How is your battery life on the Surface Pro 7?

Anonymous
2020-01-03T19:11:20+00:00

I upgraded to the Surface Pro 7 - 8gb, 256GB from the SP4 8gb, 256GB. My SP4 hardly got an hour of battery and would shut off on battery without warning, so I constantly had it plugged into the wall wherever I went.  I was hoping for much better on the SP7. Currently I am struggling to get a full 5 hours...closer to 4 hours. 

Yes, I know I use Chrome and Edge, a number of Office windows open, might watch some YouTube and Netflix. 

4 to 5 hours seems pathetically small.

Any other comments, suggestions or comparisons? (I know there's a need to 'bed in' a new battery in, I've had the laptop almost 2 weeks now, the battery should be 'bedding' in by now.

thanks in advance

Surface | Surface Pro | Power and battery

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  1. Anonymous
    2020-04-17T10:28:50+00:00

    I can't believe this! How could we win on a case like this. Unbelievable that giants step on people like that. So frustrating.

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  2. Anonymous
    2020-04-19T05:43:57+00:00

    I am getting 7.5 to 8 hours of battery life.  Doesn't matter if I am just watching YouTube videos, or doing work using Microsoft Office apps.  Also, my Surface Pro 7 (i5, 8 ram, 128 ssd) was not new, it was an open-box excellent condition purchase from Best Buy.  Anyway, here are some of the things I did to increase my Surface Pro's battery life:

    1. Made sure all background apps are always turned off.
    2. Use Microsoft Edge Carney browser (Google Chrome is a big drain on the battery).
    3. Unless I am using it, I always have the Edge Carney browser closed. 
    4. I keep screen brightness at around 50%-60%.

    5. Battery saver mode is activated as soon as the battery's charge goes below 100%.

    6. Applied some of the tips from this webpage, "Ultimate Tips to Max Out Microsoft Surface Battery Life" (https://surfacetip.com/ultimate-tips-max-surface-pro-4-battery-life/)

    1. Instilled this update,  SurfacePro7_Win10_17763_20.020.2886.0.msi (https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=100419)
    2. Most importantly, uninstalled this update, SurfacePro7_Win10_18362_ 20.014.39957.0.msi, from my Surface Pro 7.  For whatever reason, removing this driver/firmware update increased my battery's life by around 2 hours. 

    Hope these things work as well for you as they did for me...

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  3. Anonymous
    2020-04-19T09:26:21+00:00

    I am getting 7.5 to 8 hours of battery life.  Doesn't matter if I am just watching YouTube videos, or doing work using Microsoft Office apps.  Also, my Surface Pro 7 (i5, 8 ram, 128 ssd) was not new, it was an open-box excellent condition purchase from Best Buy.  Anyway, here are some of the things I did to increase my Surface Pro's battery life:

    1. Made sure all background apps are always turned off.
    2. Use Microsoft Edge Carney browser (Google Chrome is a big drain on the battery).
    3. Unless I am using it, I always have the Edge Carney browser closed. 
    4. I keep screen brightness at around 50%-60%.

    5. Battery saver mode is activated as soon as the battery's charge goes below 100%.

    6. Applied some of the tips from this webpage, "Ultimate Tips to Max Out Microsoft Surface Battery Life" (https://surfacetip.com/ultimate-tips-max-surface-pro-4-battery-life/)

    1. Instilled this driver/firmware update,  SurfacePro7_Win10_17763_20.020.2886.0.msi (https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=100419)
    2. Most importantly, uninstalled this driver/firmware update, SurfacePro7_Win10_18362_ 20.014.39957.0.msi, from my Surface Pro 7.  For whatever reason, removing this driver/firmware update increased my battery's life by around 2 hours. 

    Hope these things work as well for you as they did for me...

    Thanks a lot.

    This is very interesting, specially the last two tips. Could you tell us something about that driver, what are they exactly? Cheers

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  4. Anonymous
    2020-04-19T10:23:16+00:00

    Sorry but I don't know anything about these drivers other than they are on Microsoft's website.  I tried to Google them, but couldn't find any information.  I noticed that after I downloaded them and made setting changes that my battery life went south (from close to 7 hours to less than 5.5 hours).  So I experimented with uninstalling various things I had downloaded and returning settings to their original levels.  Took a couple of days of testing to figure out what was causing the problem...

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  5. Anonymous
    2020-04-19T10:36:09+00:00

    Very interesting.  And I'm glad it worked out for you.  Certainly, had I kept my SP7, I would be rushing to try manipulating those updates as you have done. But it does seem like an awful lot of work to go through, and an unreasonable compromise to skip updates, go to battery saver mode and 50%-60% screen brightness instantly, versus using the latest HP Spectre x360 and getting 9-10 hours with 100% brightness, no battery saver mode, and no other trade-offs or compromises.  If I want to dim the screen a bit, I get between 10-12 hours with no struggle and no other adjustments.  Granted, nothing beats the form factor of the SP7, so if it is working for you, more power to you. And, of course, for those who are beyond the ability to return their SP7 you have come up with a great workaround.  But for much less $ with better specs, no manipulations or adjustments, and a form factor close behind the SP7, I would have to recommend the HP to anyone shopping.

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