Surface Pro 3 firmware, driver updates reportedly to blame for iffy Wi-Fi

By Konrad Krawczyk Published June 30, 2014

Microsoft SURFACE Pro 3 start screen — Image used with permission by copyright holder

According to multiple reports, a firmware and driver update that was released for the Surface Pro 3 on June 19 is causing issues with Wi-Fi connections.

The problem reportedly occurs once the Surface Pro 3 resumes from Instant Go while running on its battery, with the speeds of 802.11ac and 802.11n connections slowing to a crawl after the Surface Pro 3 wakes. A ZDnet report tested this issue using multiple routers from a variety of firms, including Linksys, Belkin, and Asus, and concluded that the problem wasn’t rooted in external networking hardware. A commenter on this Microsoft forum thread reported that manually disconnecting from, and reconnecting to their Wi-Fi connection fixed the problem for them.

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However, that’s not the only issue between the Surface Pro 3 and the new software. Other users are reporting a variety of problems, including blue screens of death, and more.

One possible solution requires you to manually reinstall the driver for the Marvell Avastar Wireless-AC Network Controller from the original set of drivers and firmware. However, this isn’t guaranteed to work for every Surface Pro 3 user, so don’t expect this to be a fool-proof fix.

Microsoft has reportedly been mum about these issues to this point. However, when past firmware-related problems have cropped up with the Surface line, Microsoft eventually released new firmware designed to correct those problems.

The Core i5 version of the Surface Pro 3 hit the market on June 20 – the day after this problematic set of drivers and firmware were released. The Core i3 and Core i7 variants are available for pre-order now, and will begin to ship starting August 1.

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Konrad Krawczyk

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Konrad covers desktops, laptops, tablets, sports tech and subjects in between for Digital Trends. Prior to joining DT, he…

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