 answers

Sort by: Most helpful
Most helpful Newest Oldest
  1. Anonymous
    2020-01-06T18:35:24+00:00

    Same buzzing sound from my brand new Surface Laptop 3 i7 512gb 16MB 13". Sounds like an old laptop I forgot in the garage. I'm worried about this. Noise level varies, but in a quiet office environment, it's enough to be disruptive.

    Noise persist while plugged in or battery. Best performance or Best battery life.

    Was this answer helpful?

    1 person found this answer helpful.
    0 comments
  2. Anonymous
    2020-01-04T01:39:17+00:00

    Hey everyone. I have an update for you all. After returning 2 units. 

    1st unit having a defect on the black paint (check under light you might have the same)

    2nd unit (Buzzing noise)

    I recieved my refund and put a formal complaint in with Microsoft so hopefully they can address the problem for other users. 

    Upon browsing for some other things, I visited at least 5 retail stores, all of different brand names to see if the display models of the SL3 did the buzzing. ALL had buzzing noise. And all were much louder then what mine was which is worrying. 

    I suggest if you do not feel comfortable then return it. For a product of that price you would expect if the buzzing is normal then Microsoft would alert its consumers to the fact its normal. But if they are allowing the return for a refund, you know its defective.

    Was this answer helpful?

    1 person found this answer helpful.
    0 comments
  3. Anonymous
    2020-01-01T18:08:51+00:00

    Hi, yes, I found the battery life gets shortened by about 1 hour. Also, it also slows down CPU clocking speed a little bit, not noticeable in light-task use. But it can indeed kill the buzz at all, at least for my device. You can try it out. You can always reset it by run command below

    reg delete HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Processor /v Capabilities /f

    Once reset it and restart, I found the buzz immediately comes back.

    Was this answer helpful?

    1 person found this answer helpful.
    0 comments
  4. Anonymous
    2019-12-19T04:36:33+00:00

    Totally agree. The buzzing is highly likely to be coil whine, a.k.a., electric current induced transistor vibration. Mine is loud enough to distract me from focusing.

    Was this answer helpful?

    1 person found this answer helpful.
    0 comments
  5. Anonymous
    2019-12-18T17:18:26+00:00

    hi, yes, exactly. Thanks for sharing the noise recording. Mine is way worse than yours. I will return mine soon.

    Was this answer helpful?

    1 person found this answer helpful.
    0 comments