Surface Pro 4, Screen Flickering, Shaking

Anonymous
2017-01-19T07:47:47+00:00

Hi All,

Update: Flickergate is now having a forum to bring all affected users at a single platform to plan for resolvement of issue. Please join at

 https://forum.flickergate.com

UPDATE: Check FlickerGate.com for videos of the problem and to submit your own. 

I purchased SP4 device a few months ago and it was working fine for a month. Then I noticed that when the CPU is at its max, the screen flickers a bit. Investigating further revealed that it flickers even if it is setting idle. It does not flicker if at least one of the following thing is done:

  1. A video being played in browser 
  2. If I keep the touch screen busy by either taping it or keeping a finger on it
  3. If I use the touchpad
  4. If keyboard is used for typing

This resulted in making the device completely unusable while reading articles or ebooks. I am a developer, most of the time I have to read the code and to do that, I have to constantly keep a finger on the touch pad or the screen. I contacted surface support in October and November and was told that the developers are working on the patch. Looking at the updates the developers are pushing since then, I don't think anyone is even aware of the problem there. 

My previous support ticket numbers are:

 ***deleted personally identifiable information***

***deleted personally identifiable information***

Just wondering if anyone else had the same problem (and the fix) and if not, what's the procedure for the refund? I will rather go for a mac then sacrificing $2000+ for a dancing screen.  

Kind Regards,

Abbas

***Personal information deleted by the moderator. Please see the Microsoft Community Frequently Asked Questions for more information on how you can protect your privacy.***

Surface | Surface Pro | Display and screen

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
Answer accepted by question author
Anonymous
2018-05-11T17:59:00+00:00

Hey Everyone,

Creating the best products and experiences for our customers is our top priority.

We have heard your feedback and after careful examination, have determined that a small percentage of Surface Pro 4 devices are exhibiting a screen flicker that cannot be addressed with a firmware or driver update.

To support customers affected by this issue, we will replace eligible Surface Pro 4 devices for up to three years from the date of purchase, free of charge. If you believe your device is experiencing this issue, please visit our Surface Pro 4 screen flicker article for more details.

Bryan [MSFT]

Was this answer helpful?

100+ people found this answer helpful.
0 comments

2,779 additional answers

Sort by: Oldest
Most helpful Newest Oldest
  1. Anonymous
    2017-12-13T17:09:36+00:00

    I've already did that. It doesn't fix anything. It's a hardware design issue. Unfortunately it cant be fixed in software.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  2. Anonymous
    2017-12-13T17:37:25+00:00

    I am facing same problem, screen flickers often specially when SP4 is connected to power outlet, My SP4 has latest windows updates installed but the problem is still there. After flickering screen starts shaking upwards and it looks like text moving upwards. Very much disappointment by SP4 despite being a good machine otherwise this problem ruined all my expectations.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  3. Anonymous
    2017-12-13T19:16:31+00:00

    EVERYONE, THIS IS A HARDWARE FAULT! 100% HARDWARE!

    NO FIRMWARE, SOFTWARE UPDATES OR WINDOWS RE-INSTALLATIONS WILL RESOLVE THIS ISSUE!

    THE ONLY WAY TO RESOLVE IT IS TO HAVE YOUR FAULTY DEVICE REPLACED WITH A BRAND NEW UNIT!

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  4. Anonymous
    2017-12-13T20:09:12+00:00

    My Surface Pro4  had a badly vibrating/shaking screen on everything. AS it got worse, I called M/S and went through a series of checks for electrical interference, bad drivers and eventually reloaded the entire machine, a pain. All of this made no difference. Fortunately, I had purchased a Square Trade warranty from Staples when I bought the machine, about 15 months ago. Square Trade was a pleasure to work with , just an hour of calls and hassle at first. THey then shipped it to a repair center  near Chicago and three days later had affected the repair. it is fine. The shop replaced the main HW driving the screen. 

    If you do not have a warranty, I believe your only recourse will be go to a Microsoft store and plead your case. I may be wrong, but it seems based upon my searching that this is not a rare problem on this expensive device and  M/S is not fully accepting responsibility as one would hope they would do. I bought the Surafce due to the beautiful high resolution screen other wise I would have bought another Lenovo. I have owned 6 of them with wonderful reliability. So, this episode is a dissapointment.  Square Trade acknowledged that they had repaired  quite a number of Surface machines for this exact problem, but said no more. 

    I wish you luck.

    larryWALC

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments