Surface Pro 3: First Time Setup Inquiry

[emmagency]

Hello all, I recently got my device shipped from Microsoft and although I've installed all windows update, there just seems to be something wrong with the display. When installing programs, the texts in the setup windows appear damp and not as sharp as the screen texts are on normal windows.. Also, evidently I've not been able to install bluestacks. Just wondering if anyone has any idea of what else l have to do.

 

[stephen_az]

Since damp=wet or moist, I am not sure what you mean. It also is normal Windows - same Windows 8 as any other machine. If things do not look sharp, check to see if the text size under screen resolution is set to a magnification factor. Some conventional x86 applications, however, never display very well since they have not been updated/optimized for high DPI displays. With all that said, if you get a machine that is not performing correctly out of the box, the first place you should go is Surface Support or (if nearby) a Microsoft Store. They are very helpful and be of more assistance than any forum when it comes to setup issues.

With respect to Bluestacks, the best I can say is to use at your own risk. It has never been particularly stable on any Surface Pro and also, in my experience, is unnecessarily memory and processor intensive. Personally I find prefer AMI's Duos...

 

[emmagency]

" Some conventional x86 applications, however, never display very well since they have not been updated/optimized for high DPI displays." This is the best logical explanation for the way texts appear (and by damp, I'm referring to moistness..like a bit cloudy) in the installation windows. But however, after installation, texts in the programs themselves appear very well and sharp. I just think there's something wrong with my display graphics drivers as Bluestacks just flashes a cmd window and does nothing else when I launch the installer. Thanks for the tip anyways. Had a chat with Surface Support and they were as helpless as I am.

EDIT: Okay, I've observed that this doesn't only occur when installing programs but also in the device manager window as well as the window that appears when windows is installing a newly connected device such as Flash drive. Also, running Hardware and Device Troubleshooter suggests that my display adapters might be out of date. Checked for windows update and tried updating the adapter from the device manage menu both automatically and manually(by downloading the Surface Pro 3 download support from Microsoft) but it just keeps saying I have the best driver software. And also, trying to install Asphalt 8 Airborne from the app store returns an error message... Pheeeew!

 

[Guzzler3]

You are correct, that you are running into Programs that have not been optimized for High DPI displays. It isn't just the SP3 that has this issue. Other systems that have HDPI monitors and graphics card encounter the same issue.

MS rewrote their main programs/sub systems awhile ago to support HDPI displays, but some haven't. Example: Device Manager, looks "fuzzy" on HDPI systems. Another example is the generic "Installer/Package" program. Why bother when you only see it for a short period of time, and only when install things.

You will run into other older programs that look "fuzzy" on the SP3 (I have). You just learn to live with it, or wait for the next version of that program, and hope they included the code to check the DPI of the display and scale properly.

 

[emmagency]

Why bother when you only see it for a short period of time, and only when install things.
I'm actually not bothered with that aspect.. But, what bothered me was the fact that I couldn't run certain programs that requires 'Fully Functional Display Adapters' such as Bluestacks and Asphalt 8 Airborne, and when I open some windows like device manager window, I get the same damp/moist display.. I went ahead to install the latest graphics from Intel (which isn't made available to SP3 users by microsoft updates because the latest drivers isn't optimised for the SP3 and will consume lots of power) but the problem persisted. Although the display looks fantastic on the normal ground but I wasn't satisfied of the situation. Anyways, I came to the conclusion that I had a defective display adapter and spoke to surface support and they agreed to change the device with the new one arriving probably Monday as I've already received a UPS tracking number for it.

Thanks guys for taking the time to leave your opinions.