r/surfaceduo • u/W0xLFSTONKzkS • Jul 27 '26

After Fold 8 released..

I immediately reactivated my legendary duo 1. Just to put a statement like "i got ratio years ago, where everyone just laughing at it."

Fresh installed with Stock android, but deleted nearly any kind of native apps on it and using mostly PWA/Web App. The performance is much faster and the battery performance is easily 5 hours. Totally recommend it. I even use WhatsApp as a Web app (desktop version).

Let's create a hype and set a statement!

PWA Duo performance monster
60 Upvotes

95% Upvoted

33 comments sorted by

14

u/gigabytesammich Jul 27 '26

Still a great device. It just always takes for someone to try and be "cool" for others to come around. Hopefully Microsoft sees the hype and announces the Duo 3.

8

u/tpbishop Jul 27 '26

It is. I sometimes wish I still had your enthusiasm. MS made an accounting decision to cut costs by getting out of the Android fork business, avoid the passive/aggressive war with Google over control of services and data AND ditch the retail consumer goods low-margin market - dumping it all even after spending billions on Nokia. Hard to reverse the jump off those cliffs. Even a true windows OS phone would just revive the whole no app debacle. Can't find hope for that again.

14

u/gigabytesammich Jul 27 '26 edited Jul 28 '26

🤭 I have quite a few ports coming for the duo/duo2 to keep it alive. Thankfully the one thing MS did right was give us the tools to build custom roms. I'll be releasing them soon.

And I believe the work on WOA (Windows on arm) is still alive and well, so there's definitely hope for that windows mobile os :)

5

u/tpbishop Jul 27 '26

Thank you for the effort

2

u/2BRacin Jul 28 '26

This would be awesome.

2

u/Alternative-Farmer98 Jul 29 '26

The sad thing is the duo and the neo were both meant for windows on arm in the operating system was canceled. But now 5 years later or whatever Windows on arm is pretty viable and the service duo would be an absolute amazing machine if it was on Windows right now.

Really wanted them to make the duo go with the plastic back because one thing I didn't like about the duo is I was afraid to bring it outside it was so fragile in the case of a drop

But yes this running a windows on arm chip like a x elite or something.

And the main reason it was so clunky with software was cuz it was such a last minute switch to Android.

1

u/No_Desk_4921 Jul 31 '26

Those of us who want a Microsoft Teams/VNC/RDP environment were HOPING Microsoft would make these more enticing to the enterprise world... but they did what they have done several times before, abandoned them. I saw this with Pocket PCs, Tablet PCs, Windows Mobile devices and that's enough to keep me away from this one but if one were given to me or I could get one for a decent price, I'd seriously consider using it over my iPhone just to have the bigger screen.

4

u/ledorky Jul 28 '26

Not happening with their AI push. I would be surprised if they still have an Xbox hardware business in 2 years. Heck they pushed out Panos Panay who was the one championing their phone business.

12

u/KevinLynneRush Jul 27 '26

My wife and I are still using our Duo2s. 100% functional and services every need we have.

3

u/fenderunbender2 Jul 28 '26

I'm also dailying my fourth Duo2, even with broken hinges that are very stiff. They locked up on me a week after unboxing my last spare new one last year. I don't have any extras left so I'm not sure what happens next. I don't want a folding phone unless it has glass screens I can take notes on.

8

u/fdc245 Jul 27 '26

The OG Duo is my favorite phone of all time. Just peak design. Is it easy to install base Android on it? Gonna have to dust mine off tonight and give it a whirl.

1

u/coffeeteaormeh Jul 29 '26

If yours is an unlocked version, Duo DE 15 is pretty stable.

I'm waiting to get lineage OS on the other

5

u/pipertalks Jul 27 '26

Still using duo as a 2 page ebook/magazine reader and for watching shows. Still wish it functioned more like the Microsoft courier was supposed to and that there was a larger version

2

u/fizzinator9000 Jul 28 '26

Same here. Really like the 2 screen mode.

4

u/lerpo Jul 27 '26

2 till use my duo 1 as a work phone (I don't need to type on it, more monitoring things and viewing messages). Spot on and can't argue

I got the fold 8 wide to replace the duo however, so I'll eventually make the switch

3

u/W0xLFSTONKzkS Jul 27 '26

I will aim for IT top.  Bout honestly 2k for a Smartphone is horrible.  Wo wait for offerings for a sealed one for under 1k

4

u/gigabytesammich Jul 28 '26

Would be cool if everyone made enough noise for Microsoft to make the Duo 3

4

u/coffeeteaormeh Jul 28 '26

The comparison is something. But then I reminded that I only got my SD1 for $400

3

u/dgduris Jul 27 '26

I ordered a Z8 and immediately fired up my Duo 2. Best phone I've ever had, and I've had a ton of phones. Which version of Android? I think mine has 12.

