Microsoft’s Surface Duo was launched last year with Android 10
and it was supposed to get Android 11 update in the Q4 of 2020.
Reports had suggested that Android 11 support would follow
relatively swiftly after the launch of Surface Duo, but due to
compatibility issues, the update has been pushed back to summer
of 2021.
Microsoft is now focusing on support for Android 11 again, and
an update for the dual-screen could finally arrive in the
summer of 2021 after the device launches in Canada and Europe.
Speaking of the international launch,
Microsoft has confirmed that Surface Duo will go on sale in the
United Kingdom and other countries later this week, in
order to arrive on shelves before
Microsoft’s Surface Duo 2 (which is expected to launch
between Q3-Q4).
Android 11 could be out in June or July and it will enable new
multitasking improvements for the dual-screen hardware. The
company is also working on a new update for Microsoft Launcher
to improve the performance of the first-generation Surface Duo
and address issues experienced when switching between apps.
Surface Duo’s global launch
According to Microsoft, Surface Duo is coming to the United
Kingdom, Canada, Germany, and France on February 18. For now,
Microsoft is bringing the dual-screen phone to four new markets
only and it’s likely that it will not arrive in other markets,
at least via official channels.
In the UK, Surface Duo price is going to be £1,349 for the
128GB model. Likewise, it will be priced at €1,549 in France
and Germany for the same 128GB model is €1,549.
For those unaware, Surface Duo comes with the outdated Qualcomm
Snapdragon 855 processor and it’s a 4G phone. It comes with an
average camera (11MP f/2.0) and 6GB of RAM. The key selling
point of the device is its hinge-based design and dual 5.6-inch
1800×1350 screens.
