Microsoft Surface Duo 2 Review, Price, Design, Camera, Battery life
The Surface Duo 2 is much better than the original Surface Duo and is incredibly close to being a solid, finished product. However, some minor UI bugs crop up occasionally, and having only 8GB of RAM is an odd decision for a device focused on productivity. Still, it's the only device of its kind, so if you're into the idea, this is probably for you.
Pros
- Very Good Performance
- Much better camera
- Faster chipset
- Gorgeous design
- 90Hz refresh rate makes scrolling feel smooth
Cons
- Still has some UI bugs
- Very expensive
- So-so battery life
Microsoft Surface Duo 2 Review
When Microsoft released the original Surface Duo back in 2020, it was all about providing an easy way for professionals to work on the go, getting rid of the barrier between being in the office and being on the road. It was a strange thing to sell out in the middle of a global pandemic to be sure, but the Surface Duo 2 is right here when the world at least starts to reopen.
And because the world just wasn't at the level it needed a year ago for something like the Surface Duo 2, it looks like a fresh start this time around. We know we were a lot more out-and-out than when we reviewed the original Android phone, and we know we're certainly not alone.
But the Surface Duo 2, in the face of this new debut, comes with a higher price tag, starting at $1,499 in the US, which is slightly higher than the $1,399 (£1,350, roughly AU$1,930) Microsoft asked last time. . . With that high price, you're getting a flagship-level mobile chipset in the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888, along with 8GB of RAM and better cameras - both on the front and back.
The specs aren't the most impressive part of the new Surface Duo, though. Instead, it's the hardware improvements that Microsoft has made to use the device on a day-to-day basis that makes it feel more like we're comfortable carrying it in our pockets each day. There are still some glitches, especially when you're pushing the device, but instead of feeling like problems inherent to the device like last time, it seems like something that can easily be fixed in a firmware update.
However, bugs hinder the device user experience. There have been times when the phone got stuck in camera mode, for example, forcing us to recharge the phone. Plus the short battery life means that the Surface Duo 2 isn't a device that's ready to hit the headlines just yet, though it's certainly better than the original device.
| Microsoft Surface Duo 2 Specification | |
|---|---|
| Price | Starting from $1,499.99 |
| Brand | Microsoft |
| Model | Surface Duo 2 |
| Display (Primary) | 5.80-inch (1344x1892) |
| Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 |
| Front Camera | 12MP |
| Rear Camera | 12MP + 16MP + 12MP |
| RAM | 8GB |
| Storage | 128GB |
| Battery Capacity | 4449mAh |
| Operating System | Android 11 |
| Screen Resolution | 1,344 by 1,892 pixels |
| Battery Life (As Tested) | 5 hours 25 minutes |
| Release Date | 22nd September 2021 |
| Colours | Glacier, Obsidian |
| Fast charging | Proprietary |
| Weight (g) | 284.00 |
Microsoft Surface Duo 2 price and availability
The Microsoft Surface Duo 2 is available today, priced at $1,499 / £1,349 / AU$2,319. For that price, you'll get the standard configuration with a Snapdragon 888 chipset, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage.
You can upgrade the storage to 256GB for $1,599 (£1,349, AU$2,469) or 512GB for $1,799 (£1,429 AU$2,769). If you want the top-end 512GB option, you'll have to go with the Obsidian Colorway—which is better anyway if you ask us—but you can get the 128GB version or the 256GB version in the Glacier White colorway. Too.
Unlike the original device, however, the Surface Duo 2 doesn't come with a bumper case that will protect it from falls. It's not as big of a deal as last time, as this time around the sides of the phone is more rigid plastic. Still, it has the added benefit of letting you magnetically attach the Surface Pen to the device, so it's something you'll probably want to get if you plan on using Microsoft's stylus.
So, the Surface Duo 2 is an expensive device, but especially now that it has a high-end chipset instead of the mid-range silicon in the original device, it is more competitive with the phones around it. For example, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 will cost you $1,799 / £1,599 / AU$2,499, which is slightly more expensive than the similarly configured Surface Duo 2. Then again, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 has 12GB of RAM, which makes it even better at multitasking - but more on that later.
