Surface Pro 4. I would't buy again for business

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652 posts

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#1559448 25-May-2016 16:20

dpf81:

We have about 5-6 Surface pro 4's here

At first i had the exact same issues as you, not waking from sleep, having to constantly reconfigure external screens when docking etc

The sleep issues seem to have mostly gone after updates in the last couple of months, but the only way we managed to 'resolve' the external monitor docking issue was to buy monitors that supported displayport 1.2 and daisy chaining so that we had one cable going from the dock to 1 monitor, then a displayport cable from monitor 1 to monitor 2

Don't suppose you can please advise what monitors you went with can you? Cheers!

dpf81

58 posts

Master Geek

#1559463 25-May-2016 16:48

HPZ24nf

http://www8.hp.com/nz/en/products/monitors/product-detail.html?oid=7483094

NB: when first setting up you have to set the Main monitor to Displayport 1.2 and the secondary monitor to displayport 1.1 for it to work properly (done in the monitors on screen menu)

Cheers

mitchtay

26 posts

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#1559465 25-May-2016 16:55

dpf81:

HPZ24nf

http://www8.hp.com/nz/en/products/monitors/product-detail.html?oid=7483094

NB: when first setting up you have to set the Main monitor to Displayport 1.2 and the secondary monitor to displayport 1.1 for it to work properly (done in the monitors on screen menu)

Cheers

You're lucky. Even with the latest updates I find the compatibility between the Surface Pro 4 (w/ dock) and my 2xDell U2414H to be hit and miss.
Sometimes only 1 monitor will work, others neither... rarely both.

The best "solution" I've found so far is to disconnect the dock from the surface. Unplug both monitors (being sure to press the power button afterward to ensure any capacitors drain also.), plug both monitors in. Reconnect the dock to the surface and I've got a 1 in 6 chance of both being recognized. If the surface goes to sleep I lose both again.
It's very frustrating, and setting the monitors to display port 1.2 or not doesn't seem to have any affect / nor does MST daisy chaining.

100% do not recommend the Surface Pro 4 with dock for a multi-monitor configuration.

Edits: Typos and grammar

smileynz

63 posts

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#1559731 25-May-2016 22:25

You're lucky. Even with the latest updates I find the compatibility between the Surface Pro 4 (w/ dock) and my 2xDell U2414H to be hit and miss.
Sometimes only 1 monitor will work, others neither... rarely both.

The best "solution" I've found so far is to disconnect the dock from the surface. Unplug both monitors (being sure to press the power button afterward to ensure any capacitors drain also.), plug both monitors in. Reconnect the dock to the surface and I've got a 1 in 6 chance of both being recognized. If the surface goes to sleep I lose both again.
It's very frustrating, and setting the monitors to display port 1.2 or not doesn't seem to have any affect / nor does MST daisy chaining.

100% do not recommend the Surface Pro 4 with dock for a multi-monitor configuration.

Edits: Typos and grammar

Hi mitchtay

We use the Dell u2414h monitors also with SP3 and surface docks and have similar issues. The aren't officially support by Microsoft.

Monitors that aren’t supported with Surface and Surface Dock

The monitors listed below have connection issues with Surface and Surface Dock. We are working with third parties to resolve these issues and will update this page when new information is available. If you’re using a monitor that isn’t listed below, try the solutions below to resolve the issue.

Dell

U2312HM
U2212HMt
U2414Hb (FW A00 not compatible) (FW A01 and up is compatible)
U2515Hc (FW A01)
U2715Hc (FW A00)
U2913Wm

Have you updated the surface dock firmware? I have had to do this manually. I have also found this from Microsoft about clearing the monitor cache in registry.

Still having problems with your external monitor?

After you've installed your Surface Dock firmware update, if your monitor still won’t project to a second screen and the monitor is black or blank, try the following solutions:

Clear your display cache

Here's how:

Step 1:

Undock your Surface from the Surface Dock.

Step 2:

Download the Surface Dock registry file

, and in the File Download dialog box, select Open.

Step 3:

Select and run surface dock registry.reg.

Step 4:

Select Yes to allow changes to your Surface, select Yes to confirm, and then select OK to close.

Step 5:

Restart your Surface, reconnect it to the Surface Dock, and try your external display again.

https://www.microsoft.com/surface/en-nz/support/hardware-and-drivers/troubleshoot-docking-station-surface-dock

dafman

3925 posts

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#1559807 26-May-2016 09:18

Our experience running SP4's with dual monitors, both from the dock (without need for daisy chaining), has been pretty good following the recent updates. The screens we are using are Viewsonic VG2233Smh.

The wake from sleep issue has largely been resolved, but twice this week the SP4 has frozen on splash screen on power up, requiring hard reset both times, so still a little temperamental.

mitchtay

26 posts

Geek

#1559813 26-May-2016 09:31

smileynz:

Hi mitchtay

We use the Dell u2414h monitors also with SP3 and surface docks and have similar issues. The aren't officially support by Microsoft.

