Am I killing my Surface Book?

[Lumious]

I have finally made the switch from my 2008 Dell XPS 430 w/ Core 2 Duo (desktop) to my Surface Book as my main desktop and computing maching (using the Surface Dock)

The experience has been great for the most part and its amazing how fast everything is now. My Dell actually still works and has served me well over these past 8 years. It even runs Windows 10 very well, actually better than my Dell Laptop with a core i5. But its nice to have more RAM, USB 3.0 ports, and faster storage (SSD vs. spinning).

The only thing that worries me and is in the back of my mind all day is the fact i am killing this thing's battery. I was told by a MS employee that once the battery charges to 100% that it draws power directly from the wall so that i am not constantly topping of the battery. I don't know if this is true or how it even makes much sense. It still must top it off to keep it at 100%, no? I am just afraid that by doing this and using it daily within a year or so my battery will no longer hold a charge and i will have turned a 3,000 laptop/tablet into solely a desktop.

If anyone has any information on this it would be greatly appreciated. Understanding the physics and mechanics behind this scenario is also interesting.

 

[xandros9]

I have finally made the switch from my 2008 Dell XPS 430 w/ Core 2 Duo (desktop) to my Surface Book as my main desktop and computing maching (using the Surface Dock)

The experience has been great for the most part and its amazing how fast everything is now. My Dell actually still works and has served me well over these past 8 years. It even runs Windows 10 very well, actually better than my Dell Laptop with a core i5. But its nice to have more RAM, USB 3.0 ports, and faster storage (SSD vs. spinning).

The only thing that worries me and is in the back of my mind all day is the fact i am killing this thing's battery. I was told by a MS employee that once the battery charges to 100% that it draws power directly from the wall so that i am not constantly topping of the battery. I don't know if this is true or how it even makes much sense. It still must top it off to keep it at 100%, no? I am just afraid that by doing this and using it daily within a year or so my battery will no longer hold a charge and i will have turned a 3,000 laptop/tablet into solely a desktop.

If anyone has any information on this it would be greatly appreciated. Understanding the physics and mechanics behind this scenario is also interesting.

I have two things to say about that:

1. You'll still find conflicting information on battery care. Personally I say to just use it as you please. I've done the same with my 2014 ThinkPad and between extended stints tethered to a wall and excursions outside, I don't worry about it. It hasn't turned into a desktop yet. (no, your Book won't become a desktop within a year short of serious hardware failure or defects)

You can keep tabs on the battery with the batterymonitor.html report function in Command prompt.

2. Also, there's a more insidious issue here. If you've seen me around you would definitely see me bemoaning the lack of repairability on the part of the Surface family. When my 2014 ThinkPad Yoga's battery becomes toast sometime down the road and I still want to use it (likely) then I can buy a battery online and switch it in using nothing but screwdriver and 10 minutes of my time. (I'd be looking at somewhere around $60-80 for the pack)

I'm currently using an older (2008) model while parts come in (I damaged the keyboard, not the battery) and a battery swap is more of a $15, 30-second job with no tools. It pulls a good 3-5 hours off the charger still. (Main battery's been replaced, CD drive's been replaced with a battery as well. It's seen a good 2-3 years of service under me, 2-3 of sitting around after it was replaced and 3 years unaccounted for before it reached my hands.

If any Surface battery dies, you're looking at either an excessively high risk of display damage for a DIY or professional job or a few/several hundred dollar replacement. (and that's for a sub-$1000 Pro tablet) Although with the Book I suppose you can switch out the Base. They're beautiful gadgets, but they're disposable despite the price. But you're still looking at a couple years of service (barring any accidents) even if it was plugged in a lot and it may be just fine for you.

 

[zerospace-net]

Well, I can tell you one thing: I used my Surface Pro 3 the same way (docked most of the day, thus kept at 100% battery) and I never had a battery life problem even after doing that for a year. I had old laptops in the past that I definitely couldn't say that about after just one year, so ... take it for what it's worth. I agree you'll find all kinds of conflicting data on battery life and battery issues. I also agree that you just should use it how you please. All of my previous Surface devices performed well even after 1-2 full years of constant use, and I generally consider 2 years to be a decent life expectancy for my machines (4 years would be great and I do think Surface devices will last that long, but I usually can't stay away from new tech).