Microsoft Surface Duo won't make it outside of the US this year

The Microsoft Surface Duo folding phone in August 2020, bringing the company back into the cell phone game after the failure of Windows Phone. We had questions and concerns, however, and the least of which was availability.

Microsoft Surface Duo launches in 2021

The phone itself has some questionable hardware, which is partly due to how long ago it was announced. In case you’ve forgotten, Microsoft originally announced this phone in October… of 2019. And when it was announced, it was set to be running the Snapdragon 855, which was already outdated at the time. Strange decisions, indeed.

Now Microsoft has announced that the Surface Duo will be expanding outside of the US early next year. Sometime in 2021, you’ll be able to buy the folding phone in Canada, the UK, France, and Germany.

How many people are willing to buy a phone in 2021 with processors from 2018? I don’t know, but Microsoft seems to think there’s some appeal there.

In their defense, it does seem like Microsoft did a pretty good job optimizing and tweaking the software, making it a decent foldable phone even if it doesn’t have the hardware to back it up. The reviews for it aren’t terrible, even if they mostly recommend waiting for a second generation device or a price drop.

But that’s going to be a tough sell. Samsung’s been on a hot streak with their foldables, and the longer things go the more companies will be testing the waters with dual-screen phones, making the Surface Duo an even worse value proposition. If you’re outside of the US and you just absolutely can’t wait to jump on this phone, you’ll have an opportunity soon; for most people, though, you’ll probably want to stick to the reviews and wait for the Surface Duo 2 that will hopefully have a simultaneous global launch.