Trusted Reviews is supported by its audience. If you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a commission. Learn more.

Microsoft Surface Pro 2 battery given 25% boost thanks to software update

The Microsoft Surface Pro 2 battery has been bolstered, with a new software update helping increase the tablet’s staying power by almost 25 per cent.

Despite the tablet having only hit retailers on October 22, a firmware update has already been issued, with the software patch used to re-jig the tablet’s power management systems, allowing the device’s Marvell Wi-Fi chip to consumer less power and thus improving the Microsoft Surface Pro 2 battery life.

According to tests carried out by Anandtech, the software update has seen the Microsoft Surface Pro 2 battery life jump from a piddley 6.6 hours to a more reasonable 8.3 hours during standard web browsing tests.

Although this software patch has introduced major improvements in the Microsoft Surface Pro 2 battery life, the Windows 8.1 powered tablet is still a noticeable step behind some of its lead rivals. Facing the same tests, the iPad 4 achieve a 9.5 hour battery life while the second-generation Google Nexus 7 hit an unbelievable 12.2 hour staying time on a single charge.

Attempting to justify this still reduced lifespan, Microsoft has claimed that the tablet’s higher resolution display, active digitiser and array of integrated sensors all cause the Surface Pro 2 to be more demanding on its battery’s capacity.

Introduced last month, the Microsoft Surface Pro 2 is a direct rival to the new iPad Air, with the 10.1-inch display featuring a 1920 x 1080p Full HD resolution.

With Microsoft suggesting its second-generation tablet is “faster than 95 per cent of laptops in the market today,” the Surface Pro 2 comes in an array of specifications, with storage capacities ranging from 64GB to 512GB.

Due to the premium collection of innards, the Microsoft Surface Pro 2 price starts from a hefty, and laptop rivalling, £719.

Read More: iPad mini 2 review

Why trust our journalism?

Founded in 2003, Trusted Reviews exists to give our readers thorough, unbiased and independent advice on what to buy.

Today, we have millions of users a month from around the world, and assess more than 1,000 products a year.

author icon

Editorial independence

Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.

author icon

Professional conduct

We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.

Trusted Reviews Logo

Sign up to our newsletter

Get the best of Trusted Reviews delivered right to your inbox.

This is a test error message with some extra words