Microsoft Launches Surface Duo 2 - 2nd gen folding productivity machine

Microsoft has taken the wraps off the second generation folding, portable, dual-screen smartphone: the Microsoft Surface Duo 2. And this one has some flagship specs. 

The device features the Snapdragon 888 processor, 5G support and the iconic dual-screened design that made the first model so intriguing. Plus, it's a phone. 

That processor means that its performance matches that of the most powerful Android phones on the market, and means it should have significantly boosted speed over the Snapdragon 855-powered first gen Surface Duo. 

Microsoft is calling this the thinnest 5G device, and it's covered in nano-coated 3D glass built by Corning, which it claims is really durable. And it's available in both Glacier and Obsydian colours. 

When shut, it forms this narrow, portable device that's easy to hold in one hand and those curves around the edges should mean it's comfy to hold too. What's more, the hinge is - according to Microsoft - the highest quality the Surface team has made. 

When open, the two screens form an 8.3-inch surface and boast 90Hz refresh rates to make animations super smooth. In addition, there's something of a unique feature called the 'Glance Bar', which is a curved screen that shows little snippets of important information, like the time and notifications you have waiting for you. 

There are three cameras on the back: a 12-megapixel f/1.7 primary camera with OIS, a 16-megapixel f/2.2 ultra-wide and a 12-megapixel f/2.4 telephoto with OIS.

That's a huge change over the original Surface Duo which had one single camera, and will make the camera system actually usefuland more comparable to other modern-day smartphones. 

It's in software where the first model was mostly criticised, and in the Duo 2 Microsoft says it has worked on optimisations to ensure that you can share information between apps across the two screens as well as pinching to spread apps across them to form one, big view. 

There are also a number of games that can be used in a gaming mode where the bottom screen becomes a control pad and the top half is the game graphics, with the Duo 2 folded upright at an angle. 

This is a developing story. We'll update as more information is announced... 

Source : https://www.pocket-lint.com/phones/news/microsoft/158470-microsoft-surface-duo