If you have a Surface Pro 1, 2, or 3, you’ll need to pay attention to this. The large, tech news outlets have been reporting on this but in case you have not heard..
If you purchased your device (Surface Pro 1, 2, or 3) before March 2015, the included power cord may become damaged and overheat. According to Microsoft, a very small portion of Microsoft customers have reported this issue but, in the interest of safety, Microsoft is planning on providing replacement power cords for free.
To facilitate the voluntary recall, Microsoft has spun up a web page with more information and instructions here: https://www.microsoft.com/surface/powercord
Keep in mind that Microsoft said that this problem is caused by tightly “twisted or pinched” power cords and especially over a long period of time. This is not a new phenomena and it is not unique to Surface Pro tablets. This can happen to any power cord. Not that long ago, a similar thing happened to Apple MacBooks.
As a Wired article by Chris Apland explained:
When you roll up a cable against its natural shape it will fatigue the entire length of the cable and will twist in a direction perpendicular to the length of the cable.
The point is, there is no reason to panic. I think it’s commendable that Microsoft is taking voluntary steps to rectify this problem. I have a Surface Pro 3 purchased in 2014 and, I’m glad the company is willing to do so for my safety.
In case you were wondering, the new Surface Pro 4 and Surface Book are NOT affected by this Microsoft recall campaign.
Cheers.
Joanna-
