Report: Microsoft is Working on Surface Duo 3 With Foldable Screen

Microsoft’s successor to the Surface Duo 2 won’t have a dual-screen design, according to a new report from Windows Central’s Zac Bowden. The company is said to be working on a Surface Duo 3 with an internal foldable screen plus an external screen to use when the device is folded.

The report says that Microsoft’s original plans for the Surface Duo 3 were another dual-screen phone with “narrower and taller edge-to-edge displays, wireless charging, and other improvements.” However, Microsoft has apparently changed its plans and the Surface Duo 3 may actually look more like existing foldable phones on the market.

“It’s still too early to know the exact specs that this new foldable device is going to feature hardware wise, or whether or not Microsoft plans to simulate a dual-screen experience via a software feature or mode. My sources say there’s no concrete shipping window for the device in place yet either, meaning it’s unlikely to be ready in time for this fall,” the report reads.

Despite Microsoft giving up on its original dual-screen design, Bowden says that Microsoft’s first foldable phone “is still considered a third-generation Duo internally.” With this change of form factor, the Surface Duo 3 should look quite different from the previous models, which were pretty large and hard to use with a single hand due to the 4:3 aspect ratio of the displays.

According to the report, Microsoft is also exploring traditional smartphone form factors to complete its foldable phone offerings. “While nothing is set in stone, I’m told the company has already prototyped several traditional slab smartphone designs, which could ship as a “mainstream” Surface phone offering, allowing the foldable device to exist as an enthusiast product,” Bowden wrote.

Lastly, the report says that a new “Perfect Together” effort within Microsoft could also lead to better synergies between the Android-based software of the Surface Duo 3 and Windows 11. In recent years, Microsoft has teamed up with Samsung to better integrate premium Galaxy phones with Windows PCs, but it’s probably time Microsoft’s own mobile offerings get better treatment as well.