Microsoft Surface

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A subreddit for the Microsoft Surface family of products. Original by design.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/Alex_Ludens on 2025-07-10 22:18:09+00:00.


I’ve been a long-time Microsoft Surface user — Pro 5, Pro 7, Surface Book, and Surface Laptop — using both Windows 10 and 11.

A few weeks ago, Windows Hello Face ID just stopped working in low light. I assumed something broke: spent hours reinstalling drivers, resetting biometric settings, disabling devices, reading forum threads.

Turns out, Microsoft **silently changed the Hello policy**: it now requires both infrared and RGB camera input — meaning Face ID won't work in the dark anymore. This is apparently a "security improvement."

But here’s the real issue: **there was no warning.** No system alert, no changelog entry, nothing. Just broken functionality and confused users wasting time troubleshooting what isn’t a bug — but a deliberate, undocumented change.

This is a massive UX failure. It's not about the policy itself — it's about *respecting your users' time* and *communicating changes that break expected behavior*.

If anyone at Microsoft is reading: someone should be held accountable for this communication failure. A pop-up would’ve saved countless hours for so many users. We deserve better.


Here’s a Tom's Hardware article covering it:

https://www.tomshardware.com/software/windows/microsoft-has-broken-windows-hello-facial-recognition-it-no-longer-works-in-the-dark

And several threads from Reddit:

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/malcneuro on 2025-07-10 14:25:11+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/Pythagosaurus69 on 2025-07-09 14:21:09+00:00.


I am a long-term Surface owner but not as of recent. I own a Surface Pro 4 purchased from a decade ago (wow time flies), I used to own a Surface Laptop 1 (beautiful machine), and then a Surface Laptop Go (beautiful machine as well, but slow as hell with a shitty display).

After many years I decided to give the Surface Laptop 7th Edition a try, and may Christ bless my soul holy shit this is actually the best laptop I have ever owned. There is zero competition.

I use a MacBook Pro M4 and an Air M3 for work, and as great as those devices are, they do have their faults. And maybe I am in a minority (outside of this sub) but God damn Microsoft really hit it out of the park, and this laptop really has everything that I need. The build quality IMO is better than MacBooks - it definitely feels like a step up, but maybe that's because I've already used the MacBooks for a while now. The ARM SoC feels really snappy and great battery, and the support for Windows ARM apps is definitely picking up. For those that aren't, I really couldn't tell any slowdowns using x86 versions that I believe is emulated.

And the thing that really sells this to me is the screen. Yes, it is indeed glossy but it's 120Hz on a device that's super thin which is PERFECT. The MacBook Air is super thin but 60Hz which is just unbearable after getting used to the MacBook Pro's gorgeous 120Hz, which is unfortunately in a much thicker and heavier package. Also, I never knew how much I missed the 3:2 aspect ratio, it just feels so much more natural than 16:10.

Of course, in addition to all of this you get a standard non-Mac keyboard layout which is a huge bonus. Like you get both a backspace and delete key, and CTRL as the shortcut modifier (I guess that's preference but still). And I LOVE the inclusion of the Home and End keys to quickly navigate typing text. The keyboard feel is excellent and has more travel than the MacBooks - this is definitely subjective, and my preference is the Surface. For the touchpad can't decide, they feel different but good. I am glad Microsoft copied Apple's haptic feedback trackpad; this is definitely something that Apple alone excelled at previously.

One thing I dislike is Windows Hello uses the webcam after an update which makes it annoying but meh.

I apologise for the wall of text but I really wanted to express my excitement I LOVE THIS DEVICE :DDDDDDDDDDDD

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/delaneycashmoney on 2025-07-08 19:16:37+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/eccenMD on 2025-07-08 01:52:57+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/Substantial_Bet2341 on 2025-07-07 03:26:03+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/SecretAgentZeroNine on 2025-07-04 18:48:41+00:00.


I wish there were more reviews like this. The reviewer and his wife are creatives who showed their experience using a Surface Pro 11 in a realistic way.

