Surface Pro 4 - External screen keeps turning on/off (black flickering)

Dear Microsoft, Microsoft CUSTOMERS,

    I must say I am astonished by the manner Microsoft is dealing with this issue. Let's face it, there is quite a number of CUSTOMERS complaining about the same issue (this thread, to mention one channel) Yet, it seems Microsoft, instead of actively solve the problem, has chosen to use brute force by putting the Microsoft Support army in between the CUSTOMER and a real solution.

    I say so, due to the experience I have had with Microsoft and the Support - I have contacted them countless times, spent hours and hours of my time troubleshooting with an army of restless Support attendants who always start back from the beginning. I must reckon the support team is well trained on customer relationship techniques: "yes, rest assured I will personally look after your problem", "I am sure we will find the best solution for you", "thank you for being so polite during our conversation", "thank you for waiting". That is all very nice and good, nevertheless, if I was looking for professional comfort, I would seek a psychologist. When I contact Microsoft Support, I am seeking for an efficient technical SOLUTION and, for most pleasant and polite the attendants might sound, the least I want is to be with them, troubleshooting.

    I do feel sorry for the support people, though - left unattended by Microsoft engineering. Yet, mostly sorry I feel for the CUSTOMERS  who needs to be on chats and phone calls, sometimes out of business hours and even past midnight, repeating over and over an issue that has been clearly documented by many others... where are you Microsoft ??? step up for your customers and address the issue.

   Please, Microsoft Support, stop asking customers to make a factory reset. I have been through this path, and again, spent endless hours on backups and resets just to find out that, by doing a factory reset, the problem goes away due to a "clever" re-staging process whereby the frequency of the external monitor gets reduced to 30Hz. Shame on this "clever" factory reset that induces the CUSTOMER to believe the problem is solved where it actually just hides the problem under the carpet.

**Shame on Microsoft for not providing a clear fix for their CUSTOMERS.**Until when are you going to keep on ignoring the issue ?

To finalize, my household uses 5 devices, currently being 2 of them Surface devices. Rest assured that, on the upcoming replacements, my  buying decisions will be highly influenced by this experience. The lines above do not grasp my disappointment.

That's a pain isn't it. I can easily wipe my PC and try again but I honestly don't think that would help. As an insider I do it often, probably 6 times a year.

Given you don't have time before summer I might give it a go in the coming weeks, perhaps when I'm ready to try a new insider build (currently on production release).

I've seen another forum on the topic with lots of people talking about it but that hasn't seen any action for this year. Can I suggest you unmark this thread as answered by Arnulfo Avi?

Thanks Arnulfo, it actually worked! I was doubting a bit at the beginning... But it has solved the issue.

Any idea from where it came from? Was it due to a recent update?

Thanks again,

G.

Hi Arnulfo,

There was no Duet app installed on my computer.

Regarding to the screen compatibility, having only a couple of brands "compatible" with a 2000£ device is rather than disappointing...

Anything else than I can try? I don't mind trying experimental solutions.

Thanks,

G.

Thanks for getting back to us and for giving us the update.

Please download and run Software Repair Tool on your device. This is a solution built and hosted by Microsoft that can help resolve the most common software issues on Surface devices.

Please keep us in the loop.Thank you.