Windows 11 on Surface Duo project gains support for Wi-Fi, data, GPS, and more in massive update

What you need to know

• An independent project to get Windows 11 to run on Surface Duo just took a major step forward.
• The Surface Duo now supports Wi-Fi, cellular data, SMS texting, eSIM, and GPS when running Windows 11.
• Miracast also appears to work following the update, allowing the Duo to project or extend to an additional display.

The dream of running Windows 11 on Surface Duo recently became closer to a reality. Independent developer Gustave Monce shared news of a major step forward in the project to get Windows 11 running on Microsoft's foldable mobile device. Monce is the man behind the Windows on Arm project, which gets Windows to run on devices like the Lumia 950 and the Surface Duo.

The latest update to the Windows 11 on Surface Duo project enables support for several forms of wireless connectivity. Wi-Fi, cellular connectivity for data, and SMS texting all work following the update. GPS, eSIM, and Miracast are supported as well. Support for calls should come in the future.

Here's the changelog from the GitHub page for the project:

• WiFi is now functional (2.5Ghz/5Ghz). Mac Address retrieval is not yet here however
• Cellular Data is now functional (LTEA/LTE/HSDPA+/HSDPA/EDGE/GPRS)
• Cellular Texts are now functional. Use the Chat application to send and get messages.
• Calls, VoLTE, RCS, and more are coming soon in a later release
• eSIM support is now enabled in this release
• GPS is now functional

To use Wi-Fi and other wireless connections, your Duo running Windows 11 will have to run version 2.31 of the project, which is available through GitHub.

Note that this is an experimental project that isn't aimed at general users. While it may be fun to run Windows 11 on Surface Duo, there are still several issues with the setup, which is to be expected with a project like this.

Here are the current known issues with the Surface Duo when running Windows 11:

• Automatic Orientation only works for the left panel, using the right panel orientation sensor
• USB Dongles that are not externally powered may not currently work
• USB C Billboard devices will not currently work
• External Display Stream support will not currently work
• Additional information provided by the posture sensor is currently not available for public consumption, this includes peek events.
• Digitizers will not react to the device being folded over
• Displays will not react to the device being folded over most of the time
• Physical device data is incorrect
• Graphical Rendering Issues

For those running Android on the Surface Duo, the mobile device recently received an official update. Talon for Twitter and Whereseek were also optimized for Duo's dual displays last week.