Surface Pro 3 battery degradation

Anonymous
2016-05-11T07:37:37+00:00

I've been using Microsoft Surface Pro 3 for a year, and shortly after the warranty expired I noticed my Surface Pro 3 can only last about 1-2 hours after a full charge. At first I thought this was a problem with background process draining the battery so I disabled everything running in the background. It didn't helped. Then I found out about the powercfg utility and run powercfg /batteryreport on it, and this was the result:

A full charge capacity has degraded by over 80% in just few weeks and continue degrading. I tried to "recalibrate" the battery by doing full charge then full drain multiple times, and it didn't helped. Talk with Microsoft via chat support and they insist this was a software problem and reinstalled the driver and asked me to wait few days to see if things improve. Not only it didn't improved, but now my Surface can only last 30 minutes.

Few days after chat (today), I called Microsoft support and they were being extremely unhelpful. Insist that this was a software problem (which the chat support person already did) and it's "perfectly normal" for battery capacity to degrade. I insist that I've already done the software "fixes" and it didn't work and tell them this is definitely hardware problem, but the person on the phone tell me there's nothing I could do except to order the out of warranty exchange (which cost about $560 in my local currency). 

Is there anything else I should do? My country has no Microsoft Store which I could take the machine for them to take a look. Phone/online support were the only option, and none of them could understand the issue.

Surface | Surface Pro | Power and battery

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Anonymous
2016-07-26T21:31:16+00:00

Hello everyone,

Thanks for your continued patience here. We have now completed our testing of the update and it has passed our quality assurance process.

The update, “System Firmware Update - 8/29/2016”, is now available to install from Windows Update.

Before installing this update, ensure that your Surface Pro 3 is plugged directly in to AC power using the standard AC power adapter (do not use the Surface Docking Station), disconnect any USB devices or external monitors, and check that Windows shows a 40% charge or greater when you hover over the icon in the taskbar before you begin.

Once you install the update, please select Restart now (do not shutdown). After your Surface restarts, please manually restart it a second time to complete the process. For more information, please see our Surface Pro 3 Battery FAQ article.

If you’re having trouble charging your Surface, you get a low-battery error, or your Surface turns off when you unplug it, the steps in our Surface battery won’t charge article can help you pinpoint the problem. Should you need any further assistance, please contact us. 

Thanks again.

Greg

Updated 8/29/16.

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  1. Anonymous
    2016-08-04T03:49:34+00:00

    Another path to explore if you're willing to get your Surface repaired: check if your credit card offers an extended warranty.

    Most premium credit cards offer to double your warranty up to one year if you pay for your entire purchase with your credit card.  Worth checking into if you can afford the downtime of a repair.

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  2. Anonymous
    2016-08-04T02:54:20+00:00

    For a fan, this is the way to go:

    https://www.amazon.com/ARCTIC-USB-Powered-Portable-Solution-Gooseneck/dp/B003XN24GY/ref=sr\_1\_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1470279139&sr=8-4&keywords=usb+fan

    The flexible USB one you can take with you - of course it draws power - GRRR, but there is also one with a base and speed adjustment that you can plug into a hub and get power from that.

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  3. Anonymous
    2016-08-04T01:08:17+00:00

    Well, I just checked and mine has the same name. I bought mine on January 2015.

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  4. Anonymous
    2016-08-04T00:44:21+00:00

    ![](http://fud.community.services.support.microsoft.com/Fud/FileDownloadHandler.ashx?fid=915ea048-ef70-4c3c-861a-85230e97cf32)

    Did you try an external cooling fan to keep the internal fan from running high?

    I have to put a fan at the back to keep the thing from frying. Even 60% CPU usage will throw the temperature to 90s degree C, then the battery starts to drain even when the device is plugged in.

    Yes I spent nearly US$2000 on this model, but any problem that can be solved by money is not a real problem. In this case I would just get a proper laptop and get rid this piece (will put it on eBay soon). 

    However, Microsoft is changing a problem that can be solved by money into one that cannot (or at least a more expensive one).

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