Microsoft Surface Duo vs. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2: Which foldable wins?

Microsoft Surface Duo vs. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold ii: Which foldable wins?

(Image credit: Samsung/Microsoft)

The Microsoft Surface Duo and Samsung Milky way Z Fold ii are both technically foldable phones, though that's about all they share in common.

Whereas Samsung's second-generation Galaxy Fold offers a massive, flexible OLED panel, Microsoft has gone a more traditional route with the Surface Duo, offering ii split up 5.6-inch screens protected by glass that class an 8.1-inch canvass when folded out.

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But that's not the only way in which these two devices differ. Under the hood, they're powered by unlike processors, sport differently-sized batteries and tout completely unique camera hardware. And the Galaxy Z Fold two packs a few conveniences you won't detect on the Surface Duo, which Microsoft is withal reluctant to fifty-fifty classify equally a phone.

At present that we've reviewed both phones, this Microsoft Surface Duo vs. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 comparison looks at all the significant ways in which last twelvemonth's most radical flagship Android phones differ.

Surface Duo vs. Galaxy Z Fold 2: Price and release date

The Microsoft Surface Duo started shipping in September 2020 with a price of $ane,399 for a device with 128GB of storage. You lot tin upgrade that to 256GB by spending another $100, which you'll have to practise if you always desire more than storage in your Surface Duo, equally information technology has no microSD slot for expandability. You lot tin can either purchase the phone unlocked, where it will support all major networks in the U.Due south., or get straight through AT&T.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 started $one,999, before Samsung cut the price to $1,799. These days the Galaxy Z Fold 2 is out of stock at nearly of the carriers and retailers that used to sell it; AT&T is almost the only carrier to still feature the foldable. That'due south a sign that the phone will soon exist replaced with the Milky way Z Fold three, fix to come out afterwards this summer.

Surface Duo vs. Galaxy Z Fold 2: Specs

	Microsoft Surface Duo	Samsung Milky way Z Fold ii (rumored)
Price	$i,399	$i,799
Display	2 5.six-inch AMOLED (1800x1350); 8.1 inches combined	7.6-inch interior OLED (120Hz); six.ii exterior OLED
Processor	Snapdragon 855	Snapdragon 865 Plus
RAM	6GB	12GB
Storage	128GB, 256GB; not-expandable	256GB; non-expandable
Primary cameras	11MP (ƒ/2.0)	12MP wide, 12MP ultrawide, 12MP 2x optical telephoto
Additional cameras	N/A	10MP cover, 10MP chief display
Bombardment size	three,577 mAh	four,500 mAh
Size	Closed: 5.71 x 3.67 x 0.39 inches; Open: five.71 x seven.35 x 0.18 inches	Closed: vi.ii x ii.six x 0.66 inches; Open: 6.2 x 5 10 0.27 inches
Weight	8.8 ounces	9.9 ounces

Surface Duo vs. Galaxy Z Fold 2: Design and display

Are two displays meliorate than one? Microsoft hopes you'll think then, as the Surface Duo packs dual 5.6-inch PixelSense AMOLED displays shrouded in strengthened drinking glass, with big bezels above and below the panels. The unabridged device is exceptionally thin — the Surface Duo simply measures 4.8 millimeters thick when outstretched — making it the thinnest folding phone or Surface e'er congenital.

The Milky way Z Fold 2 really has two displays also, though you lot can't actually look at them at the aforementioned time. The one on the inside of the device measures 7.six inches from corner to corner, and sports the same dynamic 120Hz refresh charge per unit as the new Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.

That panel is protected by Samsung's Ultra-Thin Drinking glass, which offers more reliability compared to the fragile plastic substrate used on the original Milky way Fold, though not anywhere near the same sort of rigidity and protection as what the Surface Duo offers. On the outside of the Galaxy Z Fold ii is some other 6.2-inch screen which essentially functions like that of a normal telephone.

The Galaxy Z Fold 2 measures 6mm thick, which will make information technology quite a bit heftier than the Surface Duo when folded up. Both phones sport bully hinges: the Surface Duo's hinge rotates a full 360 degrees and can terminate at whatsoever betoken. The Galaxy Z Fold 2'south can also finish anywhere along its path, though it's restricted between folding shut and opening so the interior screen lays flat.

Surface Duo vs. Galaxy Z Fold 2: Cameras

Avid mobile photographers volition likely flock to the Galaxy Z Fold two before giving the Surface Duo whatever consideration. That's because Samsung's foldable sports iii lenses, while the Surface Duo has only i higher up its right brandish. For Samsung's device, that's a trio of 12-MP sensors on the back, tied to primary, ultrawide and telephoto optics. The telephoto has a 2x optical zoom advantage.

As for the Surface Duo, don't expect anything globe shattering. Microsoft has made it articulate this phone is non meant primarily for shutterbugs, with a unmarried 11-MP, ƒ/2.0 shooter above one of the screens. That ways you'll accept to fold the phone dorsum if you want to take a picture of something in front of you.

Microsoft stresses the Surface Duo'southward single-lens organisation nonetheless leverages artificial intelligence and computational photography to attain tricks like a shallow depth-of-field portraits and a dedicated depression-light way. That said, nosotros'd be lying if we expected the Surface Duo'due south camera quality or versatility to strike anywhere near the Galaxy Z Fold 2's, let alone i of the best camera phones. It simply doesn't announced to be a focus of the Surface Duo, and the specs sheet suggests equally much.

