14 DAY TRIAL // Pretty much everyone knows by now that Windows phones no longer have a future. Microsoft itself confirmed that no new features and devices are planned, and the platform is now only getting security patches until mid-2019 when it reaches the end of support.
This technically means that Microsoft no longer sees any reason to make investments in mobile, right? But a statement from CEO Satya Nadella during the conference call with analysts following today’s earnings reports seems to indicate that Microsoft’s involvement in mobile isn’t entirely over.
Here’s what Nadella said when discussing how Microsoft’s divisions performed in the latest quarter, obviously praising the cloud services:
“Our results speak to the strength of our platform and services for both first party and third-party experiences. And we'll continue to invest in our platform, enhancing our cloud services with AI capabilities for developers to quickly build and monetize games across PC, console and mobile.”
Cryptic message
The mobile reference doesn’t tell too much and can mean anything right now, but at the same time, it could also be evidence that Microsoft isn’t yet done with mobile devices.
And truth be told, it’s believed that this is indeed the case, although the term mobile has a different meaning in Redmond’s long-term strategy. Instead of a phone per se, Microsoft is reportedly working on what it calls a mobile device with multiple form factors.
This project is internally known as Andromeda and it could be a digital notebook with other form factors like tablet and laptop, all powered by two different displays connected to each other with an innovative hinge. If this is the mobile future that Satya Nadella is talking about still remains to be seen, but there are more and more signs that there’s something big coming on this front.
Panos Panay, the go-to person for everything Surface at Microsoft, also teased a new product earlier today, making everyone believe this could be the super-anticipated Surface Phone.