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

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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]

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  1. Anonymous
    2017-06-10T23:54:28+00:00

    Yeah, I meant the seconds display. Seems like two different symptoms of probably the same cause, though yours seems to be much more of an inconvenience then mine. If my screen starts to flicker then it's the whole screen all at once. But this really only happens when there is no activity on the screen and usually after a couple of hours in use.

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  2. Anonymous
    2017-06-11T10:52:49+00:00

    I have same screen-flickering. I am extremely disappointed with surface pro 4.

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  3. Anonymous
    2017-06-11T12:02:30+00:00

    Seeing how having any activity on the screen seems to stop the flickering for some people (including me), I built a small app that fixes the issue until MS can come up with a proper fix.

    It simply displays a small square alternating between very dark grey and black every second (you can't actually see the flashing). You can drag it out to a corner of your screen and the flicker stops (at least it does on my SP4).

    The source code is on GitHub with a small description on how to use it: https://github.com/nicodeslandes/FlashingWindow

    And here's a link to the exe for it: https://github.com/nicodeslandes/FlashingWindow/releases/download/1.0.4/FlashingWindow.exe

    Hope it helps while MS works on the issue!

    Nico

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  4. Anonymous
    2017-06-11T12:45:23+00:00

    I would rather have the seconds counter added to the clock on the Task Bar than a flashing square, but all credit to you for trying to short circuit the problem.

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