*snip*

Hi smileynz,

Thanks for that, I'll give it a go and see if it helps any.

dafman:

Our experience running SP4's with dual monitors, both from the dock (without need for daisy chaining), has been pretty good following the recent updates. The screens we are using are Viewsonic VG2233Smh.
The wake from sleep issue has largely been resolved, but twice this week the SP4 has frozen on splash screen on power up, requiring hard reset both times, so still a little temperamental.

I've been experiencing lockups during boot as well. It's only happened while the surface has been docked before power on for me, but to be honest I haven't tested it thoroughly so there could be no correlation.

dafman

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#1559856 26-May-2016 10:18

mitchtay:

smileynz:

Hi mitchtay

We use the Dell u2414h monitors also with SP3 and surface docks and have similar issues. The aren't officially support by Microsoft.

*snip*

Hi smileynz,

Thanks for that, I'll give it a go and see if it helps any.

dafman:

Our experience running SP4's with dual monitors, both from the dock (without need for daisy chaining), has been pretty good following the recent updates. The screens we are using are Viewsonic VG2233Smh.
The wake from sleep issue has largely been resolved, but twice this week the SP4 has frozen on splash screen on power up, requiring hard reset both times, so still a little temperamental.

I've been experiencing lockups during boot as well. It's only happened while the surface has been docked before power on for me, but to be honest I haven't tested it thoroughly so there could be no correlation.

Same here, when docked before power on.

Equinox IT

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mrdrifter

576 posts

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#1560053 26-May-2016 13:42

I haven't tried any of my surface with the official surface dock, I'm wondering if that has saved me a whole lot of pain as I've only used the HP and Dell port replicators which thankfully haven't caused any of these issues with multiple displays.

gehenna

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#1560055 26-May-2016 13:51

Well my Windows Hello is broken again. Different device this time as I had to get the first Book replaced due to the yellowing on the screen. This one has been working fine for weeks and then all of a sudden stopped working with Windows Hello. The camera does start and I can see myself, but clearly the Hello aspect is broken. No updates, no firmware changes, nothing has changed on the device. Disappointing really but I'm sure I'll get it working again if I do some googling.

gehenna

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#1566042 5-Jun-2016 14:58

I couldn't get the infrared/biometrics working again so I returned the Surface Book and got an iPad Pro instead. Quite disappointing but it appears the Surface Book hardware just isn't ready for primetime. It's great when it works, but some TLC is definitely required to ensure things don't spontaneously break. I went through every troubleshooting method I could think of, and that Google could suggest, but it's just bad hardware unfortunately. One issue would be OK, but having already had the device replaced once I couldn't face having to set a third one up from scratch.

The iPad is working well, it's super slick compared to my old iPad 3, and the Pencil is definitely more responsive than the Surface Pen. The lag between writing and the ink appearing on the screen is non-existent on the iPad, but on the Surface there is a noticeable lag - albeit tiny.

dafman

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#1566105 5-Jun-2016 16:58

When I compare the SP4 to the machine it replaced, a Toshiba Portege, there is light and day with hardware reliability. The Toshiba never missed a beat, ever, whereas it's pars for the course for the SP4 to expect three or four hard resets each week.

JayADee

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#1566256 6-Jun-2016 03:32

There are a lot of look-a likes popping up and they're cheaper. The Asus transformer 3 looks interesting.
http://www.cnet.com/products/asus-transformer-3/
http://www.cnet.com/products/asus-transformer-3-pro/

JayADee

2148 posts

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#1570894 13-Jun-2016 11:15

Credit where due for my Sp4:

Two things; one, a bluetooth update a couple weeks back must have improved my mouse connection, it connects immediately now while the Surface is still booting. Two, I'm programming again and as a laptop it works really, really well. (I do have it set to hibernate not sleep though). It's so handy to be typing away on the kitchen table, fold it up and put it to one side by your elbow to play a game of cards with the spouse then pick up right where you left off. Such a great design for portability.

Also that usb plug in the charger is terrific. I charge my iPad off it and my iPad is to my left open to reference material while I type on the SP4 running them both off the charger...

nathan

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#1570897 13-Jun-2016 11:17

dafman:

When I compare the SP4 to the machine it replaced, a Toshiba Portege, there is light and day with hardware reliability. The Toshiba never missed a beat, ever, whereas it's pars for the course for the SP4 to expect three or four hard resets each week.

Does the Toshiba Portege have a Skylake CPU?

freitasm

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#1570902 13-Jun-2016 11:18

nathan:

dafman:

When I compare the SP4 to the machine it replaced, a Toshiba Portege, there is light and day with hardware reliability. The Toshiba never missed a beat, ever, whereas it's pars for the course for the SP4 to expect three or four hard resets each week.

Does the Toshiba Portege have a Skylake CPU?

How does it help having a Skylake CPU if for this user it needs a hard reset every few days? Having a modern CPU that requires resets or an old one that's solid...

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