It seems that the problem is confined to Surface Pro 3 units that are fitted with a Simplo battery. However, Microsoft hopes to be able to make the fix on the software side, without having to arrange a product recall or trade-in program.
Word of the battery complaint first started to spread in mid July, with some owners reporting that their tablet could only muster up one or two hours of use from a single charge, whereas others saw their device’s battery life cut down to a matter of minutes.
After a few weeks investigating the issue, it seems that Microsoft has found the source. There’s currently no timeframe on when users can expect to see this fix delivered, according to a report from ZDNet.
“Based on our investigations we can confirm that it is not an issue with the battery cells, and we believe this is something that can be addressed via software,” read a statement posted by a company representative on the Microsoft Community forum. “We’re working through the details of how we deliver that.”
A software fix would obviously be the ideal solution from Microsoft’s perspective, given the alternative. If the issue was found to be related to hardware, the company would likely have been forced to replace each affected Surface Pro unit, rather than just the battery — which would have been very expensive indeed.
Microsoft hasn’t indicated how it plans to distribute the patch, so affected users should keep an eye on Windows Update as well as the company’s support channels.
