surface dial screen recognition

Anonymous
2020-06-21T11:58:03+00:00

Hi , i recently purchased the new surface book 3 and a surface dial. the dial function as expected of screen but i have been unable to get the dial to function on screen at all. the book does not seem to recognize it. i have tried many programs, Maps, Sketchable, Sketchbook app, Ink, Photoshop, nothing works. I am guessing nit is an issue on the surface book side as the dial itself is paired. the screen just does not detect it. i have verified my firmware is up to date.  Any advice?

update: this was an issue of bad/false advertising by Microsoft as on the surface book page it clearly states it is compatible.        https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/surface/devices/surface-book-3/tech-specs 

Thanks to tharok2 for ponting out it is also mentioned here:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/surface/surface-book-3-features-261d4bb1-2851-d9d5-2020-283429f6cd8c

this gives all users legal grounds to return the product if they purchased with the understanding that the dial was fully compatible on screen as stated by Microsoft.  

I received an email from the support team.  

This is Johanan C. I hope you are having a nice day and this e-mail finds you great.

The last week we escalated your case, as you requested, to the technical team and developers of Microsoft and we have received the answer from them already. In your specific case they have mentioned to us that currently Surface Dial is not compatible with Surface Book 3 and also Surface Pro 7, Surface Pro X because those are the latest versions of the Pro and Book devices and drivers are still being developed, this is not a hardware situation but software. They also mentioned they are already working in a solution for that and soon (I do not have a specific date) they will be releasing the new drivers for the compatibility with your device. This will probably come included in the new Windows 10 update, so I would recommend to keep your device up to date.

Surface | Surface Book | Display and screen

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  1. Anonymous
    2020-06-22T17:58:16+00:00

    Hi, OneAwesomeAaron!

    Thanks for reaching out to Microsoft Community and posting your inquiry regarding the use of your Surface Dial on the screen of your Surface Book 3. We appreciate the time you gave us to let us know about this and allowing us to help you out.

    Your Surface Dial is working as expected. It works on select Surface devices. Please check this article that discusses an overview on the Surface Dial. There's a note under the setup part that says the following:

    Surface Dial works on screen with Surface Studio (1st Gen), Surface Studio 2, Surface Book 2, Surface Pro 4, Surface Pro (5th Gen), and Surface Pro 6. If you’re using another type of PC, use Surface Dial on a desk or other flat surface.

    We hope this answers your question, please let our Community know by marking this post as an answer. Otherwise, don't hesitate to respond to this thread if there’s anything else that needs to be addressed.  

    Kind regards,

    Janette_Z

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  2. Anonymous
    2020-06-23T03:19:16+00:00

    Hi, yes i am aware it works on select devices however the surface book line is one of the supported lines. the book 2 supports it and one would expect the same of the brand new book 3. the same firmware that runs it on the book 2 should be capable of running it it on the book 3.  there is no excuse in the world that could make sense for the book 3 to not support it when it uses the same technology as the 2 to operate the screen. This is clearly an issue with the Microsoft surface book 3 not the dial.

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  3. Anonymous
    2020-06-23T11:02:15+00:00

    I am having the exact same issue. 

    Microsoft requested that I send the dial back as they thought it would be an issue with the dial. 

    I got the new dial back, and still have the same issue.

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  4. Anonymous
    2020-06-23T11:17:13+00:00

    I'm glad I'm not alone in this.  It just makes no sense for Microsoft to say it is not supported on the book 3 when all the same components that are involved in making the surface dial work are shared on both laptops. it wouldn't be an issue with the dial as the surface should detect the pad of the dial by contact not by Bluetooth. my guess is that the drivers from the book 2 for the on screen capability was not included in the surface book 3 driver package. I have been in contact with Microsoft support about it and am trying to get ahold of someone who is familiar with the dial's firmware and drivers for on screen operation. still no luck though. I'm curious to know if anyone with the book 3 and dial has gotten it to work on screen. I have not been able to find anything yet.

    2 people found this answer helpful.
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  5. Anonymous
    2020-06-23T12:24:30+00:00

    Hopefully there is a solution soon.

    A bit disappointing given it is a top spec flagship device...

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