Microsoft Surface Duo

Microsoft Surface Duo is dead; the $1,400 dual-screen phone is stuck on Android 12

Ben Schoon | Sep 11 2023 - 12:24 pm PT

Just a couple of years after its debut, the original Microsoft Surface Duo is dead, as the company has ended updates for the foldable alternative.

The Microsoft Surface Duo was announced in 2020 with a unique dual-screen design and a price of $1,400. The device was pitched on the idea of productivity, with two apps getting their own screens for enhanced multitasking. Initial reviews were a mixed bag, praising Microsoft’s hardware, but taking issue with severe software issues. And, while Microsoft did promise three years of software updates, those updates arrived exceptionally slowly.

Microsoft ended up releasing a very late update to Android 11 in early 2022, months behind schedule and well after Android 12 was released to Pixel and even some Samsung Galaxy devices. Android 12L then arrived to both the Surface Duo and its sequel in late 2022.

And, sadly, Android 12L is where the original Surface Duo will stay.

Windows Central points out that a Microsoft support page confirms that updates for the Surface Duo, both full OS and security updates, ended over the weekend on September 10, 2023. That’s despite no Android 13 update having ever been released for the device, despite Google releasing the update over a year ago. With Microsoft only providing two major OS updates, the company underserved customers of its $1,400 phone compared to Google Pixel and Samsung Galaxy devices, which get three and four major OS updates respectively. And things aren’t looking much better for the Surface Duo 2, which is set to lose support in October 2024, with no signs of an official Android 13 release thus far.

Microsoft seems to have all but abandoned the Surface Duo as we know it. A report earlier this year claims that Microsoft has abandoned the dual-screen form factor with plans for a future foldable device more in line with Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold and Google’s Pixel Fold.