Microsoft Surface Touch Cover 'Splits Within Days'

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Microsoft Surface Touch Cover 'Splits Within Days'

Posted by Soulskill on Saturday November 10, 2012 @10:18PM from the make-like-a-banana dept.

An anonymous reader points out a report at the Guardian of a potential problem for early adopters of the Microsoft Surface tablet. The Touch Cover is one of the available protective covers for the device; it acts as a keyboard, and has both a gyroscope and an accelerometer on board. Unfortunately, some users have found that the edges of the Touch Cover have split open after only a few days of use. "The defect is identical in each case: the cover ... begins to split at its seam where the device attaches magnetically to the main computer. [One developer] was told to return his Touch Cover to Microsoft for a replacement, and Microsoft has been swapping faulty covers for users where it has retail stores. It's unclear whether the problems that people have encountered are due to a faulty batch or are a subtle problem that will become more apparent as more people use it for longer — but the fact that users in the US and the UK have reported the problem suggests that it is not isolated to a single manufacturing batch."

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My experience with Surface by iolek · 2012-11-10 22:18 · Score: 2, Informative

I would say that this story might be a bit over-sensationalist. I have Surface and the touch cover and it's working well. Actually, the whole thing is much better than Android based tablets or iPad. It just works, and you have Windows underneath.
1. Re:My experience with Surface by imagined.by · 2012-11-10 22:27 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  I would say that this story might be a bit over-sensationalist.
  Well, now that Microsoft wants to compete with Apple, they'll have to deal with over-sensationalist news as well.
  Let me be the first to suggest "Covergate". ;)
2. Re:My experience with Surface by iolek · 2012-11-10 22:39 · Score: 2, Insightful
  
  and microsoft telling them that they're using it in wrong position that causes wrong stress on the seam.
  Even the summary says that Microsoft is changing them. You're talking about Apple's way of doing things.
3. Re:My experience with Surface by Dunbal · 2012-11-10 22:43 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  Correct, if it was Apple the user would be told that he is using the cover wrong, and a new and improved cover would be available for purchase for $399.
  
  --
  Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
4. Re:My experience with Surface by Anonymous Coward · 2012-11-10 22:50 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  Of course they're defective.
  Which part of "Microsoft Product" did you not understand?
5. Re:My experience with Surface by dna_(c)(tm)(r) · 2012-11-10 23:20 · Score: 3, Funny
  
  You guys, stop Microsoft cover bashing (then at least it will hold together at the seams)
6. Re:My experience with Surface by rainmouse · 2012-11-10 23:54 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  Well, now that Microsoft wants to compete with Apple, they'll have to deal with over-sensationalist news as well.
  Though I suspect they may find themselves in a patent infringement lawsuit regarding this.
7. Re:My experience with Surface by Anonymous Coward · 2012-11-10 23:56 · Score: 2, Funny
  
  I would say that this story might be a bit over-sensationalist.
  The implication being there is some level of sensationalism that is acceptable?
8. Re:My experience with Surface by flowsnake · 2012-11-10 23:56 · Score: 2
  
  You're holding it wrong. Not that big of a deal.
9. Re:My experience with Surface by benjymouse · 2012-11-10 23:59 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  and microsoft telling them that they're using it in wrong position that causes wrong stress on the seam.
  I call BS. Nowhere in the linked articles is Microsoft cited for any such claim. Citation needed, please.
  
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10. Re:My experience with Surface by Anonymous Coward · 2012-11-11 00:14 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  I agree. As a busy, young, professional, and I kept finding that my Android and Apple devices were holding back my potential to synergize my cloud potential at work, but it also got in the way of my X-treme lifestyle when I'm not. After a few days of using my new Microsoft® Surface, it magically unleashed my creativity and X-tremeness and earning potential with it's radical Microsoft® Windows® technology, and I was offered the job of CEO. The styling and unique VaporMg (patent pending) casing caught the eye of a few supermodels today, while I was doing some Xtreme mountainbike-hang-gliding-surfing-rock-climbing-base-jumping, which is a new sport made possible only by thoughtful design and precision craftsmanship that make Surface a joy to behold. They were aroused by the split touch cover, and told me they'd be my harem as long as I never to get it changed.
11. Re:My experience with Surface by Cryacin · 2012-11-11 00:14 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  You have to say, good customer service. At least they didn't say the users were just doing it wrong.
  
