Microsoft is back in the mobile market. On the evening of October 2nd, Beijing time, the technology giant Microsoft, which had stopped producing mobile phones a few years ago, hopes to make a comeback through Surface Duo, a device with two screens connected by a hinge.
Data Map: The picture shows the Microsoft showroom attracting many visitors.
Comprehensive Beijing “Newspaper” and Shanghai surging news reports, the company’s chief product officer Panos Panay said that the product brings together the absolute advantages of Microsoft, and cooperate with Google to integrate the advantages of Android. “This is the technology that drives the industry.” Although Microsoft is best known for its operating system, this product currently looks like it will support Android.
According to the official website of Microsoft, the two screens of the Surface Duo have a size of 5.6 inches, and can be folded up to 360 degrees around the center line. The screen can be expanded to 8.3 inches when expanded.
In addition to the Surface Duo, Microsoft will also launch the Surface Neo dual-screen tablet computer in 2020. Both screens are 9 inches, and a 13-inch screen can be obtained after flattening. Surface Neo supports hardware accessories such as keyboards and pens, which connect wirelessly to your phone. Surface Neo uses Intel’s processor, and its operating system is called Windows10X.
Panay said that the reason the Surface Duo and Surface Neo were announced a year in advance was to give software developers time to develop applications for dual-screen products. Microsoft is working with carriers to launch these products in 2020.
This is not the first time that Microsoft wants to make a mobile phone. Kin in 2010 and the release of several generations of Lumia are Microsoft’s attempts. However, in 2013, after Microsoft announced that it had acquired part of the business of the mobile phone giant Nokia for more than $ 7 billion, it was thought that it had once been in trouble. But Microsoft is still ambitious in developing the hardware business, and believes that Duo will represent the future. However, this product does not disclose the time to market as other released products, and does not disclose whether it supports 5G.
In fact, Samsung Electronics has released a foldable smartphone, the Galaxy Fold, for $ 2,000. Unlike Microsoft, which still has a metal piece separating the two screens, the Galaxy Fold is folded in half by one screen, which is generally considered to require more advanced technology. But some mobile phone industry analysts told reporters that whether it is Samsung Electronics or Microsoft, they need to find a scene for users with two screens. At this point, the video demonstration at the Microsoft conference has begun to take shape.
Panos Panay said that one of Duo’s key selling points is that users can video chat with people on one screen and browse the web on another screen. This is seen as a way to increase productivity, which is part of Microsoft’s strategy. Not only that, but for the product announcement a year in advance, he said that it is for software developers to design new applications for dual screens.
Unlike Apple, which is controversial due to lack of innovation in hardware, Microsoft has been trying to launch various types of devices since the first Surface product was released in 2012, including tablets of various sizes with keyboard options, and book-shaped notebooks Computers, large tablets for professionals, as well as dials, styluses, and headphones. In fiscal 2019, Surface revenue increased 23% to $ 5.72 billion.
However, this is still not enough for Microsoft to participate in the competition of the PC or mobile phone industry, and Microsoft’s presence in the global statistics of third-party agencies Gartner does not appear. In markets such as the United States, Microsoft has begun to emerge. At the same time, Microsoft also updated its own product line at this conference, successively released Surface Laptop3 and Surface Pro7, as well as a new product series Surface Pro X. These products will go on sale in the coming weeks.
