Screen flicker and ghosting

This could be a hardware related issue. We suggest that you run the Software Repair Tool from this link and see if the issue will be resolved. If not, we recommend that you visit one of our Microsoft Store near your area. You can also contact our Answer Desk team.

Feel free to post back if you have other questions or concerns.

I ran the software repair too, checked for updates, uninstalled and reinstalled the drivers and then attempted 2 factory resets on my devices.  None of which solved the problem.  Infact it started ghosting and flickering when it was rebooting from a factory reset.

I took both tablets into the Microsoft Store and they said this was a known hardware issue and did a warranty replacement on both devices.

Hi, 

Thanks for the update link, however my device is set to automatically check for updates, and so it shouldn't need a manual input to that should it?  I had already checked for updates, and had the latest Creative update to windows 10, but i downloaded the files as you suggested, but the problem with ghosting is still present.

The device works for about an hour or two before this starts to happen, so not sure if it's related to software more than hardware.

So now, as i write this, the ghosting has started again, and i've been working relatively trouble-free for a couple of hours up to now.

Also, a quick point, just before the ghosting of the windows starts to happen, a line appears across the very top of the screen - i've tried taking a screenshot of this, but as it's so close to the top, it isn't captured in the clipping.  As soon as this line appears, the rest of the problems soon follow; so there must be a relationship.

What's next?

I have the screen issue too and am out of warranty

The issue occurs when the Pro is hot and on mains charge.   I now keep a fan running pointing at the top right corner of the Pro when on charge.   Even with the fan the screen can ghost if I am using a lot of processor power.  As soon as the ghost appears, I pull the charger off and have a cup of tea.  The screen is OK after a few minutes.   The ghosting never appears when running only on battery.

So now the Pro 4 is just about usable with this workaround

Still wish I'd never bought it

BG

Surface Pro 4,  i7 6650U, Win 10 with latest updates.

Yep, same problem, ongoing now for a few months. I put it down to overheating at first, as I was running some heavy apps (large file GIS processing). The back of the case felt very hot to touch for more than 10 secs or so.  The screen also feels hot to touch.  I installed "Core Temp' to see if the CPU was overheating... not really it was getting to ~70 max, with theoretical limit of 100. 

I did everything suggested in the thread above, re updates, software fixes, etc. I also turned off Cortana and some other apps running in background to reduce CPU load. I had a technician clean the interior by blowing canned compressed air through the rear vents, which helped temporarily. No way to see how effective that was, I can't split the case. However its still ghosting even on low CPU temps of mid 40s. I'm running a battery fan aimed at rear case which makes a big difference to core temp, but even so the only way I can use this machine after 30 minutes now is to have an external monitor.  

The ghosting happens whether or not I'm running the aux monitor, and happens whether on battery or on mains power. As described by another poster above, I get a greyed line about 3-4mm thick across top of screen, and lately also a black shadowed area starting in from top right (BTW no diff in temp there to touch). If I take a screen grab, the shadows are not visible, but below is a pic from phone. 

I wonder if this can be ruled out as software issue which overloads the hardware... it seems to have appeared quite soon and suddenly after an MS update about October 2017.

I'm out of warranty by a good six months, but its clear I'm not an isolated case, its a systemic problem and/or defective product.  There's no MS shop in the whole of SE Asia where I'm travelling, and there's only one in the whole of Australia which is a long way from where I live.... total crap for service !! MS, if you want to ever want this poor fool to buy another MS hardware product, you'll have to start replacing SP4s for everyone with this problem, AND get a better service network.

This could be a hardware related issue. We suggest that you run the Software Repair Tool from this link and see if the issue will be resolved. If not, we recommend that you visit one of our Microsoft Store near your area. You can also contact our Answer Desk team.

Feel free to post back if you have other questions or concerns.