Surface Pro 3 Fan running constantly and noisy

[BaritoneGuy]

Streaming videos using Google Chrome will make my Surface Pro 3 run hot, and kick on the fan. I also have Chrome set to DPI. Not sure if that has something to do with it. It does fine when streaming vidoes using Internet Explorer.

Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk

Its probably using software decoding/rendering instead of the hardware. Not sure if there is a setting as I don't use chrome. I do know that with the modern version of IE or the video apps I can stream all day and it doesn't even get a bit warm.

Hardware decoding is a lot easier on CPU which makes for a quiet and cool experience.

 

[Intrepid00]

Turning screen brightness up can so it and don't forget to take into account the ambient air.

 

[RajeevT]

Streaming videos using Google Chrome will make my Surface Pro 3 run hot, and kick on the fan. I also have Chrome set to DPI. Not sure if that has something to do with it. It does fine when streaming vidoes using Internet Explorer.

IE is set to vary the system clock tick rate very efficiently, ramping it up only when video is loaded, and even more only when the video is playing. It also dutifully reduces the rate when playback is stopped and further back to the system default when the video tab is closed. Firefox also seems to do fine in this regard. Chrome on the other hand raises the rate to ridiculous levels immediately after it is loaded, irrespective of whether it's performing any resource intensive task or not. Maybe it does it because running Chrome is itself quite a resource intensive task? Anyway the upshot of all this is that using Chrome will kill your laptop and tablet battery life. Google has known about this for years but chosen to either ignore it or blame other components such as Flash. They seem to have finally acknowledged the problem and supposedly are working on it now, but who knows?

Source: Google's Chrome Web Browser Is Killing Your Laptop Battery

 

[csjjjjjjjjjjj]

Yea, the fan "running all the time" did bother me quite a bit when I first got the device. In may case, task manager blamed it on file indexing, which I figured would die down over time. Problem is, after two weeks it was still indexing ("Filter" one, which means it's looking inside files).

Finally, I changed the settings. I disabled "Offline Files" (mapped drives) and disabled most Filters. Then I rebuilt the index. Now that it's only indexing file names, it's quieted down quite a bit (4 days so far, no issues).

 

[onysi]

mine runs when its charging and the back is touching the pillow. one time it was charging, the back got hot, and the charger too, I had to disconnect it, and turned it off to cool off. it was hot to the touch and I was afraid it would explode.

 

[cdf3]

I downloaded Bluestacks on both my Surface Pro 2 and Surface Pro 3. The fan ran almost the entire time while downloading and installing Bluestacks on my Surface Pro 3. It also ran often and was quite hot while in use. The fans on the Surface Pro 2 never came on, and it never got hot.

 

[WillysJeepMan]

Panay made a big point about the fan technology in the SP3... almost to the point of ambiguity as to whether or not there was actually fan. One needed to be attentive to what he was specifically saying to catch it.

So for those who had experience with the SP1 and SP2, how does the fan noise compare to the SP3? I was given the impression that even with the fan on, it would be barely noticeable.

 

[mozman68]

I don't have a comparison to the SP1 or 2....but honestly, I haven't heard it since I was first installing updates and Office365 on the day I first got it. And yes, I do use it in quiet situations. I typically don't have it doing what I would consider "heavy lifting" though on a regular basis. Most of my work is nothing more than email and Office stuff (and web browsing...:evil

 

[Gary Holden]

Mine also gets warm when streaming video, however what I've found most irritating is when on Skype (which can be 2+ hours per day - my family is overseas)..... as soon as the fan kicks in, anyone to whom I'm chatting rips off their headset because of the electronic static noise.... again, ONLY when the fan kicks in. I depend on Skype and other video chats considerably. Its a cool device but now on its way back to the store.

 

[mozman68]

Mine also gets warm when streaming video, however what I've found most irritating is when on Skype (which can be 2+ hours per day - my family is overseas)..... as soon as the fan kicks in, anyone to whom I'm chatting rips off their headset because of the electronic static noise.... again, ONLY when the fan kicks in. I depend on Skype and other video chats considerably. Its a cool device but now on its way back to the store.

Hmmm...if true, that's a pretty big deal. I usually use my phone when video chatting, so haven't noticed the issue on my Surface, but for enterprise use where video meetings are becoming the norm, I would expect this to be a huge issue.

 

[rdubmu]

Mine also gets warm when streaming video, however what I've found most irritating is when on Skype (which can be 2+ hours per day - my family is overseas)..... as soon as the fan kicks in, anyone to whom I'm chatting rips off their headset because of the electronic static noise.... again, ONLY when the fan kicks in. I depend on Skype and other video chats considerably. Its a cool device but now on its way back to the store.

