A new mobile world with dual screens- "Surface Duo 2" review

New style required for smartphones

Over the last decade or so, various smartphones have been introduced in the domestic and overseas markets. There were some variations not only in manufacturers and brands, but also in platforms, designs, shapes and styles.

Some unique products, such as those with a keyboard, have appeared, but the variations have been gradually consolidated, and most models have recently adopted a slate (plate-shaped) body in which the display occupies most of the front.

Perhaps because of this, there are many voices such as "No model looks good" or "Smartphones are boring".

Meanwhile, "folding" is attracting attention as a new style of smartphones. It is compact when folded, but has the feature that it can be used on a large screen when the main body is opened.

So far, two types of foldable smartphones have appeared on the market.

One is a type that opens vertically like the old mobile phone, such as Motorola's "moto RAZR 5G" and Samsung's "Galaxy Z Flip3 5G".

The other is that it can be used on a large screen by opening it horizontally like a book, such as Samsung's "Galaxy Z Fold3 5G" and OPPO's "OPPO Find N" announced for China.

As a slightly unusual method, withdrawal from the smartphone market has been announced, but LG Electronics' LG V60 ThinQ 5G and LG VELVET will prepare a case with a display for a general slate type smartphone. By doing so, a foldable smartphone was realized.

Microsoft's "Surface Duo 2" released for the domestic market this time is a side-opening foldable smartphone, but it is not a structure that folds one organic EL display like the "moto RAZR 5G" and "Galaxy Z Fold" series. , Two slate-type housings are connected by a hinge, and each is equipped with a 5.8-inch organic EL display to realize a folding design.

When you open the terminal, it becomes a smartphone that allows you to use various apps and contents with two screens of 5.8 inch display or a large screen display equivalent to 8.3 inch.

Microsoft "Surface Duo 2", open state: about 145.2 mm (height) x 184.5 mm (width) x 5.5 mm (thickness), closed state: about 145.2 mm (height) x 92.1 mm (width) x Lineup of 11.0mm (thickness), approx. 284 (weight), Opsidian (photo), Glaceon

The reason why smartphones with such designs and shapes are attracting attention is that the usage of smartphones has diversified.

Early smartphones were mainly used for browsing e-mails and web pages, and with the introduction of functions such as waterproof and dustproof and Osaifu-Keitai, which were popular in Japan, they became widespread in earnest, but after that, SNS and videos became popular. With the spread of viewing, the usage time of smartphones has become longer, cameras have greatly evolved to post good-looking photos on SNS, and the display size has increased for watching videos.

At the same time, as the number of apps that are indispensable for daily life and work has increased, the number of uses such as "doing △△ while doing ○○" has increased, and in order to take advantage of the large screen display, multiple apps can be operated at the same time. The number of scenes used while switching has increased.

In order to meet these diverse needs and new usage styles, the shape, design, and style of smartphones have been reviewed again, and one direction is the folding design.