Brand new Surface Pro 3 - should I return or stick with it?

[Jesse Segovia]

I bought a new Surface Pro 3 M3 last week and although I do love it and would love to hang on to it I'm having so many technical issues I'm wondering if I should return it or exchange it, or if it sounds as though these issues might be addressed in a future software update.

First, the machine often doesn't wake up completely. When I hit the Power button I can see the screen backlight up but nothing else ever happens. If I hold down the Power button eventually I get that 'slide to shut down your PC' message but even that doesn't work. The only thing I can do is hold down the Power button until the machine shuts down complete and then restart it. If I had some unsaved work when the machine went to sleep previously that's tough - I've lost it.

Second, two or three times the machine is stuck in the screen orientation in which it wakes up. I cannot get it to switch from Portrait to Landscape or back the other way. I tried manually changing the orientation through the display settings page and once it worked and freed up the orientation to match how I held the device, but since then that has not worked - I've had to hold down the Power button and shut it down all the way to fix it.

Third, the SP3 doesn't seem to always know if the keyboard is attached. Sometimes with the keyboard attached I'll get the number pad onscreen when it wakes up so I can enter my PIN. And other times the keyboard is not attached and I don't get the number pad, although it mostly works the right way.

Finally, my iPad always pops up the onscreen keyboard when I click into an editable field unless I have a Bluetooth keyboard attached. The SP3 occasionally pops up the onscreen keyboard if the type cover is not attached and I click into an editable field but mostly it does not - I almost always have to manually click the keyboard button in the system tray - is this normal?

Thanks very much for the help!

Jesse

 

[benjitek]

Probably do a Google search of 'surface pro 3 issues' or 'unresolved surface pro 3 issues' and set the duration option to 3 to 6 months, might give you some insight into what you can expect.

 

[GreyFox7]

Sounds like a Surface Pro "4" m3. This is in the wrong forum.
Changing Headline & Moving to Surface Pro 4 forum unless it's confirmed to be a Surface Pro 3.
Maybe Microsoft should put the Product Name on the Boot Screen ... assuming they can get it right most of the time.

 

[Zkyevolved]

If you're expecting an iPad experience on a full desktop grade computer, you're in for a world of hurt. Lol. You have to remember that it's a laptop in tablet form. But it's not a tablet. It's an ultra book in tablet form. Therefore, it has all the same issues any desktop or laptop can have. Drivers. Corruption. Battery drain since it loads desktop applications. I mean, there are a lot of possibilities.

I'm sticking with my sp4. I love the thing! Hehe. It works well, and is so light and thin.

In regards to the keyboard popping up. It won't pop up unless you're in a Windows app or edge.

All other desktop apps lack the programming to tell windows that it needs to pop up the keyboard. Maybe some day in the future.

 

[Jesse Segovia]

Thanks, everyone for all the answers. It is definitely a Surface Pro 3, the entry level model now on sale for $599.99 at Best Buy. Perhaps it's the i3 processor and not the m3? I'm trying to get to Settings to get the details but here's a new issue: I hit the Windows key on the keyboard and click the Windows start button in the lower left hand corner with the ouse and with my finger, but nothing happens - I can't get the Windows menu or screen to come up. I guess I get to shut it down and restart again!

I'm not comparing this experience so much to an iPad as I am to my daughter's Surface Pro 3 i5 we bought her last year - as far as I know she had no crazy issues like I'm having. I've been using DOS and Windows desktops and laptops since the early '80s and I can't remember having these kind of glitches with a brand new computer as frequently as I am now. I'm committed to this platform - I gave my daughter my iPad 3rd gen and I don't want it back - but I don't know if I should stick with this one or exchange it for another SP3 or maybe even trade up to the SP4 for that awesome screen! I have until January 15th to return it so I'm not too worried yet but I just don't see this getting any better on its own. Are we expecting any major new driver upgrades soon?

Jesse

 

[benjitek]

Are we expecting any major new driver upgrades soon?

They rarely pre-announce driver updates, especially for a model that isn't the latest one. You may see an occasional update, but since it's the 3 and not the 4, it won't be all that often. If you research using Google and find your issues to be longstanding ones, they're not likely to change

 

[GreyFox7]

Oops, correcting.

 

[celand]

If your under warranty take it back, I had similar issues early in 2015 about a month or so after I bought it. Started with online tech support they advised to take it to a store. The Microsoft store tech's I dealt with were fantastic they sat down with me checked it, helped me uploaded what content I had on the SP3 to the OneDrive and replaced it on the spot. They did the same with my docking station later on in the year. Like you I checked the forum first and found that others had similar issues. Microsoft has really impressed me with their service.

 

[Johnny365]

I had an issue with the blank screen upon sleep wake, and it was due to a windows 10 update that was trying to install. After it rebooted (many power button presses), it installed the updates and hasn't done it since. I've had the SP3 since April 2015 and this is the first "blank lit screen" from sleep that I've encountered.

I thought my SP3 was bricked for a second!

 

[Moonsurface]

Mine was doing that and requiring s two button start up, until I refreshed it a couple of weeks ago. Since then its been behaving itself very well. I love my SP3.