  --
  Science advances one funeral at a time- Max Planck
12. Re:My experience with Surface by erroneus · 2012-11-11 00:19 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  This is Microsoft we're talking about. There is the obgligatory "...of death" which must be added to every Microsoft based failure.
13. Re:My experience with Surface by benjymouse · 2012-11-11 00:43 · Score: 5, Interesting
  
  it is bs, because the suggestion is made with the mouth of an user
  Not with the mouth of a user. The suggestion was made by a user. Or are you suggesting that Microsoft imposes a user to make such a suggestion?
  
  but it's apparently the reason for why it breaks
  That a little premature conclusion, don't you think? I have been using the device extensively like that and my cover has not split (yet). Is it now a concern? Yes, definitively. I can even see how the wires in that place *does* put extra stress on the glued/welded surfaces. But to jump to " it's apparently the reason for why it breaks" is just not supported by any data at this point. Pure speculation.
  
  so I'd wager that MS would tell you just to fuck off after you're back to have it changed the third time.
  Yeah, you'd wager. Right. Certainly their actions so far indicate that the users affected by this problem have had no problem getting a replacement. So on what basis do you "wager" that?
  
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14. Re:My experience with Surface by DrXym · 2012-11-11 00:55 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  It just works, and you have Windows underneath.
  If you have the RT version the only thing you have underneath is disappointment and tears.
15. Re:My experience with Surface by bfandreas · 2012-11-11 01:38 · Score: 2
  
  I would say that this story might be a bit over-sensationalist.
  Well, now that Microsoft wants to compete with Apple, they'll have to deal with over-sensationalist news as well.
  Let me be the first to suggest "Covergate". ;)
  Sorry, you don't get to make up a name. Since a keyboard and MS are involved A20 Gate is assigned by default.
  
  --
  20 minutes into the future
16. Re:My experience with Surface by Sponge+Bath · 2012-11-11 02:05 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  This unbiased testimony to the awesomeness of Surface with Windows RT prompted me to buy one for every member of my family and a homeless guy. The new EZ-tear away cover technology saves me time and those precious moments can mean the difference between life and death. If you care about your family, Surface is the tablet for you.
17. Re:My experience with Surface by surkum · 2012-11-11 03:25 · Score: 2
  
  Are you working for Apple?, That's the exact answer that an apple employer give me last week in Boston when I told him that my smart cover was tearing apart since I reviced it a month before. indeed it was after asking me if I has summeged it in water. 8) Subrealistic.
  
  --
  here ends what some neis
18. Re:My experience with Surface by rtfa-troll · 2012-11-11 05:04 · Score: 2
  
  Yep. You can bet Apple is just waiting for the "right moment" to start suing.
  Don't expect much. Microsoft and Apple have long had a reciprocal patent licensing agreement. Basically they are acting in a patent cartel together to try to get rid of other competition from the market. When Microsoft brings out it's new phones I guess you can expect that there will also be a "right way" and a "wrong way" to hold it too. (As erroneus would have it "the grip of death")
  
  --
  =~ s,(.*),<sarcasm>$1</sarcasm>,g if any_point_you_wish();
19. Re:My experience with Surface by rtfa-troll · 2012-11-11 05:50 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  Every manufacturer does silent replacements for broken products. You a can only reasonably say that Microsoft has "good customer service" over this if they issue a total product recall before this becomes a major media issue.
  (as a side note; it's pretty obvious the shills mod each other up within seconds at the start of an article being posted - doesn't this seem like pretty clear moderator abuse which Slashdot should stamp on)
  
  --
  =~ s,(.*),<sarcasm>$1</sarcasm>,g if any_point_you_wish();
20. Re:My experience with Surface by Anonymous Coward · 2012-11-11 08:18 · Score: 5, Informative
  
