Microsoft Surface Pro, a top-tier tablet PC, offers impressive features like powerful quad-core performance, extended battery life, user-friendly keyboard, and seamless pen input. The first Surface Pro 2-in-1 was introduced in October 2012, while the latest iteration, Surface Pro 6, was released by Microsoft in December of the previous year, featuring an elegant matte black design.
The latest Surface Pro features a 12.3-inch multi-touch display with quad-core Intel Core i5 processors, 8GB RAM, and more than five hours of battery life, earning excellent performance scores across the board from several reviews.
However, several users have recently reported issues with the Surface Pro screen, particularly with Surface Pro 4. According to reports posted on various forums and discussion sites, the touch screen of Surface Pro 4 becomes randomly unresponsive even though the keyboard and the trackpad are working fine.
Users have been offered replacements for the defective Surface Pro units, but the replacements turned out to be refurbished and had more problems than the original units, so most users refused to get their devices replaced.
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If you’re one of those who want to keep their devices and try fixing the unresponsive screen, then read on to find out how to get your Surface Pro 4 running smoothly again. If you’re also looking for ways to disable the touch screen, you can check out our guide on how to disable touch screen on Windows 10.
How to Fix Surface Pro 4 Touch Screen Not Working
Microsoft has not released any official comment regarding this issue with Surface Pro 4 touch screen not working, aside from offering to replace the defective units. If your Surface Pro has an unresponsive display but you do not want to have it replaced, you can try of some of the methods listed below to fix it.
Solution #1: Restart Your Device.
The first thing you need to do is to reboot your Surface Pro and check if this fixes your unresponsive screen. Delete all junk files as well (if you are able to do so) using an app such as Outbyte PC Repair to optimize your device.
If a simple restart does not fix your screen problem, try doing a two-button shutdown instead. This will turn off your device completely and clear any issues you are having with your touch screen.
To do this:
- Press and hold the Power key for around 30 seconds, then release it.
- Press and hold the Power and Volume Up (+) keys together for 15 seconds. Do not release them even when you see the logo appear.
- Wait for another 10 seconds before turning on your device.
- Once your device is on, check your touch screen to see if it is working.
Solution #2: Install All Necessary Updates.
It is important to keep your device updated at all times to ensure smooth performance. To check and install updates on your Surface Pro, follow the steps listed below:
Plug all accessories such as typing cover, keyboard, or docking station into your Surface Pro device. This is so that the drivers of these peripherals get updated, too.
- Make sure your adapter is plugged into the power outlet or you have at least 40 percent battery.
- Click Start > Settings > Update & security > Windows Update.
- Hit the Check for updates button.
- Install all available updates, then restart your device. Wait for the process to finish.
- Confirm that the updates have been installed by going to Settings > Update & security > Windows Update > Advanced options > View your update history.
- Keep installing the updates until there are no longer any that have a status of “Requires a restart to finish installing.”
You also need to make sure that all your device drivers are updated via Device Manager. To do this:
- Press the Windows + X keys to open System Settings, then choose Device Manager. This will show you a list of all your device drivers. When you see the icon of an exclamation mark within a yellow triangle, this means that there is an issue with that driver.
- Check the UFEI firmware, Surface Touch and Surface Embedded Controller firmware for any driver issues.
- If you find any driver issues with any of this firmware, double-click on the driver and follow the onscreen instructions to update the driver.
- Next, find the Human Interface Devices tree and expand it.
- Look for the two HID-Compliant touch screen entries and uninstall them.
- After these entries have been removed, turn off your device by holding the Power and Volume Up button for 15 seconds until the system shuts down.
- Release the buttons and turn on your Surface device to check whether the touch functionality has been fixed.
Solution #3: Re-Install Surface Drivers and Firmware.
Make sure that all your Surface Pro software are updated by downloading them from Microsoft Download Center. For Surface Pro 4 drivers and firmware, download them here. You can also download Surface Pro (5th Gen) drivers and firmware here and Surface Pro 6 drivers and firmware here.
Solution #4: Run the Surface Diagnostic Toolkit.
Surface devices are equipped with their own diagnostic tool to help fix common Surface problems. However, this feature is only available for Surface devices running Windows 10/11.
Here’s how to fix unresponsive screen with Surface Diagnostic Toolkit:
- Close all apps and make sure your device is connected to the internet.
- Download the tool for your Windows version.
- Run the app and follow the onscreen instructions.
The diagnosis and repair takes around 15 minutes to one hour, depending on your connection speed, number of updates needed to be installed, and types of repairs your device need.
Solution #5: Reset Your Surface Pro.
If the above methods did not work, the next option would be to reset your device. You can either keep your files or remove everything, but if you have a backup of your files, it is better to just delete everything and start fresh.
To reset your device, follow the steps below:
- Open Control Panel by pressing Windows + I keys.
- Click Update & Security.
- Under Recovery, click the Get Started button.
- Choose whether to keep your files or to remove everything. The first option removes all your apps and settings while keeping your personal files, while the second option wipes out everything.
- Wait for the reset to be completed. Once done, try your screen and see if it is back to normal.
Summary
Having an unresponsive Surface Pro 4 screen can be an unnerving hassle, especially if you have no idea how to fix it. If you don’t want to have your device replaced, you can try any of the methods above and see which one works. You can also try contacting the Microsoft support team to get more help.