Only Getting 4hrs of Battery Life

[ManUnited]

Overall, many people (myself included) will be disappointed with the battery life given how it was marketed as "All day battery life".
9 hours is FAR too aggressive a claim without severe changes to brightness and monitoring of other resources.

ManUnited, most major reviewers will not be as kind to these adjustments as those on this forum, and rightly so.

In fact the woman who was given the first SP3 at the introduction, later commented on the battery life in her later review.

I do think those reviews will force MS to report closer to "real world" numbers.

In my use case, I monitor three mailboxes and have to receive mail in real-time. I also remote in to machines, surf the internet and do design work in CAD like programs.

My Achilles heel is the brightness. Going below 65% is ridiculous to me. No one I've ever worked with has ever had their laptop or full monitors set to 45%.

Some of the comments can make you feel that you are using the device incorrectly..ie, brightness settings.
However, real world use in different scenarios actually show an average battery time of 5-7 hours.

Thank you for your post. Evidently, you and I seem to be in the minority (or at least the vocal minority).

 

[ctitanic]

I don't mean to be flip but you know what they say about doing the same thing over and over expecting different results. Something will have to change.

It's like he is expecting a miracle. Well, he already told me that may be somebody else can help him. I really don't know how. I would love to see a solution other than changing his current configuration. The fact is that the SP3 can give him around 7 to 8 hours if he changes the configuration a little bit.

 

[ManUnited]

I don't mean to be flip but you know what they say about doing the same thing over and over expecting different results. Something will have to change.

You are not being flip at all. In fact, you have offered some of the most pertinent advice and I thank you.

 

[ManUnited]

It's like he is expecting a miracle.

No, I expect a conversation.

 

[GreyFox7]

Thank you for your reply and your comments about the avatar. I do teach in the States. I eagerly await the 7:30 start to the EPL with United at Swansea.

As for the discrepancies, my questions have been why some users see such a variation. That's all. (See @dman27 comments above.)

However, since I made the comparison to my old kit — all Apple devices — some comments seem to focus solely on that aspect and do not address the question.

Without knowing or seeing what's happening specifically on your device I can only suggest things to try. Like shouting in the dark if all you tell me is I missed I have little chance of success... even worse if I give you bullets and you never fire them there's absolutely no chance of success. Pausing.

 

[ctitanic]

Thank you for your post. Evidently, you and I seem to be in the minority (or at least the vocal minority).

The point that you both are missing is that there are users that can get that number of hours. Microsoft
warns you that your battery life could be different. And they also say that they changed the default setting to achieve the 9 hours:

Testing consisted of full battery discharge while Internet browsing over WiFi. Internet browsing was tested browsing 25 popular web pages. All settings were default except: Wi Fi was associated with a network, Auto-Brightness disabled, and Bluetooth Radio was turned off. Battery life varies with settings, usage, and other factors. Games, movies, and music sold separately.

http://www.microsoft.com/surface/en-us/products/surface-pro-3

The above is taken from Microsoft site!

 

[GreyFox7]

Lets all take a step back... I hate to see opportunities to understand performance issues go by but this isn't headed anywhere at the moment.

 

[ctitanic]

No, I expect a conversation.

And what are you expecting from this conversation? Read again Microsoft site. They are explaining that they changed the configuration to achieve the 9 hours. But you don't want to do that.

 

[ctitanic]

Lets all take a step back... I hate to see opportunities to understand performance issues go by but this isn't headed anywhere at the moment.

Correct!

 

[Moonsurface]

I suppose it comes down to this: Are there enough advantages to the form factor/pen ability etc of the SP3 to make it worth compromising the way you are using it slightly (plugging it in at lunchtime or reducing screen brightness) in order to get the battery life you desire? If not then I guess there's no point and it's time to send it back as you will never be happy.

Personally I always take manufacturers battery life claims and mpg claims etc with a pinch of salt and if the claimed battery life was all I was basing a purchase on (without looking at real user reviews and comparing for a more balanced view) I'd probably want to find a device that was offering more than I expected to achieve to compensate for this.

According to SEAT my ibiza 1.2 TSI petrol offers 50mpg fuel efficiency (this is UK gallons by the way). For all it's new technology, brake energy regeneration etc I get 36mpg on my regular driving which is only about 8mpg more than my previous old tech petrol engine. Sure I can see 50mpg if travelling at 50mph on a flat road... but that doesn't happen very often due to the way I use the car :-(

 

[ctitanic]

As for the discrepancies, my questions have been why some users see such a variation. That's all. (See @dman27 comments above.).

And We explained why. Many times.

However, since I made the comparison to my old kit — all Apple devices — some comments seem to focus solely on that aspect and do not address the question.

And some users explained why.

 

[CFCSupporter]

As far as the battery life is concerned, is it better to let battery drain and then fully charge it instead of keeping it plugged in for several days? I know in the early days that was a problem but i'm not sure it still is.