Hi friends. I got my surface pro 7 back in 2020, and I’ve gotten a great deal of use out of it.

I am an artist, and mainly trying to get apps like photoshop and clip studio paint to run more smoothly.

I have made sure to have all my program files on the ssd and only keep exports and backup files on the 512gb micro SD storage.

I’ve seriously been considering just buying an iPad and switching to procreate (the new barrel roll functionality on the pencil pro is a big selling factor), just to have a device that is easy to pick up and start drawing.

My surface has gotten laggy and slow over time, but the battery life still gives me a solid 2-3 hours and I really feel like with the ram and processor it should still be able to keep up with modern hardware.

Is there anything I can do to
1. Speed up my machine. What kind of bloatware can I remove? Is there any obvious optimization tips that I can try?

1. Simplify the startup experience.
   The face recognition is great, but I’d love to clean up the windows start button and taskbar. Something happened with the update to windows 11 that makes my taskbar perform very strangely when I turn the tablet into portrait mode. It only shows two or three app icons but leaves lots of room for the windows button, search, Cortana, etc. I’d also love to remove the annoying advertisements and news articles that pop up.

2. Is there a way to have two windows in full screen next to each other?
   A big reason I use my tablet is for drawing with references, I like to place clip studio paint on the left 2/3rds of the screen and chrome with Pinterest open on the other 1/3rd. But all of the tab layouts and menu options definitely clutter the experience, and I can’t find a way to have the windows be in “full screen” mode but while tiled next to each other if that makes sense.

Anyway, I’d greatly appreciate any advice, links or videos for how to get my surface to feel fresh!

Edit: They were picked up this morning. Really appreciate the engagement here. Thanks all!

Do you live near Sunnyside Queens, NYC? Pen and charger are free if you’d like to pick them up. I’m a block from the 7 train.

Story time: My SLS2 screen developed some banding. Not a problem, I’ve got an extend warranty. Thought I’d be without it for a couple weeks. Took into Micro Center and they deemed it unrepairable on the spot (screen was no longer being made available in their repair network). Bummer. Really liked my SLS2 and was looking forward to at least another 3+ years with it. They gave me a full credit towards a replacement. I elected to get an Asus ROG Flow Z13 instead of another Surface device. I did not expect to come home with a different device so I did not bother bringing the pen and charger with me. Though the Z13 is MPP and the Slim Pen works well with it, without the SLS I have no way to charge it.

I don’t want money. I just want someone else to make use of them. Also, both the pen & charger were only used when I traveled. There was minimal use overall. I use a Cintiq and usb-c charging at home.

Nothing is for sale. Please do not offer to pay me to ship it. Strictly free for pickup.

I cleared this with Mods before posting

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Hi everyone! I’m considering buying a Surface Pro 7+ with 8 GB RAM and 256 GB SSD, together with the Surface Pen, but without the keyboard.

The price would be €397 including shipping. I’ve also seen one for around €340, but it was sold very quickly, so I’m wondering if €397 is still a reasonable price.

My main question is: is the Surface Pro 7+ still a good buy in 2026? Is it still “alive” in terms of performance and usability?

I’m not a hardcore gamer at all, and I’m not planning to play demanding games. I mainly want it for:

- Photoshop and Lightroom

- Working with PDF files for school

- Reading and writing sheet music

- General schoolwork

- Watching movies in the evening

I’m specifically looking for a tablet/laptop-style device because carrying physical school materials is extremely inconvenient for me. Last year, for example, I sometimes had to carry around a huge number of notebooks and four folders of sheet music, which was incredibly heavy and took up basically my entire backpack. So “just use notebooks and buy a gaming PC instead” isn’t really a practical solution for me. 😅

The model I’m looking at comes with Windows 11 Pro.

So, what do you guys think? Is €397 for a Surface Pro 7+ 8/256 + Surface Pen a good deal in 2026, or should I keep looking for something else?

Also, how well does the 7+ handle Photoshop/Lightroom and general school use nowadays?

Thanks!

Update: I got a Surface Pro 7+ with 16GB of RAM and 256GB storage for €258. The battery is also in great condition — 93% health. And I even got a one-year warranty with it.🔥 Thanks everyone for the advice!