Microsoft Surface Duo 2 Design
In many ways, the Surface Duo 2 feels like a finished product in a way the Surface Duo never did. While it's recognizable as a follow-up to the original Surface Duo, there have been major refinements that put it above and beyond the original - and that device wasn't exactly hard to see.
The new Obsidian Colorway we have for review is the first thing that comes to mind. This is a black phone, which means it won't easily show dirt or scratches, which is good as it is still using the same glass outer shell as the previous device. This means that fingerprints are a bit more visible, but we've been able to get rid of fingerprints easily with a quick swipe, so it's not a big deal.
However, unlike the original Surface Duo, which came with a rubber bumper to protect the device, the Surface Duo 2 doesn't, and that's a serious problem. We have already noticed a crack in the outer shell of the device, which has evolved from having the device in our bag to being in a pocket with a wallet and passport.
Because it's also an oddly shaped device, and we know it doesn't fit in any of our pockets, it's the kind of device you need to carry in your bag. And, well, you want a case to make sure it stays beautiful.
However, one of the most noticeable changes is the bigger camera bump at the back. Microsoft went with a more powerful triple-lens camera setup this time around, meaning the camera now protrudes a considerable amount from the back of the phone. It's something we're used to in the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra as a personal device, but there's one key difference between the two devices: the Surface Duo 2 needs to be turned off on top of this camera bump.
This was one of our concerns when we first started using this device, but it has since calmed down. The camera is surrounded by this plastic material, which extends slightly beyond the glass back of the camera. This means that the actual lens is not in direct contact with the back of the left side of the device when closed, and the glass cover of the device is not prone to break after repeated opening and closing.
However, its only real side effect is that the Surface Duo 2 feels a bit awkward when you're using it in one-screen mode, which we often do when we just want to type. instant text message. It's not enough to be uncomfortable, but it does feel a bit funky, though it's probably something you'll get used to throughout the life of the device.
Microsoft has also addressed one of the most annoying parts of using the original phone – it was a pain to open the device just to check the time or whether you had any missed texts. Luckily, the Surface Duo 2 has a curved display around the edge of the device and you can quickly tap the unlock button to show the time printed on the edge.
It'll also show a little light-based notification when you're getting a call or text, but beyond those basic notifications, you'll have to open the device to see. It's a start, and we wish Microsoft would have included at least a notification counter or something, like how the LG V60 does in its always-on display part.
As far as we can tell, the Surface Duo 2 hinge is the same as it was on the Surface Duo, and that's a good thing. It has so much resistance that it won't accidentally open, and once it's open, you won't find it swinging around or anything. We like it for the folding display you'll also find in something like the Fold 3, as the two discrete displays mean you don't get an ugly crease in the middle of your screen when you're working - Unless you have one app on both screens.
Microsoft Surface Duo 2 Dual screen
Like the Surface Duo, the entire pitch of the Surface Duo 2 revolves around its dual-screen design. But at least they are better screens this time.
Where the original device featured two 5.6-inch AMOLED displays with 1,350 x 1,800 resolution, combined into a "single" 8.1 display with 1,800 x 2,700 resolution, the Surface Duo 2 shrinks the bezels slightly to expand the display.
This time around, there are two 5.8-inch displays, which open up to a full 8.3 inches. And Microsoft keeps the PixelSense classification by making each display 1,344 x 1,899, which gives it a combined resolution of 2,688 x 1,892. It's a bit high resolution, but the larger display cancels it out.
What makes the displays even better, though, is that they each have a 90Hz refresh rate and a peak brightness of 800 nits. However, in our testing, peak brightness only ended up around 672 nits. It hits 87.3% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, though, which is incredibly impressive and better than the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio, a laptop geared solely for artists.
That means all content looks gorgeous on two displays, and whether you're browsing Instagram, watching Netflix, or struggling to pay attention in a long team meeting, everything will look beautiful.
However, there are still some problems. Sometimes, when running a particularly heavy application on one display and trying to run something like Edge or Slack on the other screen, the UI crashes, leading to a black screen and we have to restart the phone. Is. We're still not sure what causes this and it's one of the things we'd like to test a little more on, but it's a worrying bug, and could seriously affect device usage. But, again, stay at it.
