Microsoft owns up to issues with the Surface Book and Pro 4

And one big issue remains for Surface Book and Surface Pro 4 owners: erratic power management. Some users are reporting that the devices simply don't go to sleep properly when you close their lids or put them into standby. Instead, they continue to drain power, which could be a nasty surprise if you don't bring your charger along. That's a particularly surprising issue for flagship devices in 2015 — it's something that's mostly been fixed by laptop makers over the past decade. Making things even worse, a Surface engineering manager noted earlier this month that the issue might not be fixed until 2016. 

"We are focused on delivering a great experience to every Surface customer," a Microsoft spokesperson told Engadget. "We know a small set of Surface Book and Surface Pro 4 customers are experiencing issues and addressing that is a top priority for us. We have dedicated engineering teams working to get updates and fixes out as quickly as possible and we will continue to use our Surface Book and Surface Pro 4 support forums to share new information directly with our customers as it becomes available." 

Microsoft also issued a brief apology last Friday for the "less than perfect" Surface experience, which basically urged users to keep updating their devices. There was no mention of the ongoing power issues. 
It's not unusual for brand new hardware to exhibit some growing pains, particularly unique devices like the Surface Book. But in those situations, being completely transparent with customers is usually the best response. It's been nearly two months since the Surface Book and Surface Pro 4 have been released, so it's also surprising that they're still exhibiting debilitating power issues. 

Microsoft reps tell us that they typically don't offer up timing expectations when it comes to fixes, as the Surface engineering manager (identified only as "Joe") did. Every update requires extensive testing to make sure they don't cause new issues, so it's not simply a matter of writing up a fix and deploying it. Still, at least "Joe" actually said something about the power issues. Microsoft has yet to acknowledge it otherwise. 

It's not as if Microsoft is ignoring the Surface issues, though. It's constantly tracking all of the issues being reported; some just take longer to fix than others, reps say. The company has also sped up the timing of Windows Updates so they can be deployed as soon as they're ready, rather than just a few times a month. 

Mostly, it seems that most of the Surface Book and Surface Pro 4 issues caught Microsoft by surprise. While the devices went through plenty of internal testing, most of the problems only became apparent when they reached consumers. That may be a sign that Microsoft should open up its testing process a bit to a wider audience, before releasing new hardware. The company doesn't have plans to do that yet, reps say, but that'll ultimately be up to its engineers. 

So where do things stand now? Microsoft is updating its Surface devices with all of the currently available fixes at the factory. If you've already got one, be sure to install all of the updates that get released. The company isn't offering any special customer support path for Surface issues, but I hear the replacement process is fairly painless if you're near a Microsoft store. Otherwise, contact Microsoft support and hope for the best. In some cases, they can send you a replacement before receiving your faulty device. 

It's always tough to judge just how extensive product issues are based on forum complaints. Consumers having a negative experience with new products are generally louder than the rest. But when those issues are being reported consistently, it's worth noting. We've also seen a major issue with our pre-production: One Surface Book crashed after running a 3D benchmark and refused to boot. We initially chalked that up to just being early hardware, but some users are reporting similar booting issues. 

One Surface Book owner I know -- who was particularly eager to get one -- had to replace their device three times at a Microsoft store. After getting tired of the issues, he just got aDell XPS 13 instead.

Microsoft launches survey for its insiders

If you’re one of the millions of insiders who participated in the development of Windows 10 for PCs or mobile device, you now have the chance to win Microsoft’s new Surface Book laptop by completing a 10-minute survey. 

In an email sent today, the Windows Insider team explains that it’s looking into ways to improve the testing program, so it wants the opinions of those who have already brought their contribution to products such as Windows 10 and Windows 10 Mobile for a closer look at methods to do that. 

“Your feedback is most powerful when we can triangulate it across the Feedback App, your bug reports and error logs—and especially when we can understand a bit more about you as a person, your motivations in taking part in the Insider Program, and what you think about our progress to date. To deepen this understanding, we'd like to invite you to take a short survey to help us improve the Insider Program for you,” the email sent today reads. 

How to enter the Surface Book sweepstake 

But undoubtedly the most appealing part of this survey is the possibility of winning a Surface Book laptop with 256 GB of storage space and Intel Core i5 CPU if you answer all questions. 

