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Phones resemble lifeboats, now. iPads ($ 285 at Back Market) and Chromebooks are classrooms. VR is my escape pod. Every gadget in my house has actually handled a special purpose, linking to schools, work, and everywhere else in some sort of ridiculous clockwork dance. I choose my tools carefully. Experimentation happens, of course, however things require to work. This is the life of devices in our overloaded virtualized world, 2020.
The Microsoft Surface Duo seems at first like the perfect little gadget for this brand-new work-from-home world. 2 screens rather of one. Additional area, more apps. A phone that becomes a tablet. (And yes, its a genuine phone with a SIM card and whatever.) And it costs $1,400 (about ₤ 1,070 or AU$ 1,960). This is encouraging. While Ive never found dual-screen phones appealing, the Surface Duo arrived promising a well-thought-out argument for working.
My time utilizing the Surface Duo has been a rough trip through what feels like not-fully-baked software, and so far it most absolutely has not persuaded me of the value of dual screens. In particular, the sense of circulation that the Duo strives to– that feel of things working well together, the device not getting in the way– hasnt been there for me.
Lovely thin design
Tough hinge can stay and flex in any orientation
Sharp OLED screens are excellent for files and reading
Supports Microsoft Pen
Dont Like
Laggy, buggy software application
Couple of apps support cross-screen multitasking
Not terrific for full-screen film seeing
Simply one not-good electronic camera
There are some things the Duo does succeed: Its feel and shape are compelling. It can stand at several angles, which normal phones cant do. The reward screen can come in handy as an additional assistance at times, although I found I required it less than I d expected. (Scanning something like Twitter or Slack is valuable, however multitasking with keyboard input can get strange.) And if the double screen stuff gets discouraging, well, it can be folded over and used as a single-screen phone. Its perfectly fine at that– but thats not why you d get a Surface Duo, is it?
And, this Duo is getting here together with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2, a more pricey $2,000 (₤ 1,799 or about AU$ 3,270) phone thats thicker, however has an almost seamless folding display screen (rather than 2 hinged screens), multiple electronic cameras, 5G, a better processor, and more RAM. I havent utilized the Z Fold 2, but my colleague Jessica Dolcourt did, and she enjoyed it. I do not know if I d like the Z Fold 2 any better than the Surface Duo, however The Z Fold 2 is Samsungs second-year effort on folding phones. The Surface Duo ends up seeming, by comparison, like a concept that might still utilize another year of fleshing out. However even if the Z Fold 2 never existed, I d still feel discontented with elements of the Surface Duo.
Here is a summary of my psychological state with this item: the Five Stages of Duo Acceptance.
It does not have Wi-Fi 6.
So, it doesnt have next-gen cellular or Wi-Fi. Still, the Wi-Fi appeared okay but sometimes fell out of my homes variety much faster than my iPhone or laptop did. I got speeds that match my 100-megabit spending plan FiOS connection.
It is available in 2 storage configurtions.
One at $1,400 with 128GB, and one at $1,500 with 256GB. Theres no expandable storage.
Some apps seem to hang, maybe because apps require to be updated.
Many Android apps worked, but periodically Minecraft, Netflix, and a couple of others had concerns that either caused playback weirdness or a circumstance where I couldnt swipe out of apps. Sometimes it appears like app touch zones and the OS swipe-away navigation triggered conflict.
I like the rubber bumper.
Its unsightly, however I d wish to utilize it to safeguard the Duo. It includes grippiness and prevents it from sliding around.
Stage 1: What a pretty design
The Surface Duos shape won me over and got me thinking, hi, possibly this dual-screen-folding-device future might work. It appears like a book, or a tiny laptop computer. The measurements seem appropriate and promising.
The display screens are great: 5.6-inch, 1,800×1,350-pixel AMOLED, well-matched and crisp. Together theyre 8.1 inches diagonally, like an iPad Mini ($ 259 at Back Market).
I already wonder how Im going to hold this, or secure it. Theres a bumper in the box. Its strips of rubber. I dont want to put it on, but I know I should. It will assist with sliding around. Im concerned itll move best out of my pocket and crash to the floor. (But when I put that bumper on, it stays on.).
Dual-screen reading through the Surface Duos Kindle app is a peak, provided youre not outdoors in intense light (great deals of glare).
Scott Stein/CNET.
Phase 2: Whoa, why is nothing working efficiently?
I felt like I was being transferred. And that made me feel comfortable learning the brand-new tools needed to adapt.
Microsofts Surface Duo requires those tools, that unique software application, that special touch. Not all of the Android parts feel prepared for the Microsoft Surface Duo parts.
The early software on the Duo review system Ive been utilizing was sometimes so aggravating, I wished to stop using it. A more current upgrade prerelease has actually repaired a lot of the completely damaged concerns, but theres a consistent lagginess and problem with screen orientation thats shaking off the entire experience for me. And again, when all I want to do is open an app, or toss one app to another screen, or close it up again and make it single-screen, the Duo cant stay up to date with me.
It might be that its still developing to a new user interface. Or I am. By trying to appear like a daily phone times 2, the Duo winds up ducking some of the larger user interface concerns I still have, however it does not actually fix them.
The soft keyboard is not great. Its frequently not in the place I want it to be.
Scott Stein/CNET.
Stage 3: How do you utilize this, precisely?
I get the concept of a bigger screen you can unfold or tuck into your pocket: Thats the promise of a Galaxy Fold ($ 1,980 at Best Buy) or Z Flip. 2 different screens suggest youll find ways of making apps interact, and there arent lots of that play perfectly like this. Actually, its simply Microsofts suite of apps, some of which need a Microsoft 365 subscription to open all the features.