Now I'm left wondering; what is the ratio between the device, the CPU and the OS in terms of responsible for the users' experience.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/Comfortable-Ad-3351 on 2025-07-05 18:01:35+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/footesouljaa85 on 2025-07-04 17:14:37+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/quangvust201 on 2025-07-04 16:27:26+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/ZacB_ on 2025-07-04 16:20:32+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/111AAABBBCCC on 2025-07-04 02:48:37+00:00.


"Globally, Windows-on‑ARM systems continue to hold a very small slice of the PC market—well under 1% of total shipments.

In Q3 2024—the most recent quarter for which independent data is publicly available—Windows-on‑ARM devices represented only 0.8% of systems shipped worldwide en.wikipedia.org+7itdaily.com+7counterpointresearch.com+7. That remains the best external figure we have for "Windows on ARM market share."

Qualcomm claims a higher share—but strictly for the U.S. retail segment and only in laptops priced $800+, stating they held about 10% of that specific market during Q4 2024 tomshardware.comfinance.yahoo.com. This reflects a niche, premium sub-segment, not the overall global market."

I suspect that much of that 10% market share "in the US retail segment, $800+" is Snapdragon Surface Pros and Surface Laptops. Microsoft is trying to push ARM really hard. Will they succeed this time around? I hope they will. It may take some time though.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/FLMILLIONAIRE on 2025-07-02 23:35:00+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/Delicious_Maize9656 on 2025-07-02 11:12:18+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/Waiting4MyBreak on 2025-07-02 00:56:37+00:00.


For those who got the Surface Pro 12 at launch, how do you feel about your purchase? Any issues that you didn't foresee? How's the battery life? Any pleasant/unpleasant surprises? If you returned it, why?

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/Gio235 on 2025-07-01 14:49:43+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/NotFalcon on 2025-06-29 14:16:51+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/master_jeriah on 2025-06-28 19:51:31+00:00.


I can type fairly fast with a standard desktop keyboard, maybe 70 - 80 wpm or so. But when I use something like a regular laptop such as Lenovo Thinkpad which I have been issued for work - I just slow way down and fumble on a ton of words.

With the Surface Pro keyboard however, it just feels like one I can type on naturally and still keep up a decent speed. It's probably the best laptop keyboard I have ever used honestly.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/96bulls2k on 2025-06-27 21:29:43+00:00.


Guys, if Microsoft decides to stop Surface devices, what device will you end up buying?

Which laptop?

Which Tablet?

Which desktop?

*I use Surface on all 3 currently.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/whateverhappensnext on 2025-06-28 00:19:58+00:00.


I see a lot of comments in this sub that are negative to the Snapdragon Surface Pro 11 13" hardware, and they often seem to be based on the specs or some opinion about the ARM chips, not from experience; not to detract from the few commenters who bought the SP11 Snapdragon and actually had a bad experience. So, I thought I would post my experience, so far, to help anyone who is considering a SP11 Snapdragon.

Snapdragon Plus 11 13"

16.0 GB / 512 GB

Slim Pen and Microsoft Surface Pro Keyboard

Used for work and personal

I typically switch between two established docking stations at home when using it for desktop work. It worked first time when docked with both, no changes needed. (It also plugs into the docks at work with no issues, but I don't know what make and model those are).

Dell D600 Dock

  • Two external monitors - AOC AG352UCG and a cheap UPERFECT 15.6" IPS portable monitor (MDS-15608)
  • Generic wired mouse
  • Wired, self-built mechanical keyboard using Via firmware
  • Plantronics Poly P5 Webcam
  • Plantronics Poly SY20-M Speakerphone

and

Lenovo ThinkPad Universal Thunderbolt 4 Dock

  • Two external monitors - Alienware (Dell) AW3225QF 4k and an old Dell U2719D
  • Logitech G604
  • Keychron Q10 mechanical keyboard
  • Plantronics Poly P5 Webcam
  • Plantronics Poly SY20-M Speakerphone
  • Creative pebble speakers

It prints to a HP Color LaserJet MFP M283fdw over my home internet. Installed drivers with no issues

