In 2023, Microsoft discontinued the complex device known as the Surface Duo. However, the company is said to have made one last attempt at a foldable phone and reportedly designed the Surface Duo 3 before abandoning it. A newly discovered patent shows that the next-gen Surface device would look like this, with a single continuous display and a stand on the back. The development follows the discovery of a similar patent in March that suggested the Surface may yet have its Lazarus moment.
The design of the Microsoft Surface Duo 3 is revealed by a US patent
According to a patent application discovered by PatentlyApple, Microsoft may have scrapped plans for a device that could become the Surface Duo 3. The patent shows that it would have a single continuous display — a big change from the dual-screen Surface Duo, which never properly did not take off and was closed by the company last year.
Microsoft’s foldable device, according to a patent document
Photo: US Patent and Trademark Office/Microsoft
The device will have a magnetically attached stand on the back, which will allow the user to place it on a table vertically or horizontally, without requiring third-party accessories or cases. The patent also suggests installing a triple camera on the back of the foldable device with a module similar in shape to Apple’s iPhone Pro models. Another design element of the device would be a power button that could be deployed. In theory, this would make manual discovery unnecessary.
It is noted that the patent was filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office on June 20. Although the application was filed for a “foldable computing device opening stand,” it mentions a device with a “flexible” display with support loops that can be folded. 180 degrees. This device is believed to be a canceled Surface Duo device. It is noteworthy that a few months ago it became known that Microsoft abandoned plans for a similar device under the code name Project Neon.
Interestingly, the patent application also mentions another flexible display device with support loops that can be rotated 360 degrees to make a single continuous face-to-face display.
