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Customer service hints at Surface Book trade-in program to fix ongoing issues

Mark Coppock
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Image used with permission by copyright holder
Microsoft’s Surface line of hardware has been monumentally successful. Not only has it generated significant revenues and profits for the company, but Surface has also spurred the production of an increasing number of excellent Windows 10 2-in-1 machines and generally pushed the Windows ecosystem forward.

At the same time, Surface machines have suffered from numerous issues. Everything from battery life to display reliability to general performance has suffered from buggy drivers and firmware and Microsoft has been working overtime to address them. Now, it seems that the company might be planning to offer a trade-in alternative for some Surface Book customers as a solution ongoing issues, OnMSFT reports.

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Doing a quick search on Google for “Surface firmware” will reveal an avalanche of stories on both the Surface Pro line of Windows 10 tablet convertibles and the Surface Book notebook with a detachable screen. A common theme of the stories is the steady release of driver and firmware updates intended to address issues with the machines. It could be that the software is not the problem, but rather the software could be attempting to overcome underlying hardware problems.

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A recent technical support discussion by the owner of the first-generation Surface Book indicates that Microsoft could be considering a trade-in program to the new generation Surface Book with Performance Base that was introduced in October. Certainly, it’s conceivable that the new Surface Books implement updated components that address issues with the earlier machines and enabling a trade-in program would be one way to best serve Microsoft customers.

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At the same time, the information comes from a historically unreliable source — a technical support representative — and so nobody should be packing up their Surface Book machines quite yet to take into their local Microsoft Store. It’s also entirely possible that if a trade-in program were to be created, then only certain issues will be included and there could be a cost. After all, the Surface Book with Performance Base models are more expensive than their predecessors.

If you are a Surface Book owner, then you will likely want to keep your eyes open for news directly from Microsoft. Contacting a Microsoft Store might be another avenue for learning if such a trade-in program is in the works. If you’re suffering from any of the more common Surface Book issues, then chances are you are already well-acquainted with Microsoft’s technical support process.

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Mark Coppock
Mark Coppock
Computing Writer
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