14 DAY TRIAL // While the selling over 100 million Windows Phone handsets a year might seem like a far away dream for Microsoft at times when Android activates over half a million devices each day and is on the rise, having these smartphones drop to under $100 is an achievable goal.
In less than a year, the company expects for smartphone prices to be cut in a half, and says that Windows Phones would certainly sport price tags of under $100 next year.
Since launched, the various Windows Phone devices available on the US market have been subject to a wide range of deals and promotions, the latest of which involved the Dell Venue Pro, now only $299 unlocked at the company.
However, it seems that the future would have Windows Phones at lower price tags on a regular basis, although new devices are more powerful and more appealing than previous ones.
“Today, they're down to about $200, and next year, a smartphone that can run something like Windows Phone 7 will actually be down to $100 to $150,” Andrew Lees, President, Windows Phone Division, Microsoft, said during the 2011 Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference in Los Angeles.
“And, in fact, if you look even at the price of smartphones, a year ago all smartphones cost over $400 when they left their hardware manufacturer,” he continued.
One of the main reasons for which new devices are cheaper than older hardware is that manufacturers can now include more functionality in a single chip.
“ […] you can combine that power with different sensors to have different types of user experiences, and different types of input, location, camera, are all being added to the way in which you can use that core technology,” he stated.
With all phone functionality packed inside a system-on-a-chip, handsets can sport different form factors, while also featuring important price drops.
“Another advantage of moving everything onto a single chip is that the price comes down dramatically,” Andrew Lees continued.
According to a June report from IDC, Windows Phone accounts for only 3.8 percent of the smartphone OS market at the moment, but the availability of cheaper devices running under it will certainly result in an increase in sales and a higher share.