The Surface Phone is probably closer than most people think, at least according to a report by Chinese financial publication Commercial Times, who claims that Pegatron, a main supplier for Apple, is reportedly working with Microsoft and is already administering production trials of the enigmatic Surface Phone.
Surface Phone Rumors
The Surface-branded phone has enjoyed its wealth of rumors in recent months. Others predict it as a high-end offering from Microsoft geared exclusively for enterprise, meaning that Microsoft is backing away from its consumer approach for Windows phones since that hasn't been exactly a successful stride.
Another rumor further pins the Surface Phone at a late 2017 unveiling, which is entirely plausible if Commercial Times's report (translated) proves legitimate.
Microsoft is rumored to have designed the phone to complement its Surface Book lineup, or at least facilitate some sort of integration between the devices.
Microsoft wants the Surface Phone to stand out from the highly saturated smartphone market today, so it's not hard to imagine that the Surface Phone will arrive boasting with innovative features such as being able to run x86 apps via Continuum, Microsoft's proprietary technology already seen on the HP Elite x3 that can turn a smartphone into a Windows 10-capable docking station.
The Ultimate Mobile Device
Satya Nadella, Microsoft's chief executive, has also intimated the idea of a Surface Phone that doesn't mirror smartphone trends of late.
"We will continue to be in the phone market not as defined by today's market leaders, but by what it is that we can uniquely do in what is the most ultimate mobile device," Nadella told the Australian Financial Review.
The term "ultimate mobile device" renders the Surface Phone quite ripe for speculation. Exactly what will set the Surface Phone apart from the abundance of smartphone today remains nebulous, but Nadella has confirmed that Microsoft is currently conducting innovative research that will suture its wounded smartphone efforts and subsequently reclaim its presence in the smartphone market.
Microsoft's approach for the Surface Phone, according to Nadella, is prioritizing how users use devices, instead of inventing complicated add-ons simply to justify innovating a product in and of itself without conceiving its practical and potential usefulness for consumers.
What would you like to see on Microsoft's forthcoming Surface Phone? Do you think Microsoft stands a chance in cornering a considerable chunk of the smartphone market with the Surface Phone? Feel free to sound off in the comments section below!
