Tomsenn Surface Pro 6 / Surface Pro 5 (Pro 2017) / Pro 4 / Pro 3 Type Cover, Lightweight Slim Wireless Bluetooth Keyboard Two Button Trackpad Built-in Rechargeable Battery, Gray 4.0 out of 5 stars 654. For some subset of Surface Pro 4 users (no doubt a “small number” of customers), the keyboard doesn’t work, and Microsoft isn’t answering questions. To comment on this story, visit. The Surface keyboards feature a touch pad and left- and right-mouse buttons, so you can select an item and press the right-click button to open its context menu. A substitute for the missing Print. Created on October 27, 2015 Surface Pro 4 keyboard compatibility with Surface Pro 3 while docked not quite compatible. While the Surface Pro 4 keyboard is a nice improvement to the Pro 3's it is not 100% compatible while in the Pro 3 dock. You can use it with the keyboard flat, but it will not magnetically stick in the angled position. Best answer: Yes, Type Covers compatible with Surface Pro 3, Pro 4, Pro 5, and Pro 6 should have no issues working with the refreshed Surface Pro 7. Note that Microsoft released new Signature Type.
Last year in August I went and bought a Surface Pro 3 with my own money (it's not machine that work paid for) and I've been very happy with it. Now the Surface Pro 4 came out, and well, it's silly to upgrade for me when it's been just a year.
But. That Keyboard. The Surface Pro 4 has an all new Keyboard and Touch Pad.
The Surface Pro 3 keyboard is good, to be clear, but the touchpad sucks. After I used it for a few months I called it out as sucking. It's usable, but it's not fun to use.
Turns out that you can get a Surface Pro 4 Type Cover keyboard and it works and fits perfectly on a Surface Pro 3. You can upgrade your Surface Pro 3 (and pretend it's a 4, which is what I'm doing) by just adding the new Keyboard.
Fingerprint Reader
There's lots of new color Type Covers but the really interesting one is the Type Cover with Fingerprint Reader. Sadly, only available in Black, but it has an integrated Fingerprint Reader that lets you use the new 'Windows Hello' login feature of Windows 10. Windows Hello means 'using biometrics like fingerprints and faces and eye scanning to login to your computer.'
It works and it works great. There was an Oct 26th 'Firmware Update' in Windows Update that gives you the drivers you'll need. A Firmware Update for a Surface is essentially a 'driver pack.' Run Windows Update and attach the keyboard and you're set.
You enroll as many fingers as you want in Sign-In Options and that's it. Now you log in with your fingerprint. Lovely.
All new keyboard and touchpad
The picture before shows my original Surface Pro 3 Type Cover next to my new Surface Pro 4 Type Cover with Fingerprint Reader. First, the keyboard was already good on the Surface Pro 3, but it's just better on the 4. There are actual spaces between the keys, and you can see from the pic how the keys go even closer to the edge/bezel of the cover's surface. The keys are also slightly rearranged for the better. FN has been moved to the left, which makes sense, and a 'context key' (which is effectively Shift-F10).
Another nice touch is that the FN key now has a light. On SP3 you had no way to see if it was locked, and you had to FN-CapsLock to force it on, and would have no visual indicator.
Microsoft Surface Pro Vs Surface Pro 4
Finally, the silly Share and Settings secondary functions for Function F7 and F8 are gone and there's now an actual PrtScn button. It's the little things.
Now, to the touchpad. IT IS SO MUCH BETTER. It's actually usable. It's way larger (they say 40%) and it feels nicer. Before I always took another mouse with me because the SP3 touchpad was crippling. No longer. It's large enough for multi-finger gestures, including 3 and 4-finger taps. I'm still holding out for a '4 finger swipe' for Virtual Desktop switching, though.
Microsoft Surface Pro 5
One other subtlety that is worth pointing out...the fold. With the Surface Pro 3 Type Cover keyboard, when you fold it up to keep the Type Cover off the table, the fold makes it hard to press the 'Start Button' on the screen because the keyboard butted right up against the screen. The Pro 4 Type Cover folds tighter and lower against the bottom bezel such that pressing icons in the taskbar and the Start button isn't a problem anymore. Subtle, but again, it's the little things.
I totally recommend this keyboard. It's given my Surface Pro 3 new life. It's the keyboard it should have always had.
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Difference Surface 3 And Pro
About Scott
Scott Hanselman is a former professor, former Chief Architect in finance, now speaker, consultant, father, diabetic, and Microsoft employee. He is a failed stand-up comic, a cornrower, and a book author.
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