Microsoft announced last night that they are rolling out an update for Surface Pro 4 devices which finally enables on-screen support for the Surface Dial. After updating, users can place the hockey puck-sized Bluetooth accessory directly on their Surface Pro 4 display and enjoy pop out contextual menus, color pickers, and more options in certain applications.
This comes as a change, as before the accessory only worked off the screen on the Surface Pro 4 with very limited functionality. Not many applications currently support the Surface Dial, but Adobe did recently update Photoshop to support it.
This latest firmware update should automatically appear in Windows Update, but downloads are also available here. Microsoft says there are no security, connectivity, compatibility, or battery life enhancements with this update, but just reliability and performance improvements. The firmware update also includes new drivers for Surface Dial Filter, Surface Digitizer Integration, Surface Touch, and Surface Touch Servicing ML, so users should also see improved touch accuracy with this update. Please find the full changelog below:
- Surface Dial Detection v2.0.2.0 enables on-screen support for Surface Dial.
- Surface Dial Filter v1.1.11.0 enables on-screen support for Surface Dial.
- Surface Digitizer Integration v2.0.313.0 enables on-screen support for Surface Dial.
- Surface Touch v105.0.106.8 enables on-screen support for Surface Dial and improves touch accuracy.
- Surface Touch Servicing ML v1.0.821.0 enables on-screen support for Surface Dial and improves touch accuracy.
The Surface Dial is still a pretty cool accessory, especially for use in Paint 3D, and we’re hoping more developers will add support for it over time. Our own Dave Shanahan talks more about the Surface Dial integration in his post here, so feel free to check it out if you’ve been considering purchasing the accessory.
