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
    2017-08-30T06:54:42+00:00

    I have been running my i7 SP4 non stop for the last 24 hours using the extended display and projecting only to the extended display (ie. the SP4 display was off).  I have periodically turned on the SP4 display to check for flickering and there has been and still is no flicker whatsoever.  The SP4 screen looks normal.  Prior to this I had been running both displays and always had flickering/shaking after a very short while (about an hour or so) and the only way to get rid of it was to turn the SP4 off and let it cool down.  I suspect a piece of hardware that drives the SP4 screen heats up causing the flickering issue.  

    This is a design/product quality fault of MS and should be recalled and replaced by suitable parts by MS in order to preserve it's reputation as a company and the reputation of the SP4 series which is otherwise a great machine, but with this issue is useless. MS is damaging its brand with this issue and going to rapidly lose market share with this product line/category.  At this point I would not recommend the SP4 to anyone unless MS comes out and acknowledges there is an issue and it has fixed it.  How else can the public trust the product?  This is a classic 101 situation of what not to do as a company to preserve its reputation/brand and promote the trust of its customers and consumers.

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  2. Anonymous
    2017-08-29T21:19:27+00:00

    Yes, demand that they replace your SP with a brand new device.

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  3. Anonymous
    2017-08-29T19:14:45+00:00

    Does anybody know what all the workarounds are? The seconds and task manager no longer work for me after almost immedietly turning on the machine. 

    I will add that this originally started happening after employing iMacro scripts. I stopped using the scripts until recently and they appear to have pushed the surface into this unusable state. I'm going to go throw up now.

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  4. Anonymous
    2017-08-29T08:00:19+00:00

    Well,

    I'm using external monitors also.

    The typical abnormal behaviour is:

    1)starts flickering at startup

    1. after say 15 minutes.." Ghosting"
    2. after say 90 minitutes neither ghosting nor flickering...screen's normal but hotter?
    3. after 5/6 hours overheating and emergency shut down...

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