What's happens if you use a headset (like the iPhone headset that has a microphone included)

Sent from my Surface Pro 3 using Tapatalk

 

[stephen_az]

Mine also gets warm when streaming video, however what I've found most irritating is when on Skype (which can be 2+ hours per day - my family is overseas)..... as soon as the fan kicks in, anyone to whom I'm chatting rips off their headset because of the electronic static noise.... again, ONLY when the fan kicks in. I depend on Skype and other video chats considerably. Its a cool device but now on its way back to the store.

If people are getting that kind of feedback on a remote connection my bet is you have more of a problem than just the fan. My fan, BTW, only kicks in under prolonged heavy processor load. I also wouldn't know it was on if it wasn't for the fact that that I can feel the warm air on my right hand.

 

[anon(5348413)]

Sounds like you were actually trying to use the processor that it came with to it's full potential. Don't do that. It wasn't really designed for that.

 

[Cleavitt76]

Panay made a big point about the fan technology in the SP3... almost to the point of ambiguity as to whether or not there was actually fan. One needed to be attentive to what he was specifically saying to catch it.

So for those who had experience with the SP1 and SP2, how does the fan noise compare to the SP3? I was given the impression that even with the fan on, it would be barely noticeable.

I have had all three Surface Pro models...

SP1: It was pretty easy to get the fan to ramp up on the SP1 and at full speed it was noticeable.

SP2: It was much more difficult to get the fan to run on the SP2 under any kind of "normal" use. Of course if you put it under a constant load it would come on and be just noticeable as the SP1 fan.

SP3: The fan is about the same as the SP2 as far as what it takes to make it run, but when it does run it's much less noticeable that the SP1/2 fan. It's probably about half as noisy. It just kind of sounds like ambient noise and you could mistake it for the background noise from an A/C vent or something.

 

[khador]

Brief update. So after a few months with my surface pro 3 I'm starting to get quite frustrated with the fan. It can get really loud at times, it seems that it will always kick off when its plugged in and being used as a desktop. For the past week I've found that it runs when being used as a tablet which is super disappointing, I've pretty much started using my Surface 2 as my primary tablet again.

Having the fan run when only using modern UI apps is a major problem that MS has to fix, in its current state I have to say that the pro 3 misses its original design goals of being one device for everything and I can't help but feel that Panay was purposefully misleading when announcing its performance.

 

[mozman68]

Brief update. So after a few months with my surface pro 3 I'm starting to get quite frustrated with the fan. It can get really loud at times, it seems that it will always kick off when its plugged in and being used as a desktop. For the past week I've found that it runs when being used as a tablet which is super disappointing, I've pretty much started using my Surface 2 as my primary tablet again.

Having the fan run when only using modern UI apps is a major problem that MS has to fix, in its current state I have to say that the pro 3 misses its original design goals of being one device for everything and I can't help but feel that Panay was purposefully misleading when announcing its performance.

I think you're being a little dramatic and making it sound like your specific issue with the fan running "noisy" and under light load is somehow a problem with all SP3's.

Call MS and get it replaced.

 

[khador]

I don't think it's dramatic. I started this thread on day one of it's release, now 2 months later there is a lot of press about overheating issues. I think a lot of fan boys didn't want to admit there is a real problem with the surface pro 3 and overheating. I may contact MS for a replacement, but a quick google reveals many people that have exchanged for the same exact reason but end up with the same result. I highly doubt it is a problem with this specific unit.

Anyways it's not as if I'm hating on the surface pro 3, I own a surface 1 & 2 and use windows phone, I have a lot invested in MS products and want to love this device, problem is it just doesn't cut it.

 

[rdubmu]

If your Surface Pro 3 has an issue why don't you return it. It is covered under warranty. I agree you might be a little dramatic as you haven't exchanged it yet.

 

[Pete]

I bought an i7 over here in the UK yesterday, so decided to test this overheating phenomenon. I just ran 3dMark on it just to see how hot it got.

The fan did run up as expected, but wasn't too bad. The tablet did get pretty warm, but not uncomfortably so. The results it got managed to beat (slightly) my main desktop (i5 3.5Ghz machine, although its running on the onboard graphics chip).

Surface 3 is pretty good for what it is.

 

[mozman68]

I don't think it's dramatic. I started this thread on day one of it's release, now 2 months later there is a lot of press about overheating issues. I think a lot of fan boys didn't want to admit there is a real problem with the surface pro 3 and overheating. I may contact MS for a replacement, but a quick google reveals many people that have exchanged for the same exact reason but end up with the same result. I highly doubt it is a problem with this specific unit.

Anyways it's not as if I'm hating on the surface pro 3, I own a surface 1 & 2 and use windows phone, I have a lot invested in MS products and want to love this device, problem is it just doesn't cut it.

Dramatic... yes...

ZERO press about overheating on your model. Only the i7 has had any complaints and there is a fix coming soon as stated in said press.