Is Microsoft Surface Phone here yet? FIH Mobile deal could be the first step.

Microsoft Surface Phone










Microsoft may have just taken the first step to committing to the idea of a Surface Phone. The tech giant has recently announced the sale of its feature phone business assets, to Foxconn subsidiary FIH Mobile Ltd, for $350 million dollars, which also includes the acquisition of Microsoft Mobile Vietnam’s manufacturing facility in Hanoi, Vietnam.
According to the official statement, Microsoft will continue supporting Lumia handsets, including the Lumia 650, 950, and 950XL, as well and OEM partners smartphones Alcatel, Acer, HP, VAIO, and more.
The important bit of the announcement, hinges on the fact that Microsoft is also including brands and trademark assets, to FIH Mobile, in a move that suggests a detachment of Microsoft from the Lumia brand.

What’s next for Microsoft Mobile?

This comes as no surprise to those in the loop of the rumors surrounding, a device alleged to have been in the works for years. The device has been rumored as the next step in Microsoft’s mobile-first strategy, with word of it to be destined to replace the Lumia brand in the near future.
Back in August of last year, sources reported detailed specs in regard to what it was believed to be the Surface Phone:
  • Display: 1440×2560 16:9 AMOLED 5.5? ClearBlack Gorilla Glass 4
  • Processor: Intel Atom x3 (SoFIA) 64-bit
  • Camera: Back: 21MP PureView Zeiss 6-lens Front: 8MP Zeiss Wide-Angle
  • RAM: up to 4GB RAM (lower end with 3GB and higher end with 4GB)
  • Operating System: Windows 10 Mobile (Current revision of the device is running 10.0.10514.19)
  • Storage: Options will include 64GB and 128GB with MicroSD Expansion up to 256GB
  • Surface Pen (Similar to Note 5),
  • USB Type-C
  • Wireless Charging
  • Aluminium & Magnesium unibody
With that said, if the handset is really due for release, this year or the next, the above specs may turn out to be different.
While some are speculating that Microsoft might simply want out of the smartphone business, in the past year, we have been monitoring the progression of rumors surrounding the Surface Phone, and came to the conclusion that this is not the case.
According to a more recent report, not only the Surface Phone will be a reality, but it may even be already in an advanced design stage, with a potential release by 2017. Sources suggest that the Surface PHone will follow a similar pattern as other Surface products, by being introduced in multiple versions, from entry-level to pro/power user.
The new handset could also include Wacom’s Universal Pen support, for added accuracy when using the Surface Pen.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

DirectX 12 vs DirectX 11

Image
DirectX 12 vs DirectX 11 – How DX12 will transform PC  gaming on Windows 10 DIRECTX 12 VS DIRECTX 11 – WHY DOES IT MATTER? Windows 10  has arrived and, along with integrated Cortana, Xbox One game streaming and a fancy new web browser, one of its key features is DirectX 12, the latest version of the operating system’s gaming API. A software layer that sits between the hardware that powers our computers and the software that runs on them,  DirectX is at the heart of the vast majority of games that run on Windows.  The other major gaming API is OpenGL, which as its name suggests is an open source API. Both offer very similar key functions, but it’s DirectX that tends to be at the heart of most bigger games. Microsoft talks up the amazing new capabilities for every new release of DirectX, but with DirectX 12 it really does have some key new features, at least when it comes to improving performance. It also has some new effects tools and functions for making games look bett
Read more

Android N's "Freeform Windows"

Last week, we wrote about the " freeform window " mode in the Android N Developer Preview. Brief mentions in the developer documents and hints in the code pointed to Android someday displaying apps in resizable floating windows, just like in a desktop OS. Freeform window mode isn't normally accessible in the current dev preview, but shortly after the post, we were contacted by reader  Zhuowei Zhang  with instructions on how to make it work. We'll get to the instructions, but first let's talk about what's actually here. Freeform window mode is just what we imagined. It's a dead ringer for  Remix OS —multiple Android apps floating around inside windows—and it might be the beginnings of a desktop operating system . It works on Android N phones and tablets, and once the mode is enabled, you'll see an extra button on thumbnails in the Recent Apps screen. To the left of the "X" button that pops up after a second or two, there will be a s
Read more

The Chord Mojo turns good headphones into great ones

Image
The best gadget you never knew you wanted Audio processing isn’t sexy. Better sound doesn’t lend itself to easy marketing through numbers or pretty posters, and so many companies treat it as an afterthought when designing their products. The  blissful ignorance  of "good enough" audio pervades the world of consumer technology, leaving only a niche of audio enthusiasts supporting a few boutique hi-fi manufacturers. Things have been like this for quite some time, but recently a new gadget was introduced that bridges the gap between the many and the few, and its name is the  Chord Mojo . The Mojo is an audio processor and amplifier that’s smaller than a pack of cards yet delivers the awesome performance of much larger rivals. Honestly, I think its size works to its disadvantage because it looks like, and is, a portable unit you can plug into your phone and use off its 10-hour battery. By audiophile standards, it’s almost  too  practical. But those same aud
Read more