14 DAY TRIAL // Despite both the first and the second-generation Microsoft Band activity trackers being rather well-received by customers worldwide, the software giant has quietly abandoned wearables, choosing instead to concentrate on other products like cloud and software.
This doesn’t necessarily mean that fans across the world are no longer dreaming about having a new Microsoft smartwatch or activity tracker, and with rumors of a possible Surface Phone launching sometime soon swirling around the web, concepts like the one below are by no means surprising.
Imagining a mix of a Microsoft Surface Band and a Surface Phone, the concept created by designer Christopher Fernandes envisions a device that would certainly be a worthy competitor to the Apple Watch, currently the world’s number one smartwatch.
An Apple Watch and iPhone killer
While at first glance the imagined device looks like a product that neither Microsoft nor a different company can build for the time being, it could actually be something worth trying, especially because it can score extra in terms of convenience.
Apple Watch itself is a smartwatch that can play the role of a smartphone already thanks to built-in LTE support, but the concept goes one step forward and describes a flexible form factor that could enable this transition physically, rather than in terms of functionality.
Microsoft is believed to be working on a new mobile device powered by Windows 10 ARM, but it won’t be anything like this and it won’t tackle the wearable form factor. Instead, the device could indeed come with a new hinge design allowing for conversion one form factor to another, though it’s not yet clear if Microsoft is indeed aiming to market the device as a smartphone per se.
More information will probably emerge in the coming months, as the new product should see daylight rather sooner than later, possibly before the end of the year.