So basically, all you need to do is to start the survey here and use your Microsoft account (the one you used for the Windows Insider program!) to provide your answers. 

“We truly value hearing from each and every Insider. As a small token of our appreciation for helping us improve, if you complete the survey and choose to include your Microsoft email address (MSA), you'll automatically be entered into a sweepstakes to win a free Microsoft Surface Book!” Redmond says. 

The survey will be there until December 22, so you have just one week to enter the contest. Keep in mind that there are more than 6 million insiders right now, so chances to win the Surface Book aren’t really huge. You must be at least 18 years old to be eligible for the sweepstake.

Microsoft acknowledges Surface Book, Surface 4 Pro problems, has no timetable for fixes

When Microsoft launched the Surface Book and Surface Pro 4, the company won accolades from many users. The new laptop-style device was hailed as one of the best pieces of hardware you could buy, while the Surface 4 Pro continued to refine and improve on Redmond’s earlier Surface devices. While a few sites reported issues with early hardware, that’s fairly typical across review (Google’s Pixel C tablet is another such example). For the past few weeks, reports have been coming in that the device doesn’t sleep properly, and continues draining power at nearly the full-use rate. 

According to Microsoft’s support staff (a person identified only as “Joe”), the problem is that the CPU isn’t dropping into its full sleep state, and Microsoft knew about the problem from day one. He writes, “We couldn’t do it at RTM for a variety of reasons, power management is a very hard computer science problem to solve especially with new silicon. Currently it is not in the deepest ‘sleep’ that it can be so there are wake events that would not otherwise wake it. We will have an update for this issue sometime soon in the new year.” 


According to Microsoft, the solution is to disable Connected Standby by manually setting the chip to “Hibernate” from within Windows 10’s power management options. He also notes that users are advised not to leave any streaming browser windows open, as this will prevent the system from sleeping the CPU. 

Based on the problems people are having, it doesn’t sound like the CPU is sleeping very much at all — all in the name of giving people email five seconds faster than they’d otherwise have it, but at the cost of drastically reduced battery life. It’s baffling that Microsoft would ship a system with a problem this severe — battery life is one of the most important metrics for a system these days. There is no special path for Surface Pro 4 / Surface Book users to contact the company, so hopefully you can either wait until January or return your device if you’re unhappy with the product as it currently exists. Microsoft has pledged to continue updating the platform until it resolves the outstanding issues. 

Engadget reports that some users have had issues with multiple Surface Book / Surface 4 Pro devices, leading them to switch to other platforms. If you’ve got one of the new devices, what’s been your experience thus far?

Microsoft has released the new Lumia 950 XL

Microsoft has started to evolve on the smartphone market. These days, the huge company has released the new Microsoft Lumia 950 XL. Moreover, besides this new and larger phone, they have also released a smaller option, called Lumia 950. 

With these two new releases, Microsoft has started promoting their new Windows 10 for mobile. Of course, Microsoft Lumia 950 XL is larger than Lumia 950, featuring a 5.7-inch display, and also has some extra new features. Being Microsoft’s flagship phones, these two models are packed with the latest technology. 

So, the new Microsoft Lumia 950 XL comes with an incredible display, an amazing 20-megapixel camera and a super-fast octa-core processor. As for their new operating system, Windows 10 is a good and probably a refreshing alternative for Android and iOS. 

New Lumia 950 XL , featuring a 5.7-inch display 
Moreover, Windows 10 comes with a friendly-interface, meaning that it is pretty easy to use, but it has one huge minus: apps. This problem has also been met on the previous operating system, Windows Phone 8. 

So, unfortunately, the app store doesn’t have all the great content that users were used to see on iOS and Android. It seems that app developers are not putting any great effort to bring new releases to Microsoft’s mobile apps. 

If we forget about the app problem, the new Microsoft Lumia 950 XL is an incredible phone and those who are already Windows Phone users will probably accommodate quickly from switching to the newest operating system. 

However, the new Windows 10 has a lot of work to do to become a compelling choice over iOS and Android. This doesn’t mean that it is impossible, because this operating system promises a lot, and with some updates, it can be a tough competitor on the market. 

