14 DAY TRIAL // There aren't many Windows Phone launches these days, but with the release of Windows Mobile 10, Microsoft hopes that more OEMs will embrace the new ecosystem and bring more devices to the market.
Shift is a small OEM that might be completely unknown outside Germany but will probably get its big moment next year, when the company plans to launch what appears to be the first modular smartphones powered by Windows 10 Mobile.
The new device is called Shift5+ and will come in two versions, based on the running mobile platform. Customers will be able to choose between Windows 10 Mobile and Android.
It's unclear what version of Android the Shift5+ will run at launch, but since the phone is expected to arrive on the market next year, we suspect it will come preloaded with Android 6.0 Marshmallow right out of the box.
An interesting alternative to traditional smartphones
Shift5+ will be available for pre-order in Germany for €400 beginning December, but the phone won't ship until Q3 2016, which is a bit late. Also, the smartphone will launch on the market for €445, but Shift is running a promotion during pre-order.
Moving on to specs, Shift5+ comes with a decent 5-inch IPS capacitive touchscreen display and a 13-megapixel photo snapper on the back, which features autofocus, LED flash, and full HD (1080p) video recording.
On the front side, there's a 5-megapixel selfie camera. According to Shift, the modular smartphone will include a quad-core or octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 2GB of RAM, and at least 32GB of storage expandable up to 128GB via microSD card slot.
Shift5+ is supposed to drain energy from a battery between 2,500 and 3,000mAh. Since this is a modular smartphone, customers will be able to swap various parts such as the display, memory or even the battery.