Keyboard on Surface pro X does not connect anymore, LEDS do not light up. What can I do?

Question

2 Months ago the keyboard on my surface pro x stopped working, basically a couple of months after warranty ended. Since it is apparently relatively common to have keyboard issues, there are many suggestions online, none of which seem to work in my case. LED lights of keyboard do not turn on at any point. Super frustrating. I have tried the following:

- complete windows reset now two times

• bought a new keyboard
• going to UEFI
• cleaned the contacts on the surface

Again, at no point does the keyboard light up. I have to assume some connection is broken inside the device?

Answer 1

Hi mario g1,

Thank you for reaching Microsoft Community. We're sorry for the trouble this has caused you.

I am aware of the problem you are having with the keyboard on your Surface Pro X, which has stopped functioning. I am here to help and let us both isolate the issue.

It seems like you’ve already tried a number of troubleshooting steps. Allow me to ask some questions to further isolate the issue.

• May I know what form of reset you have gone through?
• Is the new keyboard you bought also not functioning on the Surface? If yes, the issue more likely with your device hardware.

If the LED lights don't turn on, there might be a hardware issue. To verify in UEFI, do the following:

1. Turn off your Surface and wait 10 seconds.
2. Press and hold the Volume Up button—and at the same time, press and release the Power button.
3. You'll see the logo screen on your screen. Continue to hold the Volume Up button. Release the button when the UEFI screen appears.
4. Press the up and down arrow keys to change what is selected on the left side menu to check if the keys work or not.

If the keys are still not working correctly: If the Type Cover or Keyboard still doesn’t work on your Surface, then we know it's a hardware problem.

I value the time and effort you have given out in trying to resolve the problem. Your Surface's type cover connector port, which has a tendency to fail to recognize the keyboard, may be the source of the issue.

Kind regards,

Lavenia

Answer 2

I have done complete reset (remove everything) one time with the cloud option, the other time from disk.

Yes, the new keyboard I bought was showing the exact same behavior on my surface, in that it did not do anything, and the LED lights did not come on at any point.

I also already did the test with the UEFI, and I could not use the keyboard in any way.

Yes, I already suspected that the connector port might be the issue. It is a shame, since the device is only a couple of months over 2 years old, and I do not want to pay hundreds of dollars in repair to send in a device that only cost 500. Additionally, the pen is now also unusable, since I can't charge it :\

Thanks for your help.

Answer 3

I totally get your point, mario g1.

Microsoft devices are made to endure longer than the stated warranty duration. We will provide free fixes in the extremely unlikely event that the end user encounters problems within the time frame given. The frequency and intensity of use would also probably affect how long they last.

If you decided to proceed with the replacement in the future, you may contact our live support team to check available options for your Surface. You may reach them by following the instructions below.

1. Go to Contact Us - Microsoft Support
2. Choose how you would like to get support for your Surface device.
3. Type in the problem you need help with.
4. Look at any available solutions offered and select Contact Support.

Answer 4

Supposedly there is a hardware reset of sorts that is similar to the procedure to enter the UEFI - holding the volume down (vs up) button and then holding the power button (from it being off). It takes longer than the UEFI, and ends up power cycling the unit. It seems to help when my keyboard starts acting finicky. Wouldn't hurt to try that. I forget where I read about it, but I think it was in another thread on this forum. I do wish I could find it again as doing an internet search never seems to turn up anything about it.

I will say the keyboard connector on the Surface Pro X (and I would expect on other newer models) seems a lot less reliable than on my old Surface RT. In all the years I owned and used that one (until I got my Pro X) I never had an issue with the keyboard. Shame...

Side note: there is a stand-alone pen charger available from the Microsoft store. After my first keyboard failed I replaced it with the one without the pen tray, so bought that charger to charge my pen. It is definitely a lot less convenient.