System Firmware Update - 12/10/13 fails to install

I think you probably have the right of it.  There is no denying a problem exists. But one must remember the reality of coming to a community support location. You will only receive other users feedback, and, filtered 'official' information. People do not come here for tea. They come with problems. Many/most problems are extremely valid. But I draw a line, or try to draw a line saying Microsoft support is horrible.  Compared to what or who else? If Microsoft support is horrible, then all support is horrible. If you Google this support and see this forum, Bing Google support and see the same type results.

We are quick to proclaim Microsoft stupid. We all know this to be true. Just like apple with their ipad/iphonr/ipod problems. Just like Samsung with their exploding Galaxy issues..  Just like Asus, Lenovo, Sony... you complete the list.

I too have the SP2 that has been compromised by not only the last update, but the last 3.  But I have had the Samsung, Asus and apple, oh and moto's tablets, and had similar issues.  There have always been some workarounds and some failures. I stay with Surfaces because the problems are minimum in comparison.

If your tab is overheating, send it back. If your tab needs a software/firmware update, then sending it back may not fix the issue.  But whatever you choose to do, don't make the choice based on the stupidity of Microsoft. You can't win there.

For the record, I do not think we'll see a fix next week. If it was a simple fix, it would be done already. I believe this issue is bigger than Microsoft originally thought. It might be a couple more weeks to resolution.

Like I said before. I have an impacted sp2. I hope to see a fix soon. But there is no other tablet out there that gives me any greater confidence than the Surface's line. So I bide my time and wait...

There's several probable reasons Microsoft isn't releasing a patch yet:

• Winter holidays.
• They have almost never released a non-security patch on non-Tuesdays.
• To make an exception to that would be admitting to the severity of the problem.

Microsoft support has always been decent or at least adequate. What has never been decent is the way they respond to widespread problems. Their standard practice has always been to begin by playing dumb (every time!), then denying that the problem exists, then saying that the problem is more contained than it actually is, then misdirecting complaints or giving lousy excuses for not fixing the problem, then finally fixing them long after it starts affecting their sales or their future projects, or just flat out ignoring them.

The people on this thread don't represent any majority of people with this problem. Most people would not have recognized it to be a software problem, so they likely already got replacements. Microsoft is being very liberal with exchanges, after all.

I've been a staunch Microsoft customer for most of my life, so I understand  your desire to defend them in light of all the juvenile criticisms it receives, but please don't defend them when they're indefensible. Unfortunately, now with Ballmer's strategy of following Apple off of every cliff they jump, that's more often than not.

......Microsoft's service and support is abysmal and they obviously do not care about their customers.........

I've never had anything but satisfactory customer experiences with Microsoft both on the phone and in WIndows Stores.  Haven't had to return anything and the customer reps I've spoken to haven't always had all the answers but I found them knowledgeable, going out of their way to be helpful, and always very courteous and patient with me even if I was upset about something.  I mainly called them about power issues with my Surface RT tablet such as unexpected battery discharges while in Connected Standby mode and used the toll-free number that used to be given in the This Computer Properties window (seems to have disappeared in Windows RT v8.1!!  On the calls using that number, I always seemed to get a U.S.A. rep (and I'm calling from the U.S.) and all the reps I  spoke with had a very detailed knowledge of the Surface RT hardware and software properties.  So maybe service quality changes with the times or the device but I was impressed how much support I got for the Surface RT device.

Same with me... MS support has always provided the best insight to problem resolutions with absolute grace. However, this is the season of MS playing zero announcements. Both the botched firmware and CPU upgrade. Open Google and type in "Surface Pro 2 Firmware" and tons of news (no pun) regarding MS yanking, pulling, jerking, etc... firmware and how the fixes are or aren't coming. 99% of these news information actually come from this Forum. There were a few writers however who did follow up and managed to contact Microsoft regarding the issue which made up the 1% of the real updated news.

I think you probably have the right of it.  There is no denying a problem exists. But one must remember the reality of coming to a community support location. You will only receive other users feedback, and, filtered 'official' information. People do not come here for tea. They come with problems. Many/most problems are extremely valid. But I draw a line, or try to draw a line saying Microsoft support is horrible.  Compared to what or who else? If Microsoft support is horrible, then all support is horrible. If you Google this support and see this forum, Bing Google support and see the same type results.

We are quick to proclaim Microsoft stupid. We all know this to be true. Just like apple with their ipad/iphonr/ipod problems. Just like Samsung with their exploding Galaxy issues..  Just like Asus, Lenovo, Sony... you complete the list.

I too have the SP2 that has been compromised by not only the last update, but the last 3.  But I have had the Samsung, Asus and apple, oh and moto's tablets, and had similar issues.  There have always been some workarounds and some failures. I stay with Surfaces because the problems are minimum in comparison.

Compared to the many other companies I have dealt with over the years: Sony, Panasonic, Fujitsu, Gateway, etc.  this company has been the least forthcoming with the exception of Dell. Not all support is horrible,  but this debacle is what led me to state that MS support is abysmal.  I stand by that statement until Microsoft proves me wrong. As my old computer was on its last legs,  I purchased the SP2-it is the only PC I own and now I am using mobile devices hoping Ms gets their act together.