Microsoft investigating significant Surface Pro 3 battery issues

Microsoft is investigating widespread reports of battery issues with its line of Surface Pro 3 devices. Reports of Surface Pro 3 battery drain originated back in May, and some users are now reporting that their devices only last up to an hour after a full charge. It's not clear exactly what's causing the issues, but most Surface Pro 3 users who are experiencing the problems have SIMPLO batteries installed in their devices. Microsoft used SIMPLO and LG to manufacture batteries for the Surface Pro 3, and it appears that the SIMPLO ones are affected by capacity issues.
"We are aware of some customers reporting a scenario with their Surface Pro 3 batteries in which the system is reporting lower battery capacity than expected," says a Microsoft spokesperson in a statement to The Verge. "This is a top priority for our team, and we are working quickly to understand the root cause. If you are experiencing this scenario, please contact Microsoft customer support."

While Microsoft is encouraging affected users to contact customer support, a 24-page thread on Microsoft's support forums has gone unanswered. A lot of affected batteries appear to deteriorate during the month of May, which could suggest a firmware update issue or simply a faulty batch of batteries. As the Surface Pro 3 was originally released back in 2014, most devices are out of warranty and affected users have to spend hundreds of dollars to replace the faulty batteries.