Microsoft has revealed the design of their long-awaited Surface Duo, a dual-screen Android folding phone, which can be opened down the middle like a book.
The Surface Duo will have two 14.2 centimetre displays that can be unfolded to create a small tablet device which uses Google’s Android instead of Microsoft Windows, and it’s just 4.8mm thin.
The Surface Duo has A 360-degree hinge allows the screens to close together to form a protective case, or fold back to be use as a palm-held device. The phone can also be switched into landscape mode and used as keyboard and screen setup, like a laptop, or as a game’s controller.
Microsoft says it’s committed to dual-screen devices because they allow people to get more done on the go.
Both screens can run different apps simultaneously, allowing the user to make calls while running a note-taking app, for example.
Microsoft’s Chief Product Officer, Panos Panay says Microsoft has been working on the Surface Duo hardware for three years, so this isn’t an immediate reaction to Samsung’s Galaxy Fold, Huawei’s Mate X, or anything else.
Although it can take calls, Panay stresses that the device was not a phone but a “Surface” – Microsoft’s new category for personal technology.
So, what are some of the exciting USP’s of this product over a regular smartphone?
Dragging and dropping content between apps and displays on the Duo.
Project xCloud could potentially be used to have a game running on one side and a controller on the other (for extra curricular activity or lunch breaks of course!)
It is early for the software side of things, and Microsoft hasn’t figured out all the scenarios yet. We are sure there will be lots of exciting further developments at launch stage.
An interesting question might be: what happens when devices the size of this Surface Duo can support larger screen sizes? A smartphone that converts into a tablet, a laptop, and even a full PC with a dock has long been the sci-fi dream of the future, and it’s entirely possible we’ll get a device that delivers this in the next decade.
So, do you think that these dual-screen devices are truly the new device category we’ve all been waiting for?
The Surface Duo will be available to buy in late 2020. We certainly have quite a few takers in the Evoke offices to trial this one! Watch this space!
Evoke Telecom’s ‘Call to Action’
The Evoke team favour their tablets when visiting customers or whilst travelling as they are much less bulky and more flexible to use. If you would like to discuss or brainstorm your tablet strategy for your flexible workers with one of the Evoke team, please don’t hesitate to call us on 01509 278278 or if you prefer, you can email the team at [email protected]
