Major Microsoft Surface Pro 2 Flaw with Pen Tracking

[zain_faiz]

Pen not Tracking on Corners correctly, top left and Top right. Confirmed at Best Buy Locations also.

Important Update 10/28/2013:

I just got a call back from Microsoft. They confirmed there is a problem with the pen tracking system and it has been brought to the attention of the Surface Pro engineering team. They have no idea when this issue is going to fixed.

I hope this is not a hardware issue.

 

[phrozenghost]

haven't had any issues with mine, have you tried calibrating??

 

[zain_faiz]

Yes, I did many times. I also just called Microsoft, they were able to reproduce the problem. The guy was pretty upset about it. He said they will try to figure out what is causing this on their devices too. I work as a professional artist so this is a big issue when working with digital painting programs.

 

[minhthanhvn]

same issue. Calibrating didn't help

 

[zain_faiz]

try this. rest your palm on the screen like you would to write. Now try to get to the file menu with the palm still on screen. The cursor will fly off screen. use notepad fullscreen

 

[badMojo69]

Mine works fine.

 

[minhthanhvn]

I just contacted Microsoft. They said the problem was my pen. They are processing a replacement for the pen.

 

[zain_faiz]

I just came back from best buy. They tested it with 2 new pens and the problem was still there for me. They tried out the pens on the display models and the problem is still showing on them too. The odd thing is from what I can see the jumping off the pen tracking is based on the angle of the pen and only on the 2 top corners. When I have the pen on an angle I write with the tracking fly's off screen even more.

 

[minhthanhvn]

Thanks for your info. The problem is more annoying now.

 

[tumahler]

Same issue here. My Pro 2 has the issue but my gf's does not. Different pen does not change the result.

 

[thekeeblerelf]

Why did I decide to click on this thread? Mine does it, too. :unhappy:

 

[Eugene T1]

This has been discussed extensively with the Surface Pro 1. The way that Wacom technology works is that it becomes inaccurate at the very edges of the screen. I believe it's due to the fact that Wacom uses a magnetic field sensing technology and this inherently creates problems at the very edges. This is the case even with it's dedicated drafting surfaces that are standalone devices. Almost every Surface Pro has this problem and on some devices it's slightly better than others. For example, I had to do an exchange on my first Surface Pro 2 due to an audio issue, and it had some kind of bad distortion at the outer edges, while this new one is a fair bit more accurate. If you end up returning yours there is no guarantee that it will be any better. My .02, anyone else feel free to correct me.

 

[minhthanhvn]

Nothing is perfect, but if you know the issue, you can't live with it )

 

[Rising Mos]

This is not Microsoft fault. It is just the Wacom technology. It is not a defect. I have the same issue with my really old HP TX2000, and surface pro 1. Calibrating sometimes helps but it does not fix the problems at the edges completely.

 

[zain_faiz]

The problem is not with the edges on this version of Surface Pro 2 from my testing. Its happening on the top corners. I can't reach the file menu on other programs that do not have the top menu bar. For example Manga Studio 5 file menu is right up against the top left. You have to hover over the toolbar to try to click it.

 

[jywang]

I've had many Wacom tablets. This is not a defect. The edges are always less accurate. You can try calibrating the pen. However, I found that the calibration was worse and I decided to clear the calibration.

 

[minhthanhvn]

That's right. The calibration is worse than the default.

 

[ioaniro]

Have you tried the suggestions from this thread?
[HOW TO] PROPERLY calibrate your PEN and fix those stupid corners (273 test points) - xda-developers

I'm not sure it still works for windows 8.1 but on the surface pro (1) with windows 8 it improved the corners a lot. Read through the whole thing there are several suggestions in there. For me it worked best when I did the calibration holding the pen at the same angle as I do when I write.

 

[zain_faiz]

Nope, the link for the solution does not work on surface pro 2.

I have done some further testing and from what I can see this is a defect in the product. I know there are people saying that it is not but I can assure you it is. Further testing shows the issue is very fine tuned to the top right and top left of the surface pro 2. It looks like an interference from some magnetic field on the top left and right causing the pen cursor to travel in a curve to the corner, its like its trying to get around some object. It could be the wiring of the ear phone jack and the micro sd card slot. The tracking of the pen works fantastically all around the screen, even on the edges but fails on the top 2 corners . As further proof of this issue, when you turn the surface pro 2 clockwise the issue is now on the right side as it should be.

The only solution that I have found for now to stop me from returning this wonderful machine is I moved the taskbar to the top. This gives me about 1.5" down to reach the file menu. I can live with that.

Panos Panay stood in front of the world proclaiming how his team were perfectionists and how much hard work they put into every part of the surface design, down to the freaking touchpad key height in micro mm to help you type faster.

 

[ioaniro]

My surface pro (1) was doing the exact same thing and the solution in the thread I linked helped solve it, maybe wait for someone to come up with a proper calibration for the Pro2 (or windows 8.1).