![]() ![]() The benefits of a dual-screen device became quickly apparent here are just two of the many improved scenarios I encountered: That Android 11 upgrade ended up being a few weeks late, which gave me a chance to first try out what early adopters had been dealing with (still benefitting from around a year’s worth of updates since launch, mind you). My decision to purchase a Surface Duo of my own was driven in part by price but also by timing: per prior public comment, Microsoft was poised to release a significant Android 11-based system software upgrade, after having paused its public update releases the past few months while it internally pivoted away from further Android 10 development. Read any of the launch reviews of the Surface Duo and you’ll therefore encounter no shortage of praise for the hardware, albeit coupled with withering criticism of the software. To date, both companies have instead had to develop their own Android add-ons. One problem: Android didn’t yet (or still, for that matter, except for recent betas) have any cognizance of dual-screen, dual-foreground-app or similar configurations, an omission that’s been equally challenging for Samsung (the other notable current “foldable” Android smartphone supplier). When Microsoft decided to shelve Windows Mobile in favor of an embrace of Google’s mobile operating system, the Surface Duo team redirected its attention to then-latest Android 10. Originally, it was intended to be the launch hardware for Microsoft’s Project Andromeda, a dual-screen-centric operating system successor to the ill-fated Windows Mobile O/S. The Surface Duo has something of a convoluted history. And surprisingly, the discounted Surface Duo became my “daily driver.” I’d even go so far to say that the same goes for its successor, no matter the 2 nd-generation improvements (more advanced CPU, more system memory, 5G cellular support, enhanced camera, NFC support, Glance Bar, 90 Hz display refresh rate, expanded Slim Pen support, etc.).īut at just over $400, I figured it was worth the investment to see if there was reality behind the “foldable” hype. Let me be clear upfront: no matter the added and enhanced capabilities that the Surface Duo’s dual-screen approach affords, IMHO it wasn’t worth the original $1499 price tag. Brand new units direct from Microsoft are now selling for $699 (128GB) and $749 (256GB), presumably to clear out inventory in favor of the Surface Duo 2 successor: ![]() While that might seem like a chunk of change at first glance, keep in mind that the original MSRP for this particular model in September 2020 (first shipment date, with preorders beginning one month earlier it had actually been publicly previewed nearly a year earlier) was $1499, with the 128GB variant $100 cheaper at $1399. Mine’s a 256GB carrier-unlocked open box unit, in like-new condition, that I’d bought from BuyDig on Christmas Eve (happy holidays to me!) for $420. While that remains the long-term plan, at least for Verizon, my AT&T path has already taken at least a temporary diversion to something I’d mentioned a month earlier (and also alluded to two months ago), a first-generation (“OG,” for original generation, to the Reddit crowd) Microsoft Surface Duo: A couple of months ago, when I mentioned that my beloved Google Pixel 3a smartphones were nearing the end of their three-year support cycle, I indicated that I’d be transitioning both of my cellular accounts (AT&T for personal use, Verizon for work) to Pixel 4a (5G) smartphone successors. ![]()
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