  No, not every manufacturer. Not Apple, Microsoft's competition.
  http://www.macrumors.com/2012/04/19/blogger-victorious-over-apple-in-small-claims-case-on-nvidia-gpu-failures/
  It seems that the actual article is down at the moment, but apple actually sent two lawyers to court, and tried to file a counter suit against a man even though Nvidia would be paying the actual cost of the repair.
  So no, not every manufacturer. Microsoft is actually pretty great at customer service in that sense.
  It was the same thing with the xbox 360s, if you had an xbox 360 that was 3 years old or less and had the most common hardware failure, it got replaced. Microsoft caught a ton of flack though, because their agreement to replace all these xboxes actually brought more attention to the story.
  I had three(yes, 3) original playstations that didn't last 3 years without a hardware failure. I also had a PS2 that failed in 3.5 years after receiving maybe 1/10th of the use my xbox 360 received. Original nintendos were notoriously unreliable at reading cartridges. Nobody talks about those screwups though, meanwhile here's Microsoft replacing xbox 360s left and right, replacing all these touch covers, and people treat it as a negative. At least they're showing good faith to make it right.
So what? by lennier1 · 2012-11-10 22:33 · Score: 5, Funny

They're just holding it wrong!
1. Re:So what? by Rogerborg · 2012-11-10 22:54 · Score: 3, Interesting
  
  Did you read the "some users" link before cracking wise? That's exactly what they are saying: don't use it the way you see us using it in the adverts and you'll be fine.
  Jesus wept, the cognitive dissonance in there makes Apple fanbois look like balanced professional reviewers. After one victim reported getting a replacement which itself split within 24 hours (holding it wrong...) the response was "it is a problem with the accessory not the tablet". Well, I guess that makes it all right then.
  Good news for Microsoft though, it looks like they'll get to report "shipping" lots of covers.
  
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  If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
2. Re:So what? by benjymouse · 2012-11-11 00:06 · Score: 5, Informative
  
  That's exactly what they are saying: don't use it the way you see us using it in the adverts and you'll be fine.
  Citation needed. Hint: You seem to be confusing one user's suggestion for a Microsoft statement.
  
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3. Re:So what? by Joce640k · 2012-11-11 00:54 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  I bet the only people who get this problem are the same people who fold paperback books completely back on themselves when they read them.
  
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  No sig today...
4. Re:So what? by fido_dogstoyevsky · 2012-11-11 10:58 · Score: 2
  
  I bet the only people who get this problem are the same people who fold paperback books completely back on themselves when they read them.
  .........I just worked out why my ereader screens keep breaking.
  
  --
  It's NOT a conspiracy... it's a plot.
5. Re:So what? by gmhowell · 2012-11-11 14:42 · Score: 2
  
  I bet the only people who get this problem are the same people who fold paperback books completely back on themselves when they read them.
  Those people deserve everything they get. Especially if they do it to library books.
  
  --
  Jesus was all right but his disciples were thick and ordinary. -John Lennon
Fix-It-Yourself is the new game by siddesu · 2012-11-10 22:33 · Score: 3, Funny

I just glued the screen of my Nexus 7 so that it doesn't squeak, replaced the lens of my iPhone 5 to avoid the purple flare, I'll fix this too. Bring it on!
1. Re:Fix-It-Yourself is the new game by davester666 · 2012-11-11 05:23 · Score: 2
  
  You mean a $100 flimsy plastic keyboard that only works with a single device isn't a good value?
  
  --
  Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!
2 or 3 reports? by Anonymous Coward · 2012-11-10 22:36 · Score: 2

One article claims 2 users have reported this. The linked thread mentions three. I'm sure that they're may be more, but three reports of problems doesn't seem like a reason to declare a universal flaw yet.
1. Re:2 or 3 reports? by benjymouse · 2012-11-11 00:25 · Score: 5, Interesting
  
  One article claims 2 users have reported this. The linked thread mentions three. I'm sure that they're may be more, but three reports of problems doesn't seem like a reason to declare a universal flaw yet.
  The position where the cover has been splitting in these instances does seem to be a position under great stress. It is not inconceivable that it is a widespread problem.
  I have been using the Surface extensively with the cover folded back behind the unit (the position putting the most stress on that seam) and mine haven't split (yet). But examining the cover I can definitively see how it could happen, if the cover is not perfectly glued/molded. Not looking forward to confirming this problem :-)
  That said, it is a wonderful device. The touch cover really *is* nice. Folded back it offers a good non-slipping grip on the device. Having an (almost) real keyboard just by dropping the cover on a table is so much more convenient than using the screen keyboard.
  
