MICROSOFT is expected to launch its final Lumia smartphone next month at Mobile World Congress, in Barcelona. But could the end of the Lumia range signal the start of the long-rumoured Surface Phone?
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| Surface Vice President Panos Panay introduces the Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL |
Microsoft could be dropping the Lumia moniker from its smartphone range.
The US technology firm is expected to ditch the Lumia brand name following the launch of the Lumia 650 next month at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, according to Windows Central. And it doesn’t look as if the Lumia brand name will go out with a bang.
Microsoft’s Lumia 650 is a business-orientated, midrange smartphone with a five-inch 720p display, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of internal storage and 8MP rear camera with LED flash.
According to reports in Windows Central, the Windows 10 Mobile smartphone will have support for expandable storage via MicroSD but no wireless charging.
Read the NewsNewsBlog.blogspot.com review of the Microsoft Lumia 950 XL – the first smartphone to ship with Windows 10 Mobile
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| The latest Windows 10 smartphones, the Lumia 950 and 950XL, were unveiled in October |
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| Microsoft is expected to drop the Lumia brand name following Mobile World Congress next month |
Microsoft was believed to be quietly developing two new flagship smartphones for 2016, the Lumia 750 and 850 – but these may have been scrapped.
Instead, industry sources believe the Redmond firm has green-lit plans for an Intel-powered Surface Phone, which will showcase the next blockbuster update to Windows 10.
Surface Phone is expected to be a new flagship device with an industrial design similar to the Surface Pro 4 tablet.
Microsoft took the wraps off its first in-house laptop – the Surface Book – back in October.
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| Microsoft is believed to be planning a Surface Phone to coincide with the first update to Windows 10 |
The team behind these sleek – and pricey – devices are believed to be now the sole department actively developing a Microsoft smartphone.
The long-rumoured Surface Phone which could hit shelves by mid-2016, to coincide with the second major update to Windows 10, dubbed Redstone.
Like the Surface Book laptop and Surface Pro 4 tablet before it, the Surface smartphone is expected to ship with flagship materials and a premium price tag to match.
Surface Vice President Panos Panay and his team are believed to be looking into building an all-metal case for the smartphone, which will run Windows 10 Mobile.
Industry sources claim Intel is heavily involved in the smartphone project.
The news comes after a Microsoft executive admitted that Windows Mobile need “something transformative, like what the Surface was for laptops.”
The end of the Lumia brand could help to signal a new start for Windows smartphones, which have failed to gain market share from Apple and Android.
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