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HP's Elite X3 Windows Phone launches next month for $699
Been waiting for a phone that could pull triple duty as your handheld, laptop and desk machine? Then your day has almost come: HP says that its Elite X3 will hit shelves late next month. The $699 handset is HP's first smartphone in over two years, and it's kind of a gamble -- it's a high-end Windows Phone launching at a time when Microsoft's mobile OS sales are at an all time low.
Valve's mobile version of Steam finally hits Windows Phone
Steam hasn't forgotten about the remaining Windows Phone faithful. It just seemed that way, with folks on Android and iOS getting a mobile app way back in 2012. The Windows Store listing says that you'll be able to use Stream Guard's authentication system, trade and sell items, keep an eye on the game marketplace and remote download and install games to your PC via the application. Just in time for this year's summer sale; how about that?
Microsoft sells Nokia's feature phone business to Foxconn
Microsoft has signed a deal with FIH Mobile, a subsidiary of Foxconn to sell what used to be Nokia's old feature phone business. The outfit, that still produces low-end handsets like the 222 and 230, has been sold to FIH Mobile for $350 million. It'll now come under the control of the manufacturing giant that produces (pretty much) every device you can think of. Microsoft is also handing over a manufacturing plant in Hanoi, Vietnam, as part of the deal. In addition, 4,500 employees responsible for producing the devices will be given the opportunity to join the Foxconn family.
The collapse of Microsoft and Nokia's mobile business
Microsoft's smartphone business is in free fall, with the company selling just 2.3 million devices in the last three months. It's likely that you'll still be able to buy a Microsoft-branded smartphone, but it's probably not something the firm will devote a lot of time and energy to. After all, making phones is an expensive business, and if there's no chance to make any sort of profit, it's not worth the effort. If you've been watching Microsoft over the last five years, it'll come as no surprise that its smartphone plans have foundered. If you want to explore the evolution and collapse of Microsoft's mobile ambitions, check out our timeline.
Windows Phone sales have almost ground to a halt
Gartner has released its smartphone stats for Q4 2015 and the news is especially bad for Microsoft. In Q4 2014, the software giant owned 2.8 percent of the smartphone market -- not great, but still good enough for around 10 million units sold. In the same quarter of 2015, however, Windows Phone sales fell to 4.4 million, giving the OS a mere 1.1 percent of the total market. That means that it's basically in a death spiral, as consumers and app developers alike lose interest. Microsoft's rumored Surface Phone now looks like its last hope to rescue the division.
For some reason, VAIO announces a Windows 10 phone
Japan is getting more Windows Phones. In October, Windows Japan announced that six companies were tackling Windows 10 for mobile, and following the gorgeous NuAns phone, VAIO has revealed its second ever smartphone. (The funny part is that VAIO's once-parent company went so far as to make a Windows Phone slider, but it never saw the inside of a phone store.) Anyhow, here's the VAIO Phone Biz. It's for business use. It's not a slider, and it's launching next month, but only in Japan for now. Let's see if it's worth getting jealous about.
Microsoft is reportedly making high-end Windows phones again
One of the biggest gripes among Windows phone devotees is a lack of high-powered devices as of late. How are you supposed to be a hardcore fan when most of the lineup is downright basic? At last, though, Microsoft appears to be catering to that need for speed. Both Unleash the Phones and The Verge understand that the Redmond crew is working on two range-topping Windows 10 phones, nicknamed Cityman and Talkman in a nod to Nokia's early handsets. They'd both be powerhouses with Quad HD screens, 3GB of RAM, 20-megapixel rear cameras, 5-megapixel front shooters and 32GB of expandable storage. It'd really boil down to your preference of screen size. The Talkman would be the mid-size model with a 5.2-inch display and a six-core processor (likely the LG G4's Snapdragon 808), while the Cityman would up the ante with a 5.7-inch screen and an eight-core (possibly Snapdragon 810) chip.
Snapchat alternatives (and their users) vanish from Windows Phone
Snapchat warned that it was clamping down on third-party apps to prevent sketchier examples from compromising your security, and it appears to be making good on its word -- much to the chagrin of Windows Phone users, who haven't had an official Snapchat option so far. Windows Central notes that 6snap and other titles that replicated the disappearing message service have abruptly vanished from the Windows Phone Store. Moreover, some users say that Snapchat is following through on warnings that it would permanently lock the accounts of those who kept using unofficial software. If you're in that boat, you now have to start fresh if you want to chat with friends.
Microsoft turns Cortana into a Klingon-speaking Starfleet officer
To celebrate the launch of the Lumia 830 in the UK and all of the Trek-flavored nerdiness going down at Destination Star Trek in London, Microsoft has taught given its virtual assistant a crash course in the ways of Qo'nos -- by which we mean Cortana can now speak a little Klingon. All you'll have to do is ask, though the first thing the xenolinguists among you will probably notice that her and vocabulary and pronunciation are just awful. SlashGear also adds that Cortana responds when you refer to her as "Number One" -- Commander Riker can't be too pleased about that one -- as well as when you tell her to beam you up or "set phasers to stun". The smarts enabling Cortana's new behavior haven't started making the rounds yet outside of the UK yet, but a Microsoft spokesperson confirmed to us those Starfleet commands will work in the US in the coming weeks. In the mean time, there are still other ways to get a feel for Redmond's Trekkie credentials: remember, that Bing's Translator can kinda-sorta tackle textual Klingon too.
Microsoft will reportedly omit Nokia branding on future devices
We've been wondering how Microsoft would coordinate Nokia and Lumia branding after purchasing the Finnish phone maker's handset business earlier this year. Well, according to an internal document obtained by GeekOnGadgets, we'll see changes take place soon. For starters, Nokia will be dropped from upcoming gadgets, but the Lumia moniker will remain. The report states that the Lumia 830 and 730 will be the last two handsets to feature Nokia's livery. What's more, it seems Windows Phone stands to be trimmed down to just Windows, bringing the mobile and desktop operating systems under the same designation. The decision to omit "Phone" isn't too much of a surprise though, as the recent HTC One (M8) for Windows already did just that.
Windows Phone thrives in Europe, but struggles in China and the US
Microsoft's quest for smartphone market share is hitting a few roadblocks, it seems. Kantar estimates that Windows Phone is still gaining ground in Europe, where it's up year-over-year to 8.1 percent of sales in the first quarter of 2014. However, it's taking a bruising in other areas. In the US, Windows swung from increases this fall to a slight dip in the winter; while it's still doing relatively well at 5.3 percent of US share, it's not posing much of a threat to Android or iOS right now. The platform also took a drubbing in China, where its share was nearly cut in half to exactly one percent thanks to the rise of budget Android handsets.
What you need to know about Microsoft's acquisition of Nokia
Nokia hasn't always been a phone manufacturer. The company dabbled in paper products, footwear and tires before it became involved in the wireless industry. Starting today, it begins a new chapter as its Devices and Services division gets swallowed up by Microsoft in a $7 billion deal. Change is in the air, but very little is known about what exactly will be different now that the two companies are coming together in holy matrimony. Neither party was legally allowed to discuss details about the acquisition in public. Today, Microsoft gets to flip the switch and Nokia gets to switch its business cards. (A shame, since its cards are very happy-go-lucky.) But this is just the beginning of a lengthy move-in process in which the two companies can finally start working together as one. Chances are we'll still be asking questions about the merger several months down the road, but as execs explained to us, these kinds of procedures take time to get everything sorted out. For now, what should we know about the merger?
