Take some time to watch the upcoming Surface Duo in action

Microsoft embarked on a risky strategy last October when it gave a sneak preview of its dual-screened Surface Duo phone. The risk is that the device won't be properly unveiled and launched until later this year in time for it to be available during the 2020 holiday shopping season. Now we can't equate this to the zillions of dollars that Disney lost by not realizing what a big star Baby Yoda would be; after all, if the phone won't be ready until later this year, it won't be ready. What else could Microsoft do?

But the risk is that consumers who might have purchased the Duo late last year will end up spending their money on other fetching handsets like the Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G which will be introduced officially by Samsung in two days. Those seeking an unconventional form factor might have already purchased a Galaxy Fold, a Galaxy Z Flip or a Motorola razr by the time the Duo launches. And there will also be the Dual Screen accessory for the LG V60 ThinQ. Did you even remember that this device will be released later this year? Judging from the comments left on YouTube for a video showing the Surface Duo in action, Microsoft might have no reason to worry.

The video shows that the device does have some issues with the touchscreen or the UI, but we are most certainly looking at a pre-production unit. And you can see from the clip that the Surface Duo is going to be thick. While technically not a foldable phone like the Galaxy Fold or the razr, the two 5.6-inch displays (each with a resolution of 1350 x 1800) can be used together to create an 8.3-inch screen. However, there is a border between each display making the experience less seamless than the foldables. Still, Microsoft will probably promote the Duo as a productivity tool (it will come with a stylus). We would hope that since software is the company's bread and butter, it has developed customized versions of its Office suite that are designed to take advantage of the dual screens. The firm has also been working with Google so that the latter could make the appropriate changes to Android.

The advanced hinge that Microsoft patented will automatically change the UI based on how the two screens are set. There are different options including laptop mode that has the Duo in landscape orientation with the bottom display used as a virtual QWERTY keyboard. Another mode, designed for the nightstand, allows the user to set the Duo in an inverted "V" position allowing it to be employed as a bedside alarm clock.

While the Surface Duo will be Microsoft's first Android phone, the company has been eating from the Android buffet for years. Thanks to some patents owned by the company, Microsoft earned much more money thanks to the popularity of the Android operating system than it could have ever hoped to make selling Windows Phone handsets. And after introducing the Surface Duo last October 2nd, Microsoft conceded that Android is the best mobile operating system.

Microsoft originally patented a dual-screen device back in January 2017. By December of that year, renders were created by David Breyer that strongly resemble the version of the device that Microsoft has built. Last summer, the company reportedly showed a video teaser of the Duo to employees at Microsoft's headquarters in Redmond.

There still is much about the Surface Duo that we don't know. The prototypes were powered by the Snapdragon 855 Mobile Platform, but by the end of the year, it would seem more appropriate for the Duo to be equipped with the Snapdragon 865 chipset. Microsoft plans on formally announcing the Surface Duo during this October's Surface Event.