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  • - Remember Windows Phone from way back when?

  • Well Microsoft is kind of getting back into

  • making smartphones.

  • This is Surface Duo,

  • and it runs Android.

  • Not Windows or Windows Phone.

  • That's right.

  • Microsoft is making a Surface phone with Android.

  • If that sounds surprising,

  • it's because it really is.

  • But we'll get back into the Android side

  • in a minute.

  • Duo is part of two new futuristic

  • dual-screen devices that Microsoft announced today.

  • And they're coming in Holiday 2020.

  • Surface Duo has two 5.6 inch displays

  • that fold out into an 8.3 inch device overall.

  • And it's just 4.8 millimeters thin.

  • It folds like many two-in-one laptops

  • thanks to a 360 degrees hinge.

  • And it's designed to get more done on the go.

  • It looks tiny for this type of device,

  • and it felt kind of like a Galaxy Note

  • in my pocket.

  • Now, I wasn't allowed to play around

  • with the software on this device,

  • but it looks and feels like a tiny pocket tablet

  • that's also a phone.

  • The difference between this

  • and any other Android phone,

  • except maybe the Galaxy Fold,

  • is visually obvious.

  • But Microsoft thinks this is part of

  • a new category of devices

  • that allow people to do a lot more

  • with tablets and phones than they do today.

  • As part of this idea,

  • Microsoft also announced a Surface Neo device today.

  • Which has two larger 9 inch displays.

  • The Duo and the Neo

  • share a very similar design,

  • but they don't share a common operating system.

  • Neo, the larger dual-screen device,

  • runs Windows 10 X,

  • and has all your familiar desktop and tablet apps.

  • The reason this isn't running Windows Phone

  • is because Microsoft gave up on that

  • operating system years ago,

  • when it couldn't convince developers

  • to create apps for it's devices.

  • Now we sat down with

  • Microsoft's Chief Product Officer,

  • Panos Panay,

  • on the Vergecast this week,

  • to talk about why Microsoft chose Android this time

  • for the Surface Duo.

  • - [Panay] Well because,

  • those are the apps you want.

  • I don't know how to answer it

  • differently for you.

  • Because there's hundreds of thousands of apps

  • and you want them.

  • Asati and I talked about it,

  • it's about meeting our customers where they are.

  • And I don't think the, you know,

  • the mobile application platform's

  • going anywhere any time soon,

  • you need the apps.

  • - So you'll get the apps you'd expect

  • from a phone inside the dual-screen device,

  • but how is this different from any other

  • smartphone?

  • I mean it obviously looks different.

  • And the main idea is making use

  • of these two displays

  • in ways we're only starting to see

  • other Android phone makers explore.

  • You could run a game on one side,

  • and a game pad on the other,

  • or multi-task by dragging and dropping content

  • between apps.

  • Microsoft hasn't thought of everything you'd do

  • with the Surface Duo just yet,

  • but that's why it's announcing it now

  • so developers can fill in the gaps.

  • They're really aiming to introduce

  • a new form factor here,

  • and a way for a device to adjust itself on the go,

  • no matter the task.

  • We've seen foldable devices

  • from Huawei and Samsung,

  • but the Duo has two separate displays

  • that are made of glass,

  • rather than foldable plastic.

  • Which given the issues with Samsung's Galaxy Fold,

  • that might be a good choice right now.

  • Microsoft has been working on this hardware

  • for three years,

  • and Panos Panay tells us that

  • this device won't change much

  • by the time it debuts late next year.

  • The real key question will be whether

  • Android app developers

  • create the apps and experiences that really

  • take advantage of this dual-screen device.

  • And whether consumers want this type of hardware

  • in a phone form factor in the first place.

  • That's why Microsoft also has its largest

  • Surface Neo device running Windows.

  • And it really feels like the company

  • wants to offer a Surface

  • at every shape and size.

  • Microsoft also seems to be implying

  • that the operating system really

  • doesn't matter for Surface devices anymore.

  • And it's willing to partner with Google and others

  • to offer what makes sense.

  • So does that means that Android is the future

  • for Microsoft?

  • - [Panay] (clears throat) No no no no no no.

  • You want to give customers what they want

  • in the form factor that they're using.

  • We've learned this, you know,

  • the right operating system on the wrong product

  • or the other way around, pick your words,

  • but what's the right operating system

  • for the form factor?

  • And in this case,

  • in mobile devices, Android's the obvious choice.

  • But anything above that,

  • Windows is everything.

  • Superior for me.

  • - So, will the Surface Duo and the Surface Neo

  • combine in the future?

  • Will there be a smartphone that turns into a tablet,

  • that then turns into a laptop,

  • then you dock and turns into a real PC?

  • We're years away from anything even

  • getting close to that.

  • But it opens up the questions

  • about where this dual-screen

  • and foldable hardware is going exactly.

  • And they're really hard questions to answer

  • right now.

  • Microsoft will now need to convince

  • app developers and consumers that these

  • dual-screen devices are truly the new

  • device category that we've all been waiting for.

  • Wherever things end up,

  • it looks like Microsoft want to be ready

  • at every point with Surface.

  • You want a phone that's a little bit

  • more than a phone that has an extra display?

  • Surface Duo.

  • You want a tablet that transforms into a laptop?

  • Surface Neo or Surface Pro.

  • Microsoft is covering every hardware base here,

  • and it's leaving it up to you

  • to decide what device you actually need.

  • - [Panay] You know, I think like anything,

  • look at the product you think is

  • most interesting to you and where you

  • think you can be more creative,

  • that's what I would push.

  • And I think this products gonna be there

  • next year.

  • Not in a hurry,

  • you know, hang out.

  • Take photos or do whatever it is you do

  • on your phone today for a little bit longer

  • and then, see if we can convince you

  • that you can be more creative on this product.

  • - It's been a crazy day of Surface devices

  • and there's a bunch of hands-on videos

  • you should check out on our YouTube channel.

  • Be sure to also definitely check out the Vergecast,