Microsoft's Surface phone efforts are long dead, but a patent newly discovered by Windows Central has revealed that the company has continued to explore the form factor since the Surface Duo line was scrapped in 2023. We already know that a third-generation device was going to pivot to a folding screen, and now we know more about the new hinge that would've accompanied it.
According to this new patent, Microsoft was exploring a "spring-loaded" hinge design that would have made opening the device easier with one hand. A common complaint with folding phones today is that it's difficult to pry open the two halves when closed, whether that be because of the flat edges of the device or the strength of the magnets.
