14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft took everyone by surprise this week when it announced its very first Android device, especially as the company was believed to be done with mobile hardware after giving up on the Lumia series of smartphones and Windows 10 Mobile.
Surface Duo, which runs Android and comes in the form of a dual-screen device, puts Microsoft in a select group of names investing in this completely new form factor that’s expected to grow significantly in the coming years.
Samsung, which has already launched the Galaxy Fold, Huawei, and according to rumors Apple too are some of the biggest names that are committed to dual-screen devices, so Microsoft is about to step into an unexplored world where its main catalyst is the hunger for innovation.
However, what’s very important to note is that Microsoft’s Surface Duo isn’t necessarily supposed to be a rival to all these foldable phones in the same way as the Surface Pro is not a competitor to the iPad Pro.
Surface Duo is first and foremost focused on productivity, something that has become the essence of the Surface family of products. Phone capabilities are offered as an extra, although it goes without saying that it’s something that’s more than welcome.
Running Android is for many a weird choice, especially as Microsoft has also announced Windows 10X, an operating system built on Windows 10 but specifically created to power dual-screen and foldable devices. Microsoft says it has worked together with Google on making this happen, so Microsoft Surface Duo will have full access to Google Play Store, just like a traditional Android phone.
Some believe that Microsoft should have launched a regular Android phone before betting all-in on Surface Duo, but what I think is that the software giant is playing the right card here. And here’s why.
First and foremost, it’s the productivity thing that I talked about earlier. Whatever device Microsoft launches, it must undoubtedly be built around the idea of making people more productive no matter where they are. I know what you’re going to say – Samsung’s Galaxy Note already does that with the S Pen, but in Microsoft’s culture, productivity means no compromises and typically comes down to bringing the power of a regular PC to multiple form factors.
Second of all, the Surface brand has always been about innovating and pushing the market to new form factors that are then embraced by other manufacturers, most of them Microsoft partners in the first place.
A traditional Android phone launched by Microsoft would have forced the software giant to focus on the same things companies like Samsung, Apple, and Huawei are currently investing in, and these include better cameras, faster processors, software updates, and things like that. With the current approach, Microsoft only has to worry about polishing the features that define the Surface brand in the first place, and this is something that the company has been doing for several years already.
Microsoft really doesn’t need to become just another Android smartphone manufacturer, and the Surface Duo is exactly what the Surface brand is supposed to be: innovation, productivity, and the power of doing whatever you want, whenever you want, wherever you are.
Surface Duo will be here by the end of 2020, so Microsoft needs to continue polishing the device to make sure everything simply works just as expected. By the time the company launches the Duo, you can be sure others will come up with similar devices, and Surface Duo just needs to remain the pioneer of this product category with flagship features that others have a hard time to copy.
For now, Surface Duo is living proof Microsoft is simply doing the right thing. And what’s more, it does the right thing by switching to the mobile operating system developed by one of its long-time rivals.