Surface Duo vs. Galaxy Z Fold two: Performance

Here'south another expanse where the Surface Duo and Galaxy Z Fold ii differ massively. Microsoft's $ane,399 handset utilizes 2019'due south Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chipset and 6GB of RAM, whereas Samsung incorporates the aforementioned Snapdragon 865 Plus silicon as the Milky way Annotation 20 and 12GB of RAM.

The Galaxy Z Fold 2 will besides support 5G networks on all major networks — something you certainly won't find in the Surface Duo, which is just built to connect to 4G LTE towers.

That disparity in processing power is reflected in the phones' corresponding benchmark scores. The Galaxy Z Fold 2 posted a three,193 result on Geekbench 5. That topped the Surface Duo'south 2,862 score on that same examination. Samsung'due south foldable phone also bested the Surface Duo in the graphics tests we ran.

Surface Duo vs. Galaxy Z Fold 2: Bombardment

With two screens to power, you'd imagine the Surface Duo would pack an admittedly gigantic bombardment. Yet Microsoft has only built a three,577-mAh power pack into its first Android handset, which is quite small-scale compared to the 4,500-mAh one inside the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.

The showtime Galaxy Fold had a 4,380-mAh battery, and that device didn't even tout a 120Hz refresh rate or 5G connectivity. With the increased ability demands of its modern flagships, we expected Samsung would increment the second-generation Fold'due south battery capacity to accommodate, and it has — to 4,500 mAh.

The Surface Duo only lasted 9 hours and 27 minutes when we ran its single brandish through our battery exam, which involves continuous web surfing over a cellular connection. In dual-screen testing, that result vicious past two hours. The Galaxy Z Fold 2, in contrast turned in a respective time of ten hours and 10 minutes.

Amazingly, Samsung baked wireless charging back up into the original Milky way Fold, and it makes a return in the sequel too. The Surface Duo unfortunately makes no provisions for wireless charging nor NFC, which is pretty disappointing given the high cost.

Surface Duo vs. Galaxy Z Fold 2: Software and special features

Microsoft hopes that Surface Duo owners will find that what the dual-screen phone lacks in hardware, information technology'll brand up for in clever, intuitive software. The Surface Duo is congenital to seamlessly move yous between its two displays in a logical mode that keeps you on chore and helps yous piece of work smarter.

For example, if you lot open up an email in the Surface Duo'due south Outlook app, it'll populate the unused screen with the contents of the bulletin you've just tapped, leaving your inbox open on the first panel. And if you want to answer, information technology'll slide the correspondence over to replace your inbox and make room for a compose menu.

Microsoft says the APIs information technology's built atop Android on the Surface Duo are smart plenty to know what apps and links to put where and when, meaning tertiary-party developers don't accept to purposefully code their apps to accept reward of the Surface Duo'southward multiple panels.

Every bit for the Galaxy Z Fold 2, Samsung has expanded upon the first Fold's nifty App Continuity feature, whereupon an app open on the outside display would move to the interior screen for a closer await when you opened the device. At present, that feature works for YouTube video also.

Additionally, Samsung has brought the Galaxy Z Flip'due south Flex Mode to the Z Fold 2, so that the panel reacts dynamically depending on what you're doing. For example, if you're video chatting with a friend over Google Duo, you tin can fold the phone slightly then that the feed plays in the height portion, while menus and controls are displayed on the lesser half of the device.

There'due south no South Pen support like you now become on the Galaxy S21 Ultra. For that, you'll need to wait until the Galaxy Z Fold three comes out — at least, according to the rumors.

Both Microsoft and Samsung accept committed to 3 years of Android platform updates for their phones, which give anyone who spends top dollar on one of these devices peace of mind.

Surface Duo vs. Galaxy Z Fold two: Outlook

Obviously, the Surface Duo and Galaxy Z Fold two are very different sorts of foldables — so unlike, in fact, that they may attract entirely different users.

The Surface Duo is for the productivity-minded crowd that could really benefit from the phone's windowed motif and multitasking-focused interface. It's too a practiced companion for those who actively use many Microsoft services.

The Galaxy Z Fold 2 is more than of a media powerhouse, with its far more sophisticated photographic camera engineering and unencumbered flexible display. Information technology'due south also for the user excited almost the future of foldable panels and mobile technology as a whole. Using a device like the Galaxy Fold or Galaxy Z flip is a magical experience the very starting time time you practise it, and it's certainly flashier than the seemingly well-congenital but ultimately more than traditional Surface Duo.

The ameliorate processor, superior cameras and longer battery life make this a walk-over for the Galaxy Z Fold 2. And with a new foldable coming in a few months, Samsung figures to extend its pb over Microsoft.

Adam Ismail is a staff author at Jalopnik and previously worked on Tom'southward Guide roofing smartphones, machine tech and gaming. His love for all things mobile began with the original Motorola Droid; since and so he's owned a variety of Android and iOS-powered handsets, refusing to stay loyal to i platform. His piece of work has also appeared on Digital Trends and GTPlanet. When he's not piffling with the latest devices, he'southward at an indie pop show, recording a podcast or playing Sega Dreamcast.