Report says Surface Duo will offer seamless stylus support

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Report says Surface Duo will offer seamless stylus support
Even though Microsoft's Surface Duo will likely ship with mediocre specifications, one element will set the device apart from other foldable smartphones.

The dual-screen device will include stylus support and since the Surface Duo will run Android, Microsoft will have to make some changes to ensure it works as well on the pocketable machine as it does on the Surface Pro.

According to Windows Latest, Microsoft developers are already on it. Their work with the Android stack structure would ensure the Surface Pen works across two displays seamlessly. The same holds true for touch input as well.

The goal is to provide a natural experience with minimum lag. Surface Pen is also pressure sensitive and the report claims that it will also let you drag operations from one display to another.

The Surface Duo is also expected to inherit gestures that are native to the Surface lineup such as double-clicking the top button for capturing a screenshot and tapping the top button once to launch OneNote.  However, it seems like not everything can be ported to Android because of the limitations of the Linux kernel. Apparently, even though you will be able to draw on the Surface Duo when it is tilted, it will not have support for tilt value in multi-touch protocol.

Previously, it was reported that Microsoft is working on dual-screen emulation for the Chromium platform. This will make it easier for developers to optimize software for dual-screen devices. 

The Surface Duo seems like a sturdy device and even though it doesn't feature a foldable screen, the 360-degree hinge will give users a lot of flexibility. The rumored specs, particularly insufficient battery capacity, lack of NFC for contactless payments, and the 11MP shooter, seem pretty dated. If Microsoft delivers on the software side and uses the Surface Pen to its advantage, it will perhaps make up for the underwhelming specs.

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