The laggy feel of my evaluation Duo and its early software, plus the unusual interface, make navigation a severe obstacle. I try Slack and Gmail, which work together great … up until I get hamstrung by popping the keyboard up in one window or another and attempting to either thumb-swipe or turn the phone and type.
Zoom works, and Zoom plus a browser or window to check out things in is OK. Once again, any effort to type makes the keyboard fly up and either take over one app totally or disrupt the flow.
I keep coming back to the keyboard since thats my main method of being productive: composing and bearing in mind. Its just plain weird on the Surface Duo at the moment.
A few of the multitasking flow reminds me of several apps on the iPad, utilizing a little handle on the bottom to move an app to one screen or another, or holding it over both to broaden it out. A quick-launch dock of six apps on the bottom of the screen is implied to help, however I want more than 6 apps at the all set. Discovering others in Androids app drawers isnt as convenient.
The Surface Duo can play video games across both screens, like Minescraft, but theyre not enhanced and can get a little weird. (Comparison here beside the Nintendo 3DS XL).
Scott Stein/CNET.
New gadgets demand new software application: new video games or apps made particularly for that platform that then let you see how it works and what makes it amazing. The Surface Duo does not have those system-selling apps. Microsofts core apps still feel buggy and unusual on the Duo, and too restricting. I can drag text across apps, but not images. I can write down notes with a Surface Pen (which isnt included, but should be), but it doesnt feel like a universal annotation tool on Android. Apps dont constantly resize immediately. The shift from single to dual screen hasnt been wonderful at all. Its been a struggle.
The Surface Pen magnetically snaps onto the side of the Surface Duo, but doesnt come included with the phone.
Scott Stein/CNET.
If the Duo came with a smaller sized Surface Pen that slotted in someplace, like the Note, it could feel more like a little note pad. The Duo in its current type is none of these things. Video seeing on the Duo implies accepting a big bar in the middle, or large bezels on each half of the glass.
The camera app and camera on the Surface Duo are slow and truly discouraging, too.
Scott Stein/CNET.
Phase 4: I miss my old comfortable phone.
When brand-new gadgets are this difficult to use, you stop utilizing them. The first Apple Watch was so sluggish at opening apps that I simply went back to the iPhone rather. I d simply reach for a normal-feeling smart device or tablet or laptop instead– which is what Ive been doing if the Duo makes e-mail and Slack and Zoom weirder.
I appreciate them again after seeing the missteps on the Surface Duo. If the Surface Duo worked at the very same speed, I d love it. Im discovering it tough to adjust, and the Duo isnt assisting.
I wonder what the Duo would have been like with more RAM or a faster processor. A Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 and 6GB of RAM seems underpowered for double high-res displays, and it reveals. I likewise wonder about 5G, specifically in a year where most significant flagship phones are going that way. When it leaves out the futures network, its uncertain how the Duo can be a future phone.
Bleeding-edge tech isnt constantly the course to convenience. I use the devices I use because they work and I understand them. Or, due to the fact that theyre so incredible at what they do (like the Oculus Quest) that I want to dive in and use them over and over.
The electronic camera on the Surface Duo (and theres only one) is fine. Image stabilization for video appears particularly jittery.
I want the Surface Duo to be more like a magic book. Its not there yet.
Scott Stein/CNET.
Phase 5: Accepting a slow road to the future.
Phones are plainly progressing. Theyre already overpowered-everything makers that have actually overtaken their size. But restoring the phone isnt easy. I see some reasoning to the book-tablet design Microsoft is choosing here. The type and shape make good sense, but the speed and execution and functions dont. Yeah, this is $600 less than a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2, however its likewise left parts off that probably should have been here.
The perfect folding and dual-screen gadgets may be coming later. Google hasnt resolved for all of this in Android. Microsofts going to take another chance at figuring it out on the Windows-based Surface Neo next year. The idea isnt disappearing, and simply like the first big wave of smartphones, there will be plenty more experiments.
Now playing:.
See this:.
Microsoft is pursuing something that simply hasnt come together on this first Duo. Perhaps it will with the next one. Or perhaps, like experimental wearables that have actually fallen by the wayside, this will be a moment in time as well. I like the concept of experimentation, but I do not like utilizing experiments that dont feel good. And right now, I dont see who the Duo is for. However in a year, it might well be a better solution. If that ended up occurring, I was persuaded by my conversations with Microsoft and it would be nice. Its not yet here on the Surface Duo.
btw, Microsofts Solitaire app seems to do well with dual-screen.
Scott Stein/CNET.
Other notes.
Yeah, its also a phone.
I didnt even enter phone testing here due to the fact that … well, Im at home all the time. Seeing how the Duo makes telephone call isnt my focus when Im already battling with the user interface. Calls seemed fine, but I cant yet comment on cellular strength and lack of 5G, considering that Im at home. Theres 4×4 MIMO for higher strength, plus a physical SIM and eSIM. I have a test AT&T SIM Im using.
Battery life seems to last for the day.
The 3,577-mAh double battery is rated for 15.5 hours of video playback, and an 18-watt USB-C fast charger can be found in package. Far, it seems to hang in there for my needs. Im not exactly sure what a full commuting train trip away from home would resemble, because Im always at home now.
No 5G
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Microsoft Surface Duo unboxing: Whats inside.
Microsoft Surface Duo, hands-on with an appealing double-screened collapsible.
See all pictures.
5:59.
I dont know if I d like the Z Fold 2 any better than the Surface Duo, but The Z Fold 2 is Samsungs second-year effort on folding phones. And again, when all I want to do is open an app, or toss one app to another screen, or close it up again and make it single-screen, the Duo cant keep up with me.
The Surface Duo lacks those system-selling apps. Microsofts core apps still feel buggy and unusual on the Duo, and too restricting.
While Ive never found dual-screen phones appealing, the Surface Duo arrived promising a well-thought-out argument for being useful.
