Microsoft’s dual-screen Android device is getting closer to launch, with details of the novel ‘phablet’ appearing on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) website.
While the FCC app doesn’t reveal much about the Surface Duo, the app suggests that Microsoft is on target to launch the device ahead of its original 2020 vacation goal.
First seen by Droidlife, Microsoft describes the Surface Duo in documents filed with the FCC simply as a “phablet device” with the “1930 model number.” While it’s not confirmed to be a Surface Duo, the details in the app don’t lead to any other conclusions unless Microsoft has another Android dual-screen smartphone in the works.
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The 1930 phablet model runs on Android 10 and has two displays. One of the documents indicates that there are “four configurations with both screens: folded and closed / open 90 degrees / plane 180 degrees / folded and open”. In addition to that, the device is also confirmed to have LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and NFC.
The documents don’t reveal much about Microsoft’s first smartphone since it abandoned its Nokia Lumia Windows Phone devices.
In May, Windows Central reported that the Surface Duo will run on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855, the same processor Samsung used in its $ 2,000 Galaxy Fold. It will also come with 6GB of RAM with 64GB or 256GB of storage and features an 11-megapixel camera.
The device has two separate 5.6-inch AMOLED screens connected by hinges designed by Microsoft and opens to become a tablet-phone with an 8.3-inch screen. That design means that there are no expensive folding screens, but rather a dual-screen Android smartphone that allows developers to deliver new experiences on a mobile device.
It is also designed to offer a USB-C port, a nanoSIM slot, a 3,450 mAh battery and will support the Surface Pen. Microsoft is likely to pre-install Surface Duo with the same Office Mobile app bundle that shipped with Galaxy Note 10 phones last year.
As a smartphone, the Surface Duo has a design quirk: There’s no screen out. So, to handle incoming messages, alerts, and calls, Microsoft has created a “look-at” feature that allows users to see who’s calling in the middle by opening the device.
Microsoft also released an interview with a developer who has been working on Duo apps. His verdict so far on the dual-screen concept is positive: “In the context of a productivity app, two separate screens help reduce the number of hard context switches (also known as an app) on ‘standard’ phones. For example You can have a call on the left side and take some notes from the meeting on the right side. A dual-screen device could, in my opinion, help you focus more on your current task, “he said.
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Microsoft announced the Surface Duo alongside the Surface Neo last October, its foldable Windows 10X device, but the Neo appears to be behind schedule.
Surface Neo fits larger image around Windows 10X. As ZDNet’s Mary Jo Foley reported this week, this variant of Windows 10 was supposed to ship on dual-screen devices like the Neo first.
However, it appears that Microsoft will launch Windows 10X for single-screen devices first, targeting education companies and customers in the spring of 2021. The following spring, it will launch Windows 10X for more single-screen and dual-screen devices.
