Referred to as “flickergate” recent reports reveal users of Microsoft’s Surface Pro 4 have found a way to fix the tablet’s screen flickering issues – by putting it in their home freezer.
As disclosed in a thread within Microsoft’s support forums, users have been experiencing the screen issues for more than a year. For many of them, their Surface Pro 4 is out of warranty.
The dedicated Flickergate website reveals at least 1,500 owners who have been plagued by the screen issues.
As reported to The Verge a Microsoft spokesperson claims screen flickering is a hardware issue, and the company is monitoring the situation:
“We are aware that some customers have experienced a screen flicker on Surface Pro 4 and are monitoring the situation closely. Customers impacted by this should contact Microsoft support.”
As a temporary fix, some users claim they are able to receive about an hour of standard use, following ten minutes in the freezer.
Surface Pro 4 screen issues reportedly affect less than 1% of users.
The news comes after ‘Consumer Report’ removed its badge of recommendation from Microsoft’s entire suite of Surface PCs having found its software is less reliable than other brands.
It adds to other Surface product complaints – the Surface Book was deemed to have sleep problems, and the Surface Pro 3 was found to have battery problems leading to Microsoft issuing a firmware update.
