Microsoft is not highly regarded as a smartphone manufacturer, but it is not completely absent in this market. Last year, an unusual clamshell smartphone with two screens, the Surface Duo, began to be sold. Its successor is now expected to launch later this year.
As reported by WindowsLatest, the second-generation Surface Duo has been in development since the second half of 2020 and is scheduled for release in the fall of 2021. However, Microsoft may change its plans.
Surface Duo 2 will receive improvements in both hardware and software. Also, the smartphone will boast a faster SoC, improved camera and support for 5G cellular networks.
An optimized version of Android will continue to be in use as the software platform. However, Microsoft is going to significantly re-design the user interface, as evidenced by numerous job advertisements. The company will pay special attention to fixing and improving the software, including the camera app.
Microsoft Surface Duo smartphone has fallen in price by 450 dollars
Microsoft last year released the Surface Duo dual-display smartphone that runs the Android operating system. The device started at $1,400 for a version with 128GB of flash storage.
Recently, Best Buy has dropped the price by $450, offering the 128GB version for $950. The 256GB option costs $1,049. These prices are available for those who register with Verizon or AT&T networks upon purchase. For the rest, prices are 1000 and 1100 dollars, respectively.
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The store offers smartphones at these prices for residents and visitors of the US, Canada and Mexico. Best Buy does not say anything about the timing of this promotion. It is possible that the store decided to simply sell off the remaining stock of smartphones, which never became popular.
Surface Duo has two 5.6-inch screens each. The resolution of each panel is 1800 x 1350 pixels, the total resolution is 2700 x 1800 pixels. The smartphone is running the Snapdragon 855 SoC. The battery capacity is 3566 mAh, there is support for 18-watt charging. The case has a thickness of 4.8 and 9.6 mm when opened and folded, respectively. The camera resolution is only 11 megapixels. The smartphone received stylus support, but lacks NFC and 5G support.
Microsoft Surface Duo specifications
- 5.6-inch (1800×1350 pixels) AMOLED 4:3 single PixelSense Display, 401 PPI, 8.1-inch (2700×1800 pixels) AMOLED 3:2 Display when open, Corning Gorilla Glass protection
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 Mobile Platform optimized for the dual-screen experience
- 6GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128GB / 256GB (UFS 3.0) internal storage
- Android 10
- One eSIM and one Nano SIM
- Side-mounted Fingerprint Sensor
- 11MP camera with f/2.0 aperture, PDAF, LED Flash, optimized for front and rear, 4K video recording at 60 fps
- 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11ac (2.4/5GHz), Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / GLONASS, DisplayPort over USB-C
- 3577mAh (typical) dual battery with 18W fast charging