Surface Pro 8 Cover defect

We're seeing the exact same issue in our environment. I’m the IT coordinator for a small private high school that leases Microsoft Surface Pro 8 and 9 devices for student and staff use. We standardized on the Premium Type Cover with the pen nook (the version without the Copilot button), and after about a year of regular classroom use, over 60 of these covers have stopped working—no keyboard, no trackpad, no signs of physical damage.

We’ve tested with new covers and confirmed the devices themselves are fine. It really seems like a design flaw, possibly with the ribbon cable under the felt near the pen holder, just like you described. What’s especially telling is that Microsoft appears to have quietly stopped selling this model, which makes us think they may be aware of the issue but haven’t publicly acknowledged it.

Microsoft needs to issue a recall or at least extend the warranty for affected users. This is clearly a widespread problem and not acceptable for a premium accessory to fail so quickly under normal use.

Thanks for sharing your findings—this helps validate what we’re seeing.

Thanks,

Justin