Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 will not get firmware and driver updates anymore
Microsoft will no longer provide firmware and driver updates for its Surface Laptop 2. The device was launched alongside the Surface Pro 6 on October 2nd, 2018.
Four years later, the Surface Laptop 2 reached its End of Servicing Date yesterday, on December 27th, 2022. This doesn't mean the end of software support for the device, it will still receive regular OS updates, including feature drops and security fixes. The device shipped with Windows 10 out of the box, and was upgraded to Windows 11 this year. That's not surprising, since the base model of the laptop has an Intel Core i5 8250U 8th gen processor, 8GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD.
As Neowin notes, the lack of updated firmware and drivers could pose a problem in terms of compatibility, for example, third-party apps, and games that may require newer drivers may not be usable on the Surface Laptop 2. You can find the last version of the drivers and firmware on Microsoft's website.
Microsoft needs to improve its software support for Surface devices
In comparison to the Surface Laptop 2, the Surface Pro 6 will receive firmware updates for another six months, until June 30, 2023, for a total of 4 and a half years. That's not exactly impressive.
Microsoft appeared to change things a bit when it launched the Surface Pro X in 2019, as it would be supported for 5 years. This move didn't last, as the following year the company decided to go back to its usual routine of supporting devices for 4 years after they made their debut. Even the Surface Pro 9, Surface Laptop 5 and the Surface Studio 2+ which were announced a couple of months ago will get only firmware updates for 4 years.
It is rather strange that these computers which carry a hefty price tag ($999 and above) will not be supported by the manufacturer just 4 years after they were released. This is quite ridiculous for a Windows computer, as many OEMs support their laptops for a longer time, and these systems are often quite inexpensive compared to the Surface line-up. And let's not forget all the extra accessories that were sold separately with these devices, those add to the cost too, and may or may not be compatible with other laptops. You could argue that this could be a tactic to get the user to upgrade to a newer Microsoft Surface device, that's how I see it.
The situation wasn't always as bad as this, the Redmond company used to provide software support for its devices for 5 years or more, the 5th gen Surface Pro (2019) will be supported until January 2024, when it reaches that date, it would make it the first device in the series to receive software support beyond 6 years. The next device in the series that will reach its end of lifecycle will be the Surface Book 2 (May 2023).
Microsoft really needs to take a look at how Apple handles software support for its Macs. The Cupertino company includes firmware updates in macOS, and supports its devices for 6 to 7 years on average, you can refer to the macOS Ventura compatibility list for reference. The Surface devices cost almost the same, so why should they be dropped earlier?
“Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 will not get firmware and driver updates anymore”
So congratulations for all who bought it. Seems it was a very thoughtful decision. You spent a lot of money and now Microsoft has you in…. dark place.
Dear Microsoft this not an “incentive” to buy next model.
Not fixable toy lost its support.
This is so the average person doesn’t any better and runs out to buy a new Surface.
*know any better…
Let everyone learn something from this. This is the reason you should refrain from purchasing these absurd proprietary products marketed by snake oil salesmen like Panos Panay.
I do had one of these, the largest most expensive version. I never had a device that quickly out of order. The rubber feet got hard as plastic after a while, the keyboard stopped working and the detach mechanism for it as well. It is an expensive pain to service.A pity because the base technical specs and quality of the screen are very good. I really think that it borders on criminal behaviour what today companies can legally sell and get away with. Planed obsolescence is a crime be that by stopping updates or replacement parts or non replaceable batteries… HP for example does a fine job with its care packs and years of warranty and support for professional devices
Never had a laptop that was supported with firmware (bios) updates for more than 18 months so this doesn’t seem that bad. Plus even the ones that did issue bios updates would discourage you from installing them unless you really needed to, due to the risk of bricking your system.
Driver updates will continue from the component manufacturer or even Windows Update, and windows will update automatically. So I don’t see this as a big deal
I’ve never seen a pc that actually requires a firmware update to maintain the feature set that you got. Hardware Drivers can be updated through the manufacturer as well, the big ones being gfx and cpu. Security updates are mostly Windows. Precisely 0 of my computers have been compromised by hardware security hacks.
Depends on manufacture, I’ve seen some PC makers drop firmware updates after the model is discontinued. Others tend to support updates longer. Not that worried as long as firmware is stable.
I am more concerned about driver and security updates. Really don’t need the latest firmware if everything works. I’ve had times where I downgraded firmware that was more stable.
I mean, you should do a proper comparison.
Windows 8 released 2012, 10 in 2015, 11 in 2021. Each one of those can be upgraded barring missing hardware (even then can be overridden with a registry change). So any laptop that released with win8 is getting free software updates until clear into 2025 – that’s 13+ years – and that’s for thousands of varying hardware instead of, what, 7 devices. So microsoft should keep doing what they’re doing. Theyre fine.
Sad news, my cousin has a Surface Pro 6 and I have seen at the image of this article that he only has another more year of maintenance (it finish in December 2023). Thanks @Ashwin for the article! :]
These devices can still be used after the date, they just won’t receive firmware and driver updates anymore.
Oh thanks @Martin for the information! :]