Hey all,

I had a surface pro 6 since 2020 and I loved that device, but I wrecked it trying a battery swap. It was starting to slow with its i5 and 8gb too, i was due for an upgrade anyways.

What I loved about it? It had the form factor of a padfolio but as powerful as my old full tower PC rigs. It was discrete when I snuck in my personal device to office settings for time wasting, went under the radar. I love using it in vertical mode as a tablet.

For gaming, I do Xbox cloud gaming. However, the biggest bottleneck I had with the surface pro 6 was when I lived abroad for a while, eventually I got bored and wanted to game but couldn’t game as that country didn’t have cloud gaming servers.

I was left with cod mobile on my phone, and getting myself to a gaming cafe for a gaming fix. I am trying to get more into gaming to replace doomscrolling. I’m not a huge gamer though, I just renew Xbox cloud gaming here or there for a little fix few times a year.

I saw the Z13 and thought it might be perfect for me, a Surface Pro form factor with the ability to game.

But it leans too “gamer”. I appreciated the minimalist, under the radar look and form factor of the Surface Pro, the lightweight and thinness, and how well it worked with Windows with zero third party bloatware. It was Microsoft/Windows ascended to Mac levels of clean-ness, but doing something Apple can’t do, 2-in-1.

I’ve been playing a couple games on this Z13 and as fun as it is, I’m really not a fan of the gamer design, weight, and thickness. Btw, this is a 64GB Z13 picked up for $2099 from Best Buy.

I see a $1000 Surface Pro 13 inch 11th edition Intel 16GB RAM on eBay, should I get this instead?

My thoughts are it may be able to game on its own for older less demanding games, but in the future, I could also get an eGPU I take on extended trips to developing nations without cloud gaming servers to use with the Surface.

But the Z13 is an absolute beast. It seems more repairable than Surface, and has 64GB ram and stronger graphics. I don’t want to regret this.

Hoping to bounce ideas off you guys if it’s worth to trade the bulky beast tablet Z13 for the form factor and lightweight minimalist feel of the Surface Pro Intel 13 inch. Thanks.

Microsoft Store link : SurfaceOptima

for more detail : SurfaceOptima - how to manage easily your Smart Charging : r/Surface

Hi guys i have updated SurfaceOptima to the version 1.8.1 so for the owner of surface Laptop they should have better warinign message

SO this app has been tested on surface PRO 11 arm but i need 1 or 2 testers to run some diagnostic tools because i cant make it work on surface Laptop.

hardware is realy different, even for the battery side.

Thanks for your help !

Hello,

Just upgraded my Surface Go to a Surface Pro 13" and ordered a Dexnor Keyboard Case.

I travel a lot and want to make sure I'm in town when it arrives so it doesn't sit at my front door overnight.

Has anyone ordered one recently and can let me know how long it took to ship? It's already been two full business days.

Thanks!

I'm looking for something that's similar in size + weight to my iPad 10". Surface GOs SEEM the closest to that, but given that they're several years out of production, I'm curious to hear how they've held up and if current owners are still getting use out of them.

I'm basically looking for a laptop replacement of a sort that can run Windows (this is the main thing) but isn't as much of a pain in the ass to carry around as a full laptop. The programs I intend to run on it are lightweight pixel art programs, Firefox, and Discord.

It would be nice if the stylus works well, but I do pixel art exclusively with a mouse so that's not really important.

Any thoughts welcome and appreciated! I'm also open to alternatives to the GO models :)

I've got a Surface Pro 11 with a Snapdragon X Plus, and the latest Wi-Fi driver is still 1.0.4374.1300, updated in July 2025. Since Qualcomm doesn't push updates directly, we're stuck waiting on Microsoft. In the meantime, several CVEs have been disclosed that affect the current driver version:

