Microsoft is hard at work finalizing the next major OS update for the Surface Duo, which will be based on Android 12L and will be available in the coming weeks. According to my sources, the update will include a refreshed design with “Fluent” elements inspired by Windows 11 in many areas, including the notification shade, settings app, and Microsoft Launcher activity feed.
According to contacts, expect more blurred surfaces and effects throughout the OS, as well as more fluid animations when using gesture navigation to open and close apps. To reflect the new design style, toggles, buttons, and notification boxes have also been updated.
Microsoft’s Fluent design language will be used for the first time in Android 12L, as previous releases have relied on Google’s stock Material designs. I understand that the decision to use Fluent design is part of a larger effort to highlight the Surface Duo as a great Windows companion device while still providing a familiar Android experience.
The company wants to sell the Surface Duo as an extension of your Windows PC and incorporating the Windows 11 design language in certain areas certainly helps. For example, I have heard that the quick settings area in the Android notification shade now looks like the quick settings panel on Windows 11. The settings app now uses Windows 11-style icons for the various setting categories.
In addition, when the user taps the top button on the Surface Slim Pen 2, a new “pen menu” interface appears. This interface, like Windows 11’s pen menu, is fully customizable, with the ability to add shortcuts to any app you have installed. It will also show the battery level of your pen.
Android 12L also introduces wallpaper-based theming support, allowing users to set a system accent color based on the dominant color in the wallpaper they’ve chosen. This is an incidentally similar feature to what Windows already has.
A new “Duo Connect” mode for enterprise customers is also on the way, which will provide a continuum-style experience when connected to a large external display and powered by the Windows 365 cloud PC service. It’s unclear whether this will be included with 12L from the start or if it will be added in a later update.
Outside of minor design updates to bring it in line with the rest of the new design on Android 12L, not much else will change with the Microsoft Launcher, at least for the time being. I’ve heard that the Android 12L “taskbar” UI found on devices such as the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 will not be available on the Surface Duo.
The Android 12L update for the Surface Duo 1 and Surface Duo 2 is currently in the final stages of testing and is expected to begin rolling out in the coming weeks, most likely in late October or early November, assuming no major bugs are discovered before then.
Android 12L is hitting Surface Duo
Google has been working on the ’12L’ version of Android, a mobile OS update that will be available to select devices later this year. The OS, which has been optimized for larger screens and those that fold (including dual screens), is set to catapult the next generation of mobile devices while also providing developers with the tools they need to improve their apps.
Today, VP of Engineering, Android, Andrei Popescu, provided additional details about Android 12L, including highlighting some new OS features included in the update, in a short blog post.
“With planned updates from Samsung, Lenovo, and Microsoft, we’ll bring 12L to your favorite tablets and foldable later this year. And we’ll keep adding features and functionality to help you get the most out of your larger-screen devices in Android 13 and beyond.”
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