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About scratches and warranties.

Jasmine

Member
I had the same problem with paint issues.... I recently returned one that was badly chipped and MS accepted it no problem.

My current SP2 is about 14 days old and it already has a spot where paint is coming off. It is beyond babied (hasn't even left the house yet). So yes, these devices definitely have issues with the paint.
 

CrippsCorner

Well-Known Member
I wonder if Surface Pro 2's are more widely effected? Or it's just certain batches or in certain locations... something's got to club all these together. I've had 2 original Surface Pro's now and they've both been fine.
 

jnjroach

Administrator
Staff member
My Pro 2 is an original batch, I received it one day before official launch. I use it for 10-14 hours a day in the field and at my home and work offices, nary a scratch....same with my Surface 2. The same goes for my wife's who takes it to Grad School and my 13 years Old's Pro 2 and Surface 2 which goes to school with him everyday.
 
I think most of these scratches are user errors :p
Yeah, stop saying that.

I don't know about the scratches, because I have none yet, but seriously, I can chip away the paint with my fingernails. No other device I ever had was this fragile.

It's not surprising in this case people get scratches. Whatever the painting process for the SFPro2, it results in a terribly delicate coating. Google around for examples.

Just grabbing the device with by bare hands seems to weaken the paint. I don't know if it's sweat, heat, whatever, but it results in a slight decoloration. Also I often use my Surface Pro in bed, letting it rest on a corner while I grab the opposite edge with my hand. Well, that corner obviously is subject to some wear (I may e.g. rotate the Surface). However, it rests _on a friggin bed_ . Not exactly bedrock. Yet, the paint is also chipping away on that corner.

I already knew about these issues before buying the device and didn't care, because
a) I generanlly don't give a damn at how my devices look, and in fact, consider a "used" look a good thing because it deters potential thieves (living in Spain, this is quite useful),
b) I also thought people were just being careless with their devices.
But the issues are there. The SFPro2 is, to put simply, the only device I've ever owned in my entire life where paint just fell down without any physical impact (aka "a fall").

As an unrelated anecdote, I'm already used to the fact that when most Apple-centric tech news sites give a product "excellent" marks in build quality, it often means it actually chips, scratches, or even deforms easily. A glaring example are the unibody MacBooks.
 

al2fast

New Member
Worst anodization ever! I got parts on my atv that see rocks, dirt, sticks, you name it hitting them and they don't chip. I have a vinyl skin on my SP2 that I purchased in January 2014 and the edge that is on the bottom of the kickstand is starting to chip, one of the small parts not covered by the vinyl. I mean the wood kitchen table and laminate desktop and my lap are all pretty hard surfaces that would scratch diamonds. I do realize it's the business end of the kickstand and going to see wear eventually, but I've been extremely conscious of where I've utilized the kickstand and am surprised and disappointed at the same time that it's wearing already. The side of the kickstand where you can stick your fingers in to pull the kickstand out is chipping (on the kickstand) and wearing away as well from my abrasive SKIN on my fingers. Spray paint is more durable.

I don't expect my SP2 to look like new forever, but I would think the finish would hold up a little better than it has. My Surface RT finish held up much better, didn't chip anywhere in the 4 months I had it.
 
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jamesk

Member
When you guys set your Surface down, do you place it so the keyboard is on the bottom or facing up? I've been people place their SP/SP2 so the keyboard is facing up and they complain their SP/SP2 is getting scratched but it's because their not using the keyboard to protect their SP/SP2. Instead they say they want to show off the color of their keyboard cover.
 

jefhart

Member
You and kayzee probably need better glasses ;–)
My first one got scratches by doing this:
1. put it on a clean(!) table backside down
2. pick it up and by doing this move it ~0,3inch on the table's surface
I'm not talking about scratches to the bare metal, but still scratches. Sorry guys, but either you're not watching closely, or you aren't really using the device in the mobile way it's made for.
There must be good/bad batches out there because I take mine with me to work every day and the only thing I've ever noticed was rust where the keyboard attaches to the tablet (which I wiped off). Other than that just some minuscule chipping that you'd really have to inspect closely to see. I'll just county myself as lucky.
 

CrippsCorner

Well-Known Member
Has anybody had such issues as javispedro with the original Surface Pro? Eager to find out, as it seems like it could be isolated to only affecting Surface Pro 2's. Although, god only knows what they changed in the production process between the two models...
 

mohcho

Active Member
I picked mine up last week and I have already experienced some scratches on the back and near the charging port. I had NOT put the surface back down on anything, it has only been propped up using the stand and the first night I brought it home in my laptop bag, I pulled it out and noticed a swirl shaped scratch on the back near the camera. This is the same bag I have been using with my Dell laptop for years and the laptop is in pristine condition. The charging port on the SP2 is already showing signs of wear, with the black "paint" already wearing off around the rim of the charging port. I am always meticulous about all my devices and they are always keep in new condition. I am surprised that the finish on the SP2 is so fragile.
 
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Has anybody had such issues as javispedro with the original Surface Pro? Eager to find out, as it seems like it could be isolated to only affecting Surface Pro 2's. Although, god only knows what they changed in the production process between the two models...
The related threads section shows that a very similar (if not identical) thread in the Surface Pro (1) forum, so ... yes. In fact I extensively read that thread before purchasing the SFPro2.

However, the RT Surfaces seem to be ... harder.
 
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