Microsoft Office and the Future of Dual Screen Phones

Microsoft has been busy.

Office recently got an update where it combined multiple apps into one Office platform. It’s a handy upgrade, not having to swap apps to look through documents or reference spreadsheets.

On top of that, we know Microsoft is working aggressively on future hardware form factors, with a particular focus on dual screen devices.

The platform which runs the service seems less important to Microsoft than whether people are using their services. When a dual screen Surface phone arrives, it’ll run Android.

Microsoft’s services need to be ready to go at launch though. If an expensive gadget sporting the Surface brand stumbles on core Microsoft services, it’ll be an embarrassing misstep for a company which has struggled with their mobile strategy since the rise of the iPhone.

Thankfully, folks don’t need to wait for the Surface Duo launch to get a taste of Microsoft’s dual screen strategy. Current dual screen devices are ready to go.

While Samsung has worked closely with Microsoft over the last couple years to bundle apps, it’s actually LG which gives us the best look at dual screen functionality.

Firing up an LG V50 or G8X, you can sample these improvements today.

The primary change is how Office handles multiple instances of the app running on a phone.

It’s been a common gripe with folks working mobile, that document apps can only open one doc or spreadsheet at a time. Going back to look at your list of documents forces the user to close the active document.

Now the Office app can multi-task a bit better.

The list of files remains open on one display while the user is editing a specific document on the other display.

Also, users can keep different types of files open at the same time. You can’t open two Word documents currently, but looking up a spreadsheet in Excel while writing in Word is possible.

This extends to split-screen on the main phone as well. You can open two different file types on one screen, and keep a third file full screen on the second screen.

On top of improved support for document and PDF management, this is a handy adaption to take advantage of the extra screen real estate.

I’m hopeful we see more services piggyback on this idea.

Maybe an Outlook app that keeps your email accounts and navigation on one screen while opening messages on the other. Maybe a OneDrive app that keeps your folder navigation on one screen while opening media on the other display. Expand on Skype integration for personal and business use, or incorporate Translator functionality into other services.

I’ve seen many techies disregard the idea of dual screen, shrugging it off with a dismissive line of thought like:

“Cool. Two apps at the same time. No big deal.”

As if the only future we should embrace is the ultra-fragile folding phone to give us one larger complete surface area.

Microsoft is opting to side-step that idea. If the Surface is going to be pitched as a business-grade device, Microsoft can’t put their reputation behind an expensive and flimsy product.

Deciding on dual screen, users have to deal with a hinge separating the two displays, but Microsoft can bring enhanced productivity, improved multi-tasking, and an eye catching design. The Surface Duo is shaping up to be a disruptive force in the premium market.

LG just happened to get there first…