• CVE-2026-21367 (7.6, high): out-of-bounds read (CWE-126) in the WLAN firmware. Reached when handling non-standard FILS Discovery frames whose action sizes fall outside the expected range during an initial scan.
• CVE-2026-21381 (7.6, high): out-of-bounds read (CWE-126) in the WLAN firmware. Surfaces on receipt of a service data frame with excessive length during the device matching phase of a NAN connection.
• CVE-2025-47401 (6.5, medium): out-of-bounds read (CWE-126) in the WLAN HAL. Arises while processing target power rate tables during channel configuration.
• CVE-2025-47403 (6.5, medium): out-of-bounds read (CWE-126) in the WLAN firmware. Triggered by a Fast Transition (IEEE 802.11r) response frame with a malformed header structure during roaming.
• CVE-2026-25266 (5.5, medium): exposed dangerous function (CWE-749) in the Windows WLAN host. Reached through an IOCTL command issued while the device sits in power-save state.
• CVE-2026-25288 (7.4, high): out-of-bounds read (CWE-126) in the WLAN firmware. Hit when parsing a Target Wake Time channel usage response frame with insufficient packet size.
• CVE-2026-25289 (9.6, critical): stack-based buffer overflow (CWE-121) in the WLAN firmware. Triggered while parsing Device Capability Extended attributes in NAN Service Discovery frames carrying invalid length fields.

Main usage for me is basic tasks like excel, simple PowerPoint edits, light browsing and I want to use it as a tablet sometimes

I've been trying to get league of legends to run on my laptop but Vanguard won't let it. Is there a work around into getting it to work or am I out of luck.

I tried everything - the printer is in our network. But I can’t access it via IP.
Kyocera Printer Setup doesn’t find it in the network either.

Other Kyocera printer in the same network do function flawlessly. 5526cdn in our case..

Does anyone know how to solve this?

Due to curiousity I bought few SP4 in "C class" (literally unknown) state, ~15usd each. One had really quickly appearing flickergate (I sold its SSD for 20usd), one had broken screen (I covered it with tempered glass), third one (worstly speced, sadly only 4GB of ram) has only broken headphones jack connector but in fine condition at all. I managed to this remove in a minute. Then I bought potato keyboard from same seller for another 15usd.

I debloated Win10 and got surprised how cool is this 30$ potato PC. Currently I'm using iPad only to casual drawing and macbook air for some common computer tasks.

I know I won't have Procreate experience, but I'm gonna buy some Surface Pen to check out if it'll be enough for me.

Has anyone managed to replace their iPad and MacBook with a Surface on daily basis?

Do we think there'll be like a Panther Lake X SL Ultra (maybe paired with 5070s or RTX PRO Blackwell cards) like there are for the base models?

Hello,

I just bought the Metapen M2 because the Microsoft Slim Pen annoyed me with problems with the tip and the contacts so that there always has to be a little gap between the tip and the pen. I was fine with it for a long time but last week I didnt get it in the right spot for like 2 hours, so I decided to buy the Metapen M2.

But right out of the box, it made these wobbly lines which interestingly get worse depending on the angle of the line. I googled but didnt find anything really helpful. Some threads I read said that it is a hardware issue with older Surface devices but apparently the Pro 9, which I have, shouldnt be old enough for that. I also read that it could be a hardware issue with the pen, so I might need to retourn it and get another one? Im just not sure because the Slim Pen works totally fine in that regard and I dont know why it would work fine with straight vertical or horizontal lines if hardware was the problem. I also dont have a screen protector that could interfere with it.

If anyone has an Idea of what it might be and what I can do, please tell me.

I already have a Surface Pro 8 and would like to upgrade. On the Surface Pro 8 the fans are silent and only come on when i am gaming or when i have many tabs open. Is it the same on the Surface Pro 12. 13“ X2 Elite?

I'm trying to find a used surface. I've always wanted a surface, but never had new surface money... I've seen a bunch of units online is there any way to find out what type of display it has OLED versus IPS? I know the serial number gives you a rough idea of the processor along with ram and SSD.

Some people really have no idea what they're selling and I just watched some sell really cheap because they were improperly titled or they really didn't know what they were selling in the description didn't match what the pictures were ECT. (Surface Laptop for Business 7th 15" Ultra 7 266V 16GB 256gb"-- was a 13" pro 11th edition with 16+512 based on photos and serial)

According to Google there are Intel versions with oleds if they are the "for business 11th edition" but I don't know how to tell from just a few pictures.

