Surface Pro 7+ Tablet input lag and other odd issues when using USB-C external monitor

Question

I have a 1440p LCD @ 60Hz connected via the USB-C port to Display Port on my monitor. At native resolution the external monitor seems to induce input lag. When I reduce the resolution of the external monitor it kills bluetooth entirely. If I show the display on only the external monitor things get really bad and the mouse is unusable.

It seems extremely buggy compared to a laptop. Out of a matter of courtesy please do not ask me to update, re-install drivers, check cables, etc. I'm looking for other people that have the same issue so we can make it know something weird is going on with USB, Bluetooth and external monitors.

These issues do not happen if the external monitor is not connected. This is possibly the buggiest USB/Bluetooth config I've seen.

Answer 1

What exact cable are you using? Microsoft Surface USB-C to DisplayPort Adapter | USB Type C to DisplayPort - Microsoft Store ??

Answer 2

OK, maybe this isn't exactly the same issue but I'll give you one more data point.

When I use my SP7+ docked (through the same Surface Dock that I bought with my Surface Pro 4), I get weird input issues every once in a while.

For example, often when I move my mouse, the mouse pointer "sticks" for a second and then jumps to where it would've been if it had been smoothly moving the whole time. Sometimes when I'm typing, the keyboard will stop responding entirely for a few seconds, or (worse still) repeat a single character 20-30 times even though I only hit the key once.

The mouse issues are not Bluetooth-specific - I've had them with a Microsoft wireless mouse with a USB dongle as well.

And don't even get me started on Bluetooth audio. I gave up on trying to use Bluetooth headsets with Teams and have gone back to a cabled headset. So many issues! I tried updating the Bluetooth driver from Intel and that made things worse - actually got a BSoD in the middle of a Teams call.

This isn't localised to one device - this is my second SP7+. The first one had these same issues and MS replaced it. It's a garbage fire of a device. I love the Surface line but the 7+ is the worst I've owned.

Answer 3

I'm aware of a general shielding problem PDF Frequency Interference Paper - Intel | Data Center ... - and USB 3 and USB-C devices can cause problems with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connections, but there's a solution | ZDNet

This came up a few times for some Surface Book owners, but this is the first "similar" report I've seen on SP7+. This is why I asked Xander about what cabling (adapter) he was using.

The dongle based mouse uses 2.4GHz so I'm not surprised at your comment on this. Do you have ALL of these issues when you do not use the dock?

I'm curious as to exactly which Bluetooth headsets you tried that were problematic.

You need to file problem reports using the Feedback Hub App giving complete details for this to get to engineering.

(I have a SP7+ LTE that I love.)

Answer 4

The "sticking" mouse pointer happens with both a dongle-based mouse and a Bluetooth mouse.

Honestly when I use the Surface undocked I don't have issues, but that's because I'm only ever using it as a tablet when it's undocked. I don't connect a keyboard, mouse or headset to it.

As for the headsets ... let's see. I had issues with a Jabra Elite 85h, a set of Jabra earbuds (don't recall the exact model) and the Sennheiser Momentum 3 headset. A mate recommended the Sennheiser, saying that it had been awesome for him with Teams. Not so for me on the SP7+, that's for sure.

Answer 5

If you can file problem reports using the Feedback Hub app, this would get these issues to engineering.