Microsoft to Bring Teams Rooms to Surface Hub 2S (Updated)

UPDATE: The original Microsoft blog post was so poorly worded that I literally rewrote this twice. But I’ve finally got a bit of clarification, which breaks down like so:

• Surface Hub 2S (like all Surface Hub devices) has always required some kind of monthly subscription fee, like a Teams Rooms license, except when configured with Windows 10 Enterprise.
• Existing Surface Hub 2S devices will be able to upgrade to Teams Rooms OS. That means that support won’t run out on October 14, 2025.

I will try to update the original post to reflect this. –Paul

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Microsoft announced today that its Teams Rooms subscription service will be made available on existing Surface Hub 2S collaboration displays as well as a coming second-generation of those devices.

“Surface Hub 2S will join the Microsoft Teams Rooms family,” Microsoft’s Kate Canfield announced. “When all-new Surface Hubs ship with the Teams Rooms experience starting later this year, Surface Hub 2S will become the first touch-enabled board running Teams Rooms on Windows.”

Let’s see if we can figure this one out.

Microsoft launched Surface Hub 2S in 50- and 85-inch sizes in April 2019, one year before the global pandemic, but only the smaller version was made available for sale that year. And then because of that pandemic, it retrofitted Surface Hub 2S to work with Windows 10 Pro and Enterprise instead of Surface Hub OS, allowing individuals to use the device normally during a time when coworkers weren’t meeting in the same room. Then, one year ago, it announced a smart camera for Surface Hub 2S and a software update that included Whiteboard/Microsoft Teams integration.

Teams Rooms was another pre-pandemic idea. Introduced in 2019 as a replacement for Skype Rooms, Teams Rooms was originally positioned as a way to enhance Teams meetings for people who were gathered together in a room and potentially meeting with one or more others from outside the room. With the pandemic winding down in 2022, the firm introduced Teams Rooms Pro, making a Basic version available for free.

What Microsoft is announcing now is that it will release a second-generation Surface Hub 2S display later this year. That new device will include Teams Rooms functionality. It will achieve feature parity with Teams Rooms on Windows PCs, and will include the latest Teams Rooms features like Front Row and chat. And it will still support hybrid meeting capabilities, including multi-person Whiteboard usage.

Given the age of the existing Surface Hub 2S, one might naturally wonder about support. Here, Microsoft says that Surface Hub 2S machines that were migrated to Windows 10 will be supported with security updates and critical fixes through October 14, 2025. But that new Teams Rooms experience will also be available to original Surface Hub 2S devices, which will need to migrate to Teams Rooms OS.