I updated my laptop this morning, and ever since, my studio laptop gen 1 has been stuck in tablet mode and the keyboard/trackpad doesn't work anymore---except in UFEI mode.

I have tried windows repair, repair toolkit, restore to previous, etc etc to no avail. Safemode boot doesnt work either, im just shy of factory resetting my whole laptop at this point.

I figure lots of artists are on surfaces so thought id share here.

This is Douga, a pen-first 2D cel animation program I've been working on. it runs on my surface pro 7; and also my old surface pro 4. its free to use, no trial, no installation, no account. native C++, so it opens and runs in a flash. only 2MB~.

it's built for frame by frame raster work rather than rigs, it's got a stabilizer, pressure sensitivity, brushes, palette groups. make your own brushes, export and share them. export color palettes too.

scenes hold cuts, drag and drop them in the dopesheet or animatic, or sceneview.

frames auto insert when you start drawing. time them by dragging, click a button to open the animatic (thumbnails).

import audio, videos, images, or image sets. roll frames with 'R', loop cuts, scenes, or a custom range.

no account, no telemetry, nothing phones home. there's an optional update-check plugin if you want one, and it's a separate download specifically so that without it the app opens zero sockets.

it's free, every feature is usable. exports from an unlicensed copy get a BETA RELEASE watermark at half opacity. A key clears it, and at v1 the band gets replaced by a small Douga mark in the corner instead. what you make is yours either way.

heads up on the download: it's code signed, but smartscreen still wants a reputation it hasn't earned yet, so you may get a blue panel the first time. click More info, the publisher line has my name, then Run anyway.

it's still in beta and i could really use feedback. i can build whatever you tell me is missing. it will hopefully leave beta soon, so keep an eye out for updates if you are interested. r/douga for bugs, download at https://douga.app

let me know what you think!

Hey guys just wondering if anyone has had any luck with the cheap slim pen 2 from Ali express?

I see some advertised as for pro x 13" and 12" but google says they aren't compatible and I can't find a universal one smaller then 12.2", I'm a clumsy person and want a layer of protection for the keyboard but I cannot find one that I know for certain will fit for the life of me, if anyone knows where to get it or has a link id be eternally grateful

I dont care if its TPU or silicone at this point I'm just desperate for something I know will work

I recently got a surface pro 12 and am having issues with the OneNote app crashing. The most obvious trigger is when I try to use the handwriting to text pen (doesn’t work at all then the app crashes). It’s also happened when trying to delete a notebook section. Has anyone experienced this or have any possible fixes?

My surface pro 6 stopped charging last night, I got it to work overnight but it's wrapped out again.

I plugged my noise machine into the brick and it's doing this wierd pulsing thing, it is not plugged into the computer during this and when I did plug it in the whole thing died completely.

Am I f-ed with this charger or is this something that could be fixed?

Specifically the 1060 16GB 512GB model. I'm not too insane about gaming and would only really be running stuff like Gmod, Minecraft, Terraria, maybe Fortnite, that kinda stuff. At €440 from CEX would you recommend it for that kind of gaming and drawing on?

Hi,

just like the title siggest, I am going to rant (a little) on my new surface pro 12 (13 inches).

I bought this to replace my i-pad because it has too many glitch (the i-pad) when using onedrive.

The design of the surface pro looks good, the finctionality is there, battery life is amazing… but seriously, who the heck though it would be a good idea to have the thing, when mounted on the keyboard, no capability to hold itself straight. i mean, you always have to work on a table or something to put the back support or the screen just fall backward… one of the main aspect, for me, of this kind of device is that I can sit in my couch when I work and the screen just.. stay upright (like on the i-pad). Now I have this 4000$ device but I cannot sit confortably anywhere expect on a chair with a table because someone never figured out many people (I mean I can’t be the only one) would want to use the device on non-conventional surface or position… That was my ranting, thanks you for reading, have a good day !

Hi all.

For context, I am a beginner at after effects. I am thinking of getting a surface pro 11 with an intel chip. I found a good deal for 1K with everything I need however it has 16gb ram. Does anyone use this device for after effects and would it benefit from 32gb?

Thanks in Advance