Also connects fine (as expected) to my BlueDento B2, and all my other Bluetooth peripherals

I've had no App issues, native or emulator based, issues. A few less common Apps I use, for example, might be Canary Mail, Simplemind, Simplenote, Zotero (native ARM64), Obsidian, atext, Synology Drive. I have not noticed any poor performance. I do use Fusion360 but have not needed to install it on the SP11. I'm not sure if that's going to tax this little thing too hard, but one day I''l install it and find out. I'll update this post with the result, successful or not. I use tablet mode mainly for general document reading and annotation, either work generated documents or through Zotero for PDFs, and for my Obsidian based work.

For work I use the MS Office 365 environment, Salesforce, Airtable, ChatGPT Enterprise, Concur Enterprise, Workday, Smartsheet etc. This is done through the browser due to my works security approach. I use a SSO process through the Edge browser when I start a work session and don't need to sign in again until it kicks me out for inactivity, I'm not sure how long they have that set. I have not seen any issues working this way, and wouldn't expect to, given it's about the internet connection not the operating system. In fact, I find the response snappier than using my work laptop at home as the work laptop has to do some extra security stuff when working directly from outside the office network (I think someone said it was a dedicated VPN. I have no idea about that stuff; it just does its thing). MS Teams and Zoom meetings are seamless.

I travel internationally for work, about 30% of my time. Nearly all trips have me in the air between 9 and 18 hours. Haven't had an issue with using the Surface Pro 11 on the planes for work, the battery lifetime is significantly better than my work X1 Carbon. Although on the longer trips I typically have time to top up the charge a little between flights and have never had to run the SP11 to exhaustion. Working from the hotel, I'll use my UPERFECT 15.6" IPS portable monitor (MDS-15608) as a second screen using whatever USB-C cable came with the portable monitor; have had no issues with that connection.

I used to travel with the work laptop and a Samsung Galaxy Tab10+, using the Samsung Tablet on the plane for internet-based work, but the SP11 quickly replaced the Samsung tablet. The Android DEX environment never felt quite right. Noting here that the Samsung still feels better to handle as a tablet than the SP11. The pen use on the SP11 feels better than the Samsung, and MS Journal has replaced Samsung Notes for written notes.

I hope this is useful information to anyone thinking about the SP11 Snapdragon Plus. I know that these sorts of things are personally subjective, so folks should only take this post as conveying my personal experience. I've been very happy with my purchase and find that as I've got more used to an office workflow through the browser, I'm using it more in when at the office than my work laptop.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/Dizzy_Avocado_4034 on 2025-06-27 14:35:28+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/subsolar on 2025-06-25 20:53:54+00:00.


Extra hour or two of battery life for us now?

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/lectops on 2025-06-25 10:08:44+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/GoodMacAuth on 2025-06-24 14:09:08+00:00.


I love my ARM Surface but I'm completely blown away that the only two legitimate email client options that run ARM native are Outlook and a clone of Outlook. Am I missing something?

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The original was posted on /r/surface by /u/sagan96 on 2025-06-24 12:00:26+00:00.


I got my surface laptop 7 in mid July 2024 (snapdragon X 10 core). After having the laptop for about a year now, I have some thoughts and wanted to see what others think.

Firstly, I love the hardware. I have a 13.8 inch model. It never gets hot for me. The fans never turn on. Feels great to type on and can have it on my lap for hours. Also, I really enjoy the display even if it isn't an OLED. The 120hz is really nice to have, as well as finally having an amazing track pad on a windows laptop.

Battery life feels like where I have been deceived the most. It has good battery life don't get me wrong, but it isn't remotely close to my sister or mom's macbook air. Feel like the battery claims people made around these laptops were a lot of talk and they don't actually hold up.

Windows on ARM. So far it has been fine for me, but the app store and my knowledge of apps being made for ARM still seems to be slim. Performance on the platform is great and my laptop is really fast, however the app availability seems to be pretty small and not growing with much consistency.

Anyone else get one of these newer surface, windows on ARM devices? What are your thoughts so far?

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