The new Microsoft Lumia 950 XL is available at the price of 649 dollars. This is not a cheap price, meaning that customers will have to do a lot of thinking before buying this product. As it was earlier mentioned, Microsoft Lumia 950 XL is bigger than the classic 950, having a larger 5.7-inch display. 

This phone measures 78.4mm wide and 152mm long, while the standard 950 has 145 x 73.2 mm. So, this means that Microsoft Lumia 950 XL is designed for customers who are willing to have a larger display. Of course, they are aware that this phone is not for one-handed use. 

Microsoft Lumia 950 XL and Lumia 950 have one of the best displays on the market. 

These two devices share the same resolution, 2,560x1,440-pixels. But, knowing the fact that Microsoft Lumia 950 XL has a larger display means that the pixels are spread out over a wider area. 

This means that the pixel density is reduced. However, this is not a huge difference that should been noticed. Microsoft Lumia 950 XL comes with an octa-core Snapdragon 810 processor, accompanied by 2GB of RAM. 

On the other side, the classic Lumia 950 comes with a Snapdragon 808 hexacore processor, accompanied by the same amount of RAMs.

Windows 10 mobile update delayed to 2016

Windows 10 Mobile build 10586.36 was released earlier this week for members of the Insider program, but it turns out that no major bug has been found and it can run very smoothly on Microsoft's new flagship phones. 

It remains unclear which existing Windows Phones will get the upgrade and which will not although if you purchased in the a year ago you are likely to have an upgradeable phone. 

Microsoft has silently starting shipping the latest version of Windows 10 Mobile to Lumia 950 and 950 XL devices, regardless of whether they are enrolled in the Windows Insider program or not. The update then would not be for all older Lumia smart phones, but only a select number of models would be up for update. The company has officially confirmed that the Microsoft Lumia 550 that is already selling in Europe and the U.S. is now coming to India. 

As announced, only the Lumia 950 and Lumia 950XL have Windows 10 Mobile for the Lumia line. $142). The Windows 10 phone will be available in Matte Black and Glassy White variants. 

The Lumia 550 does not support the Continuum feature that we've seen in the two top-end Lumia phones.

Microsoft Lumia 550 Officially Launches As The Cheapest Windows 10 Smartphone [Video]

Microsoft finally launched its new Lumia 550, releasing the handset as the cheapest smartphone yet to run Windows 10 out of the box. 

The company may already have Windows 10 running on two flagship smartphones, the Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL, but it didn't forget about the budget sector. While the flagships come with price tags to match, the new Lumia 550 comes at the affordable segment and is now available for just $139. 

The initial Lumia 550 launch, however, is just for a few select markets initially, with more to follow soon. 

"Sales of the new Microsoft Lumia 550, which offers the best of Microsoft to people who value affordability and uncompromised quality, begin today in Europe. Other regions around the globe will follow in the coming weeks," Microsoft announced in a new company blog post on Monday, Dec. 7. 

The latest Windows 10 OS will bring popular Microsoft apps and services to the Lumia 550, including the signature Office suite with Word, Excel and PowerPoint, the Cortana digital assistant, as well as Microsoft's OneDrive, Skype, Outlook Calendar and Outlook Mail. 

As expected from a budget device, the Lumia 550 doesn't come with extraordinary hardware on board. The handset packs modest specifications to accommodate its low price tag. 

More specifically, the Lumia 550 features a 4.7-inch HD display with a 16:9 aspect ratio, 1,280 x 720 pixel resolution and 315 ppi, and packs a 1.1GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 210 processor under the hood, paired with 1 GB of RAM. 

Other specs include 8 GB of internal storage, expandable up to 200 GB via microSD, a 5-megapixel main camera with LED flash, a 2-megapixel front shooter, and a 2,100 mAh removable battery. The 4G LTE connectivity of the Lumia 550 allows for download speeds of up to 150 Mbps and upload speeds of up to 50 Mbps, according to Microsoft. 

Glance Screen is also a notable software feature, as it allows Lumia 550 users to check out notifications, the time, or calendar entries at a glance, without unlocking or activating the phone. The new Microsoft Edge browser, meanwhile, will reportedly serve as a powerful tool for reading on-the-go or other browsing activities. 

The $139 Microsoft Lumia 550 comes in two color options - Glossy White and Matte Black. For more information, check out the presentation video below.