Microsoft may finally have a release date for its flagship Android phone, the Surface Duo, with the week of August 24, 2020 likely to be when the new device arrives. This would be an update from the date Microsoft previously released on its website, which stated the device was 'coming Holiday 2020.' A message that is still actually displayed on the website.
News broke about the Surface Duo in October of 2019 and at the time, Microsoft referred to the Surface Duo as a “communication device,” rather than a phone. The device has two 5.6 inch screens connected by a 360-degree hinge, and they can be folded all the way back so that the user has a screen in the front and in the back. The hinge will also allow users to position the phone multiple different ways, depending on what they’re using it for. When the phone is unfolded, the two screens combine to form 8.3 inches of usable space. It will run on the Android 10 operating system, and initially will be available on 4G LTE.
According to Windows Central, the device could be released this August, and production has already begun, although Microsoft hasn’t confirmed this news yet. The device has been approved by the FCC, and has been given its Bluetooth SIG certification -- in other words, the Bluetooth Special Interest Group has tested and approved the product, which allows it to be classified as a Bluetooth device and be trademarked as such. It’s also been certified by the UL, which is a group dedicated to making sure devices adhere to safety standards. In addition, there are a few Microsoft executives, like Panos Panay, who have posted pictures of themselves using the device on social media.
The Surface Duo doesn’t seem to be a typical cellphone. In fact, with the two screens and the various ways they can be positioned, it seems that Microsoft’s own label of “communication device” is more on the money -- it’s not really a phone at all. It’s something new, which is an exciting idea in and of itself, as it might push beyond the smartphone parameters that consumers have become familiar with. While the newer iPhone models have the Face ID function, or a screen that takes up the entire body of the phone, these changes come down to tweaks and additions. But judging by what Microsoft has revealed so far, the Surface Duo has not only surpassed the mold, but it may have even broken it.
Whether the device succeeds in the marker remains to be seen, but it’s definitely something different and exciting that will likely get people talking when it arrives - whether that's in time for the holiday season or later this summer. It’s just familiar enough to be user friendly -- the two screens offer the opportunity to have the messaging screen on one, and the keyboard on the other, like the QWERTY keyboard phones of yesteryear -- while looking entirely unlike the other phones currently on the market. Although it isn’t the only foldable phone out there, the 360-degree hinge and the two large screens add new elements that set the Surface Duo apart, and just might make it a Microsoft success story.
Source: Windows Central
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