Surface Duo Discussion Thread

Yes! a 4-5 inch e-ink screen would be great! and it would not negatively impact better life unlike the front screen on the Fold 2

so @JoeS, you didn't address what role a duo could fill for you that justifies the $1400 price tag? And again I'm genuinely curious since as I remind my group constantly what makes no sense for me doesn't preclude it from being a dream device for someone else.

 

Nothing can! Let's be real.. But. As I said, if you need a new Android phone and the OKish camera and lack of NFC and lack of quick access to notifications are no issue (hello? any customers left?) it simply offers a better view of your documents, better side-by side handling of info and some convienient.. posturing.

Stuff like having full access to your OneNote tab hierarchy while taking a note, having GMaps on the left and restaurant reviews on the right as you tap through some options, having a Duo Youtube review on the top and reading through TPCR on the bottom, etc etc., all of that seems pretty practical.

Plus I'd use the hell out of having the second screen just as a prop up stand. I've been using facetime, and I'm using a freaking tablet stand to hold up my iPhone. Being able to just flip over one screen and have the thing stable on the armrest would be perfect. It'd be perfect for watching videos on a plane, no more need to bring a stand. I'd also love it for timed camera shots. No more hunting around for that perfectly shaped rock that can hold the dang phone up.

In all these scenarios the Duo offers something extra. Is it enough to justify $1500? I'd say for some, probably.

 

I understand where you are coming from, but those of us who are advocating that isn't a phone are approaching it as phone capable but not phone primary. Personal Digital Assistant is closer. My use case is that I want it for professional and personal productivity.

I've set up groups that bundle some of my apps that I tend to bounce between. Last night instead of my Pro X I used the DUO on the couch to keep up with reviewing and approving Estimations in Excel and SOWs in Word, made a couple of comments in PowerPoint and took notes in OneNote while on a Teams Call.

I never really was able to get into using OneNote on my Note 10+ it was to narrow to take effective notes, but spanning OneNote across both screens for Day Planner template worked well.

Later in the evening I read from the Kindle App in book mode and it was enjoyable.

I have loaded the Samsung Wear and Health Apps to use my Smart Watches for NFC (Samsung Pay) and notifications, I've also paired my Surface Buds (listening to Spotify as I type this).

I have a Tablet that acts as a 2 and 1, but it is 13", I want something that is smallish like a phone but is more.

Today I plan for this to be my digital moleskin and the device I take downstairs when I break for lunch and the device I use in the evenings.

Speaking of the guy who made the Day Planner Template here is his review -

 

@JoeS and @jnjroach . Thank you for thoughtfully responding. I think that I see considerable merit to the idea of paring it with a smartwatch. It certainly would solve the notification issues and at least minimally would help with phone calls.

So next question Can you see carrying this as your only device at least in certain situations ? So far for me other than running to the grocery store or picking up my kid from school, I can't ...yet

PS: though smartwatches to date have left me cold, purely for aesthetic reasons as nothing seems close to what I consider (perhaps snobbishly) as a real watch

 

Personally no, but "only" because Apple's got me trapped in their hardware and services (imessage, FaceTime) and I want my always-with-me device to at least be a great camera.

But a good Wear OS (?) smart watch and the Duo would make a pretty good combo, it's really only the camera that holds me back from that. OK, and a little bit the intense Google spying and some uncertainty about how much Facebook could burrow into my device through WhatsApp, given that Android seems to be less restrictive than iOS. Hmm.. yup, I'm sticking with Apple for now.

Edit: oh, you mean only only device, as in "not even a tablet or PC with you"? In that case, no, never.

 

That should be the new tagline, for their marketing campaign.

The DUO is the perfect thing for new technology fans, that need something than can replace a
rock when taking photos.



I'm sold. where do i sign up.

later
-1

 

"The Surface Duo. Solid like a rock."

 

Yes, When I went to India last November for two weeks my primary device, I used was the Galaxy Tab S6, I took my OneNetbook Yoga Mix 3 but it stayed in my bag mostly. The Duo has the same functionality as the Tab S6.

 

So for the Duo, they went all out to make the folded device thin and perfectly balanced when open. One major problem that introduces is that the camera module needs to be thin as well, leading to worse camera performance.

As a solution, I wonder how far they could push this to be maximally imbalanced, putting all the weight and electronics in the 'right half', and having the left half only be the screen. It solves the camera issue, and it would still feel like a little book when opened, but now a book that you just started reading. Or more like a laptop: thicker body, thinner screen panel.

Downside, and maybe that's biggest problem: it wouldn't lay flat when open, OR the screens wouldn't be level when opened. Hardware is hard.

 

BTW: I ran our standard LTE tests on the duo yesterday and overall it did great. Top tier overall with the only minor weakness being total throughput. OTOH it is to date the top device (dethroning the Galaxy Book S) at getting a usable signal in marginal conditions,