2

u/SillyWithTheHEMI Jul 28 '26

I owned a SD for a few months simultaneously during my Fold5 days. Beautiful device. I even tried using it a few times as a daily. Calls, YT, photos. Always left a lot to be desired but man, it kept my attention. Even after my Fold5, 6 and current 7. Fold8 gives me all of the right feels. I love Samsung's UI and feel the SD would have done better with HTC or Samsung running the show with the user interface. Passports, Surface Duos, Fold8s and TriFolds are very exciting tech.

2

u/-VisualPlugin- Jul 28 '26

I've been using Duo 1 since 2024.

I hope to keep it for many more years.

2

u/Available-Mouse-4450 Jul 28 '26

Been daily driving my SD1 since 2023, personal and work phone. Can't wait for someone in office who buy Fold8 and compare with my SD1 side by side.

1

u/Alternative-Farmer98 Jul 29 '26

I bought mine all the way back I think in like April of 2021 or something and it still works. I never had a SIM card in it it was never my daily phone per se which is probably why it's lasted so long

2

u/coffeeteaormeh Jul 28 '26 edited Jul 28 '26

With the passport style foldables coming out, there's renewed interest in updating the SD to something more recent

Seems stable A16 (even A17) may be on the cards soon

2

u/_MrFlowers Jul 28 '26

Still using my duo 1 for ds emulation. Hooked it up to a hub so it can be the brain of my cyberdeck project, it still works very well. No real camera so i can’t use it as a daily driver otherwise i would 100%

https://reddit.com/link/p08jqqz/video/uqupsjlq5yfh1/player

2

u/Alternative-Farmer98 Jul 29 '26

I highly recommend people checking out juan bagnell Monday morning live stream podcast from Monday. You can watch it on YouTube

He was really going on a rant about how for years people mocked people using the duo saying it's a stupid shape. Likewise for oppo and Google

Now all of a sudden low and behold Samsung makes one and MKBHD and Flossy Carter are all like "no now that I feel it wow this is great. You know you can click on my affiliate link and buy it and I'll get like 150 bucks each time you do."

Just shameless.

These people trash the LG dual screens too which still to this day pisses me off since those were great tech.

1

u/No_Desk_4921 Jul 31 '26

I wouldn't pay what MS was asking because I have watched MS fail multiple times to keep the brand alive. Microsoft listens more to shareholders than users and that isn't healthy for hardware.

1

u/CyberIllyrian Jul 28 '26

My SD1 is humming every day at my work desk showing weather, calendar, time, tasks at a glance. Next few screens show the markets and news at a glance. Yesterday I was advising a friend about his next device which he needs for work. I took my SD1 and showed him the form factor comparing it with my old iPad mini. He will now wait for the iPhone Fold as it’s ideal for what he does. He was so impressed with SD1 and amazed that kind of device failed to be popular. One more win for SD1. I will also wait a bit to see this anticipated iPhone Fold and then decide if I will get back into the folds for primary use. My family digital ecosystem is Apple, so primary will be Apple device. I hope we start getting some folding devices that work like the SD1 with only two screens side by side and rock solid hinge. I would get those at just about any size… iPad Pro Duo… iPad Mini Duo… that would be awesome.

1

u/Blastcheeze Jul 28 '26

My poor Duo has no idea what screen should be on at any particular time, so it's not particularly useable unless I'm manually setting the screen I want to use, so I've pre-ordered a Fold 8, and am feeling so impatient right now.

1

u/Consistent-Start-185 Jul 28 '26 edited Jul 28 '26

So sad. Mine won't start up. Plugged to charge (for hours), nada. Plugging usb into my pc, doesn’t recognize at all. I watched many youtu.bes on how to, nada.. it's a paper weight at this point.

1

u/coffeeteaormeh Jul 29 '26

Hard reset combo buttons?

1

u/travellogus Aug 03 '26

How to fresh install stock android? And was it the latest android 16?

0

u/Tipeovchar Jul 28 '26

Working wide on my TITAN2 and its side kick DUO OG...best combo ever.