Gestures for dual-screen use are the same as they were last time, and you can swipe up and drag between the two displays to have an app span across both screens. It works the same way it did on the original Surface Duo, but some apps, like Instagram, for example, will only be available in one orientation.
Most Microsoft apps, on the other hand, again take full advantage of the dual displays on the Surface Duo 2. We find ourselves using Outlook the most in both displays, as both your email list and your current email sifting through our morning emails are so little.
This would also be beneficial in Teams, where you can have the chat open on one display, while the actual video call can be open on another. It's not something we've tested much, as we honestly never use Teams for anything, but if you work primarily through the Microsoft Office suite, you'll find dual-screen The functionality will get a lot of use out of it.
For everyone else, it's still neat to have two apps open side-by-side, but the Surface Duo 2 is far from the only phone to do so.
Microsoft Surface Duo 2 Camera
We wouldn't think of the Surface Duo 2 as a device where an excellent camera is a must, but when you're paying this kind of cash for a phone — even if Microsoft isn't calling it — the camera was better. At least be decent.
Not so with the Surface Duo. But with the Surface Duo 2, Microsoft has made some big improvements, making it at least good enough to get photos that have come from this decade.
It's not going to match the photos taken by the iPhone 13 or the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra, but they'll be good enough for most people—especially if you need to take a quick shot of something for work.
This time around there are two cameras, a 12MP front-facing camera and a triple-lens camera at the back. This includes a 12MP wide lens, a 12MP telephoto lens, and a 16MP ultra-wide lens. We've included some camera samples below. It's such a huge improvement from the original device and one that honestly should have just happened, to begin with.
Microsoft Surface Duo 2 Performance and specs
Lastly, the Surface Duo has a decent chipset. Native Instruments, while it was a neat idea, struggled precisely because Microsoft seems to have the same problems with its phones as it does with its laptops—it never includes powerful enough components.
This time around, Microsoft has included the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 chipset, which is a marked improvement over the Snapdragon 855. And while Microsoft has also included more RAM in the Surface Duo 2 with 8GB instead of 6GB, it's still not quite there. What is this phone trying to do?
In our ideal world, we'd be able to consistently run as many demanding apps as our work requires - as is often the case. But because Microsoft didn't include the 12GB of RAM that most major devices these days run, for example, on top of Discord, running demanding apps like Genshin Impact led us to the UI crash, which We mentioned earlier.
But it is much more than a UI crash. Taking the Surface Duo on an uphill journey, there were times when we had the camera open to snap pictures of beautiful scenery, only the phone was stuck in the Phone app. We couldn't swipe to go home, or swipe back to the exit, then the phone starts to become completely unresponsive.
When this happens, what we are doing is to stop and restart the phone completely, which takes 30 seconds or so. It doesn't happen a lot all at once, but in our time with the device, it has been a lot more than once.
When the Surface Duo 2 works, it works wonders and gives us a start to see what Microsoft was going for. However, it's still too small to sell to anyone who isn't immediately sold on the idea of the device. And then combined with the lack of RAM on the device, which honestly probably contributed to the bug, thanks to the two screens, it shows flaws in Microsoft's approach to hardware design.
And that goes for the entire Surface lineup — from the Surface Duo 2 to the Surface Studio — please stop underestimating how much power your users might need, especially for enterprise products like the Surface Duo 2.
Microsoft Surface Duo 2 Battery life
Microsoft is claiming up to 15.5 hours of video playback and 28 hours of talk time, which sounds impressive. However, we took it out over the weekend and put it to the test.
We took it on a day trip where we were taking a lot of pictures, browsed the web, and sent a lot of messages. And, well, it falls short of what Microsoft claims.
In our experience, the Surface Duo 2 only lasts around 10-12 hours before it dies. It's more than a standard workday, but if you're going to be out and about like us, it just isn't enough. Luckily, we travel with other people, so it's not like a dead battery will leave us stranded, but it does have some seriously depleted battery life.