Microsoft plans to release an update to fix unnecessary screen dimming

Having trouble with the screen on your Surface 2 or Surface Pro 2 dimming for seemingly no reason? You’re not the only one, and Microsoft is reportedly working on a fix to resolve the problem. When this fix will be released is unknown at this point, but expect it to be a part of Patch in the near future.

The screen dimming problem seems to stem from long use of graphic intensive applications like gaming. "I have been using my Surface 2 for a week now and everything has been great except when I play Halo: Spartan Assault. The back gets pretty hot while playing (which I don't mind) but then my Surface automatically dims the screen to the lowest level. I have to pause and wait for the Surface to cool down before playing again," states one Surface 2 owner.

Many owners complain of screen dimming when using an Xbox controller, assuming that because of a lack of touch input, the screen automatically goes into power saving mode. Others believe that their Surface 2 unit is merely defective, but that’s not the case at all. Microsoft blames the problem on overheating, and calls the dimming "unnecessary".

"Surface devices may dim the screen as thermal temperatures rise from extended, high CPU intensive activities-- like gaming.  In some scenarios this does not appear necessary. Our top priority is for customers to have the best possible experience on their Surface device.  We’re working on a tuning update that will remove this unnecessary dimming event. You can expect this update in an upcoming Windows Update package," Microsoft forum moderator Steven B. explained.
"In the meantime allow the Surface to cool down for a minute or so in order to return the screen to previous brightness levels," Steven B. added.

The Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2 have been on the market for several weeks, the former sporting a Tegra 4 chip and Windows RT 8.1 and the latter featuring Intel’s Core i5-4200U “Haswell” processor and Windows 8.1. The ARM-based Surface 2 has a starting price of $449 and the x86-based Surface Pro 2 has a starting price of $899.