NEW YORK – Microsoft is coming out with a “phone” based on Google's Android operating system. And a dual-screen mobile Windows PC, to boot.

But what look to be innovative, if unproved, products won’t be released until holiday 2020. And at a New York City showcase where Microsoft unveiled its latest Surface PC lineup, the Surface Duo – that’s the Android phone/communicator – and the Surface Neo – that's the computer – were roped off and kept at a safe distance from the media, as if Microsoft was showing off the Mona Lisa.

We’re a long way from determining whether Microsoft will eventually deliver masterpieces with these unfinished and not-yet-priced prototypes, but the company appears bent on reshaping what you think about Windows and the company’s hardware and the buzz in the room was largely positive. And it wanted to show off the products early to get developers busy designing for the new hardware.

The skinny on Surface Neo

The Neo is a modular machine with two Gorilla Glass-protected 9-inch screens that run on what Microsoft is referring to as an "expressive" version of Windows 10 known as Windows 10X, which apparently supports Microsoft Office and other Windows-compatible software. "There's truly nothing else like this out there, nothing," said Microsoft chief product manager Panos Panay on stage.

But expect other PC makers to take advantage of Windows 10X for their own hardware, which you should think of as a version of the operating system that is optimized for two screens.

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You can run the same app on both screens, or different apps on each. There is a clear 360-degree hinge where the two screens can open and close like a book or angled into other positions. In its fully unfolded position, you have a computer with a 13-inch display. We would have had to get up close and start playing with the computer to see how rigid or flexible the hinge is or whether the border between the screens proved to be a distraction. It is premature to reach such a judgment.

You can magnetically attach a keyboard – it’s not clear at this point whether this will be included or an option. When you fold the keyboard out onto one of the displays, it still leaves some extra real estate onto that display called the "Wonder bar" for icons or to use as as a trackpad or inking surface. Neo is compatible with Microsoft's Surface Pen accessory. And if you need to use the keyboard while binging on a Netflix show, Microsoft demonstrated how you can easily move that content to a portion of the second screen that is not covered.

If Surface Duo looks like a phone and acts like a phone is it a phone?

Panay actually seemed reluctant to refer to the smaller of the new dual-screen devices, called Surface Duo, a phone. He prefers to call it, well, a Surface.

But from a distance anyway, it sure looks like a phone, maybe even a bit like Microsoft’s version of the Samsung Galaxy Fold that recently went on sale in the U.S. Only the rotating 5.6-inch displays on this two-in-one device do not fold like Samsung’s handset – instead, the device folds using a hinge. In its unfolded position, the Duo measures 8.3 inches.

Whatever Microsoft wants to call it, Surface Duo can make calls, and in partnering with Google, the device runs all your Android apps. And like a phone it fits in a pocket.

As with the Neo, you can run different apps on each of the two screens, or the same app across both screens.

Microsoft has a long history with phones or phone-like devices, dating back to Windows CE devices, Pocket PCs and what became Windows Mobile and Windows Phone. But the company under CEO Satya Nadella eventually surrendered to Apple and Google/Android.

Other new additions to the Surface lineup

While you’ll have to wait more than a year for both Surface Neo and Surface Duo, Microsoft didn’t abandon the core Surface customer looking for new devices in the meantime. The company introduced the latest version of the Surface PC laptop, known as Surface Laptop 3. It starts at $999.99 for the 13.5-inch model and $1,199.99 for the brand new 15-inch version.

It is quiet to type on and has a glass trackpad that is 20% larger than its predecessor. Microsoft also added USB-C (to complement USB-A), a much requested feature.

Microsoft also updated its pen-based Surface Pro with the Surface Pro 7. It starts at $749.99. It also has USB-C and USB-A. The company starts taking preorders today on both Surface Laptop and Surface Pro ; the computers will be available Oct. 22.

Microsoft also unveiled a new two-in-one called Surface Pro X, billed as the company’s thinnest Surface yet, with an edge-to-edge 13-inch display. Starting at $999,99 and available Nov. 5, the computer is powered by an ARM processor (co-designed by Microsoft and Qualcomm) and supports LTE. Microsoft claims you can juice it up to 80% by plugging it in for less than an hour, the same fast-charging capability of the other newly-released Surface portables. It’s compatible with a Surface Pen and has 2 USB-C ports.

A keyboard accessory with a slot where the pen can be stashed while it is charging costs $269.99 and will also be available Nov. 5.

Microsoft also brought out something for your ears in the form of wireless Surface Earbuds, a would-be Apple AirPods rival. Through tapping, swiping or using your voice, you can summon Spotify (playing on the Android phone in your pocket), manage your Outlook calendar and even dictate live captions into a PowerPoint presentation, which was pretty impressive. Microsoft is claiming 24-hour battery life. I got to briefly try on a pair and they stayed in my ear while I listened to music or summoned Cortana with a tap, but a true test will come when I run around with them.

They’ll be out soon and sold for $249.

Unfortunately, you’ll have to wait much longer for what is potentially the coolest stuff coming from Microsoft.

Email: ebaig@usatoday.com; Follow @edbaig on Twitter