Since Microsoft launched its Surface Book and Surface Pro 4 last year, customers haven’t been very satisfied about the new devices due to fast battery drain issues, overheating, standby, and display adapter problems. While the company (technically) didn’t formally talked about all the issues with its customers, the company provided an apology through its support website and noted that it will fix any pending issues in 2016.
Although, today’s update doesn’t fix every problem, Microsoft is finally releasing the January 2016 firmware update for its Surface Book and Surface Pro 4 to begin addressing some of the issues.
Below there is a breakdown of what’s new in the newest firmware update for the Surface devices.
Changelog for Surface Pro 4 firmware update – 1/27/2016
- Surface Embedded Controller Firmware (v103.899.256.0) adds battery charging enhancements and thermal tuning.
- Surface Fingerprint Sensor driver update (v2.2.10.6) improves accuracy.
- Wireless Network Controller and Bluetooth driver update (v15.68.9037.59) improves access point compatibility and throughput on 5Ghz networks.
Changelog for Surface Book firmware update – 1/27/2016
- Surface Embedded Controller Firmware (v88.899.256.0) adds battery charging enhancements and thermal tuning.
- Wireless Network Controller and Bluetooth driver update (v15.68.9037.59) improves access point compatibility and throughput on 5Ghz networks.
- Surface DTX driver update (v1.3.202.0) improves detection of the Surface keyboard to the clipboard.
- NVIDIA GeForce GPU update (v10.18.13.5914) improves stability.
It’s important to note that even though both devices are receiving an update to control the battery, the update doesn’t specify that the January 27 firmware fixes the drain issue during standby. Furthermore, the latest firmware does not show details of addressing the graphics issues on both devices. However, the company is releasing a new Nvidia update for the dedicated graphics adapter in the Surface Book.
It’s also good to see that the software giant is addressing the issue with the keyboard, as there has been a lot of reports of user complaints about problem during attachment of the clipboard on Surface Book.
As always, Surface Book and Surface Pro 4 will receive and install the new firmware automatically, but you can force the update by going to Settings > Update & security > Windows Update and tapping the Check for updates button.
Did the January 2016 firmware fix any issues with your Surface? Let us know in the comments below.
Source Surface Update History via Windows Central
Mauro Huculak is a Windows How-To Expert who started Pureinfotech in 2010 as an independent online publication. He has also been a Windows Central contributor for nearly a decade. Mauro has over 14 years of experience writing comprehensive guides and creating professional videos about Windows and software, including Android and Linux. Before becoming a technology writer, he was an IT administrator for seven years. In total, Mauro has over 20 years of combined experience in technology. Throughout his career, he achieved different professional certifications from Microsoft (MSCA), Cisco (CCNP), VMware (VCP), and CompTIA (A+ and Network+), and he has been recognized as a Microsoft MVP for many years. You can follow him on X (Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn and About.me. Email him at [email protected].