A Microsoft Surface Phone for business is in the pipeline
The surface Phone rumor is far from dead, according to statements made a few weeks ago, by Microsoft Windows corporate VP Kevin Gallo, during London’s Build Tour: “Windows Phone is fully supported. We're fully behind it. We're not abandoning the phone”, said Gallo, who went on explaining that “We'll lead with some high end and category innovation like we've done with Surface”.
Back in May, we have learned about the three possible variants of the rumored new handset. From what we know, the entry level version of the Surface Phone will ship with 4GB or RAM and 64GB of storage, followed by a mainstream iteration with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage space, and finally a Pro version, with 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage.
The information has not changed ever since, with more indications that the Surface Phone could be launched with a business spin, as a device designed to appeal to enterprise customers.
No official announcements has been made yet, aside from a comment from Microsoft CMO Chris Capossela, going on record saying that Microsoft needs a “spiritual equivalent” to the Surface product line in the Windows 10 Mobile division. Capossela’s comments pre-date Microsoft’s official sale of its feature phone assets to FIH Mobile Ltd, by a week, and prompted many to believe that Microsoft might be distancing itself from making smartphones. However, persistent rumors surrounding the Surface Phone, have been suggesting otherwise.
Considering a 73% decline in sales of the Lumia handsets, in the past 12 months, selling its Lumia assets to FIH Mobile makes perfect sense, from the perspective of a brand reorganization. Lumia is a legacy brand that never quite tied in with Surface, the first official consumer hardware division at Microsoft.
By that token, Microsoft needs a handset that can fully represent its Windows Mobile division, as well as being capable of making a statement for the Surface product line. While this can be accomplished without radical changes to the existing hardware and features already present in Lumia phones, expecting the rumored new line of Microsoft phones to offer features beyond what we have seen in Lumia handsets, is something that might turn into a make-or-break scenario for Windows Mobile.