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This is to be expected for Microsoft by PixetaledPikachu · 2012-11-10 22:47 · Score: 4, Interesting

They have been replacing RROD-ed Xbox360 left and right since releasing it to the market, and it took them 2 to 3 generation for them to solve overheating problem. So expect the cover problem to be resolved at least sometime next year
1. Re:This is to be expected for Microsoft by SomePgmr · 2012-11-11 07:33 · Score: 2
  
  It's possible some of them are just defective, though getting two in a row that have the problem suggests a real flaw.
  I have a first generation Kindle Fire, and a bunch of those came out faulty with noticeable screen ghosting. Amazon just replaced them until you got a good one and dealt with the issue in the background.
  I'm sure someone at Microsoft either knows or is tasked with finding out if this is a design or manufacturing issue. They can't afford for this to go too sideways on them.
Re:BUNCH OF CRY BABIES !! by MindPrison · 2012-11-10 23:15 · Score: 4, Funny

Like a little slip of a cover is worth the bitching !! Deal with it !! Live with it !! Take it like a man !! Or are you a little girl crying because her doll's clothing has a wrinkle !!
Ballmer, is that you?

--
What this world is coming to - is for you and me to decide.
Microsoft has been swapping faulty covers for user by Edzilla2000 · 2012-11-10 23:18 · Score: 4, Funny

So, how does that work? You go in with your faulty cover, you leave with a new user? Do you get to choose your user?
It's OK! by martin-boundary · 2012-11-10 23:50 · Score: 2, Funny

It's OK! Users with this problem just have to reboot the tablet and it will be fixed.
Re:No testing? by Attila+Dimedici · 2012-11-11 01:58 · Score: 2, Informative

This is Microsoft. They are testing it as we speak. What did you think users were for?

--
The truth is that all men having power ought to be mistrusted. James Madison
At least Apple ... by PPH · 2012-11-11 06:06 · Score: 3, Funny

... accounted for different use cases.

--
Have gnu, will travel.
Re:No testing? by Billly+Gates · 2012-11-11 06:58 · Score: 3, Insightful

Which is percisely why I am sticking with Windows 7 and Office 2010. MS is still used to being a monopoly where they do not have to worry about their image shattered with a bad product release. Just make it better next time and eventually it will take over.
IE, Windows, NT, and even Office, were not overnight sellers and did suck. It seems MS is like the linux kernel with releases of hardware and software where new exciting but not fully baked ideas need to get rushed out. Sucks? Consumers tell us how and we fix it later etc.
Windows 8 Metro is not a bad concept. It just does not integrate well with the desktop and there is not taskbar or multitasking friendly tiles such as putting more than one tile on the screen outside of Metro etc. Windows 9 will fix this for sure .... hopefully??
Users these days will just buy an IPAD or a Droid after this. MS can't do what they did in the past and use file compatibility games to enforce Windows/Office. Netscape is not going out of business forcing us to use IE 6. We have 2 other browsers and if IE sucks we can switch etc.
The world is changing and MS should do more QA internally and worry about image more.

--
http://saveie6.com/
Re:Sensors in it? by benjymouse · 2012-11-12 00:26 · Score: 2

Seriously? They put inertial sensors in an add-on instead of in the device itself? I guess in the PC world you never know what hardware configuration people have and they wanted to carry that over.... dumb.
The sensors are so that the Surface device (not the cover) can figure out when you fold the cover back. They also assist the screen orientation logic. For instance, when you attach the cover, the keyboard and trackpad will be active until you fold it back past apx 200 degrees (0 degrees being fully closed). After that the Surface will assume that you are folding the cover back and will disable the keyboard and trackpad so that you do not inadvertently press the keys when holding .
When the keyboard *is* active the Surface will force screen orientation to landscape, regardless of its internal sensors.
Maybe you'll have to experience this to fully understand, but it actually makes a lot of sense.
The Surface has it's own set of sensors. It certainly does not rely on the sensors in the cover to figure out it's orientation etc.

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