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
    2016-08-18T17:09:39+00:00

    So I think I inadvertently bypassed the system a bit and avoided the $99.  I accidentally called the consumer line instead of business, so they took down my info and said the business folks would give me a call.  I missed the call so they sent an email instead, which started an email chain.  They haven't said anything about money yet, so fingers crossed!

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  2. Anonymous
    2016-08-18T17:21:32+00:00

    KaneHughes it's actually both according to the terms of sale. If your machine had to be exchanged - let's say - on month 3 of a 12 month warranty, then the refurb would carry forward the reminder of 9 month warranty. If however you had to exchange on month 11, then the refurb would have 90 days warranty which would be 2 months beyond the original warranty. This is my understanding based on the warranty terms. I'm not employed by MSFT though, so get a confirmation!

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  3. Anonymous
    2016-08-18T17:37:08+00:00

    I have the same problem. When will we be able to have a follow up on that correction Microsoft is working on? I am a college professor in Marketing and the battery problem on my Surface Pro 3 has an impact on my work. I bought this product as my main work tool.  It is really frustrating. I feel very much helpless and do not find that Microsoft is giving the support they should in the situation (hence no guaranty, no service while the problem is in the machine that you have conceived) and not taking the responsibility of your product. At lease, acknowledge the problem to us Surface Pro 3 owners and keep us informed. That is the basics of good marketing strategy to make sure the experience of the client is positive when he byes the product and after. Then, the client keeps a positive opinion of your company and even more so when you treat your clients well when they have a problem. I hope you can correct the problem quickly. PLEASE KEEP US INFORMED :-(

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  4. Anonymous
    2016-08-18T18:21:30+00:00

    For those who have exchanged (either with a fee or not)...aren't you concerned you are getting a refurb that will have the same issue?

    I expressed those concerns during my replacement at the store and they were happy to turn it on and verify the battery was not a SIMPLO before sending me off with that unit.

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