Surface Duo is getting a big drop in price, and early...

The Surface Duo seemed to be doing well, despite its slightly older specs, until ratings and reviews came in questioning the price of the dual-screen leaflet. Unsurprisingly, Microsoft apparently decided to cut the price by a sizable amount barely two months after the product launched. More than the premature price cut, however, early followers of Microsoft’s pledge are now complaining about a seemingly disorganized and inconsistent policy in handling returns and refunds.

For those early adopters, it’s bad enough that Microsoft has confirmed that the Surface Duo is really worth so much less than what it asked for last September. The dual-screen phone sold for $ 1,399 and $ 1,599 for 128GB and 256GB of storage, respectively, but now retail prices are $ 200 lower. If you buy from Best Buy and activate on AT&T, Sprint, or Verizon, you can save an additional $ 100 off that price.

What really annoys Surface Duo owners is that Microsoft is handling the situation. Simply put, it doesn’t just return your $ 200 to match the new price. Instead, they are told to return the device that is still within a 60-day return window and use the refund to buy a new one at a lower price. However, according to reports, Microsoft won’t release the fee for the new Surface Duo until the old one is received.

While this means users get a shiny new device, not only is the process problematic, but it also has a negative impact on the environment due to potential e-waste. To add insult to injury, this policy has reportedly been applied inconsistently depending on which store or customer representative you ask.

The Surface Duo’s reputation took a nosedive after reviews criticized some unstable parts of the software and users reported issues with the phone’s hardware and design issues. This definitely does the device a disservice, but it could also be Microsoft’s strategy to roll back a potentially problematic stack and silently replace it with better ones.