Microsoft isn't making another Windows phone for one simple reason

[RV_]

Yep, late 2020 we'll see two Arm processor machines, one the Neo tablet using Windows X, the other a two screen fold out full blown Microsoft Android phone. Now their weird exit from Windows 10 mobile, then their decision to use Google Chrome's engine for the Microsoft browser Edge, makes sense. They all led up to the Microsoft Android phone with very high tech, and access to the Google Play store. Read the details in the article below.

Excerpt:

"Going all in with Android on its dual-screen phone for 2020 is a play some Microsoft-watchers think is long overdue.

Microsoft did something unexpected in launching the Surface Duo, a phone with two screens that fold around a hinge down the middle. After two years completely out of the phone game, Microsoft is ready to try again -- just not with its own software running the show. Instead, the Surface Duo will run on Android, a former rival OS. 

In doing so, Microsoft is leaning into the old adage: If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. 

"We are embracing customers where they are and building on technology they use with benefits only Microsoft can bring. We are building on top of Android, just as we've built on top of Chromium in our Edge browser, to give our customers the best of both companies," a company spokesperson said in an email to CNET.

You'd be forgiven for thinking that the Surface Duo could augur a future phone that runs on its new Windows 10X OS, just like the other device Microsoft announced on Wednesday, the dual-screen Surface Neo. The Neo is, after all, basically a larger Surface Duo that doesn't make calls, so the foundation for Windows software is there. (Note that the Neo has a different processor inside and works with a magnetic keyboard.) 

But Microsoft has assured CNET that it's sticking with Android and has no plans to make a Windows-based phone."

More pics and details in the article here: https://www.cnet.com/news/microsoft-isnt-making-another-windows-phone-for-one-simple-reason/

Also see: https://www.zdnet.com/article/microsoft-surface-duo-android-failure-is-not-an-option/

 

 

Edited October 5, 2019 by RV_

[chirakawa]

Hey RV, I think I remember you're a Moto fan.  Motorola is running a special on this year old Moto Z3 Play.  You get a Moto Z3 Play and choice of Speaker System, Game Pad, Two Shells, or the Folio for $170.  If you just want the phone, you can get it for $152 by using coupon YOUDECIDE10

This Moto even has NFC for those who need it.

https://www.motorola.com/us/products/moto-z-play-gen-3?utm_source=affiliate&CID=all:affiliate:e9q74i:1225267:Slickdeals+LLC&cjevent=e521c32deb5e11e9808000560a1c0e10

I would buy one but my G5 Plus is only a couple of years old and still does everything I need it to and the battery goes about four days for me.

[RV_]

Thanks for thinking of me C!

We already got two new Z3s free as an upgrade for both of us. We have the Mods for them that project a 50" picture for movies etc, the JBL Speaker mod, and two battery mods that do wireless charging. The Z3s have only one major drawback, no mini phone jack, they also can't wirelessly charge without a battery pack that can. They also can do real 5G when available with a $199.99 mod that is really bulky compared to the thin phone itself. 

I am done with Motorola only if the Microsoft Surface Android Duo phone is decent quality and around $500 - $1000.00 but if they are more, which is likely, then the Z3s we have will do fine for another couple of years, they are running Android 9. I still have to figure what I want to do with our two Moto Z Play first Gen phones. They are still pretty awesome phones, with two day batteries and headphone jacks. But no built in wireless charging. Have to use the battery pack mod for wireless charging. However they fast charge in just a few minutes to 50% and full in under an hour. So all night charging is not a habit anymore.

Wireless charging was great on the Lumia Windows phones we had and we still have the charging stands that also held them upright for hands free at bedside of desk.

But for folks that don't have the Z4, the Z3s are great phones with a full day's worth of battery, and that is a great price for a premium phone. Motorola is clearing out the remaining stocks of Z3 accessories cheap now too.

So we're keeping the Z3s until Windows Android debuts. We love Surface products and as soon as we're settled in I'll be buying the new Surface pro tablet and selling my Pro 3 i5/128GB/4GB/128GB micro SD card support and Pro 4 i7/256GB/8GB/256GB micro SD card support. I have typecovers, and the Microsoft Surface dock and five power supplies I bought bulk from an Amazon return outlet here for a couple bucks each. I've been using the Pro 3 and dock/with wireless KB and mouse for the last few months getting our Louisiana house ready and now sold, hope to close on the 25th and be "home" before Halloween. In other words we are Microsoft/Surface centric. Jack if you're reading the Duo will do all your Android stuff.

We both loved the Windows 10 mobile tiles for our phones launcher and are using the Squarehome App on our Z3s, here's a shot of my Z3 imitation Windows launcher.

The tiles act exactly like the Lumias did for sizing, moving, and the all apps slide out tray swiped in from the right side. That App made the Android phones tolerable. Anyone who had and loved the Windows phone interface will love Squarehome. https://squarehome2.blogspot.com/

Safe Travels bud!

Edited October 10, 2019 by RV_

[chirakawa]

Keep buying those MS products.  That's one of my best performing stock.

[Carlos]

Quote

Microsoft isn't making another Windows phone for one simple reason

Because they were garbage?

[RV_]

http://

[frankgibbons]

Microsoft popularity is drowning just like the Nokia phones. They now understand making another phone will not do the job. Unless they make a high end phone sales it in a less price. Like Huawei, One Plus brands are doing.

[RV_]

Frank,

You've lost me.

On 11/22/2019 at 11:05 AM, frankgibbons said:

Microsoft popularity is drowning just like the Nokia phones. They now understand making another phone will not do the job. Unless they make a high end phone sales it in a less price. Like Huawei, One Plus brands are doing.

Frank you've lost me. Microsoft popularity is drowning? Howso? https://fxssi.com/top-10-most-valuable-companies-in-the-world

They blew it with their Lumias by quitting too soon but we will see. Like many others I use Surface and touch screen 27" all in ones. Apple has no touch screen desktop computers, and has been lagging in updating their product line. They have lost the monthly new customer markets to Android. So they've joined the current growth and popularity leader in phones, and Microsoft will use it in the coming year for their duo dual screen phablet.

In the past two weeks of Black Friday and Cyber week sales I picked up the Dell Inspiron https://deals.dell.com/en-us/productdetail/3jn8

The Surface Pro 7, i7/16GB/256GB bundle with type cover was too good a deal to pass up. As well I grabbed the Surface Go 8GB/128GB SSD at $399 from Staples last night as the Microsoft store, Best Buy and all the other major stores were sold out and Staples was the only store that had any left.

I hope everyone's shopping week for Black Friday and Cyber Monday was as fruitful as mine. Then I'll be selling my perfect shape but five year old Dell 27" All in One, My Surface Pro 4 with Docking station, type cover, Otter box, three power supplies, and adapters, and my Amazon tablets as they just can't run the programs and Apps I want. I'm cleaning out all my parts and tech toys and getting down to only what I perceive as needs and no more multiple items because I got a good deal. We still have our Fire TV systems and echo dots. We're also in the middle of updating the new home's kitchen, carpet, and just got finished with paint. Love Colorado!

[frankgibbons]

On 12/3/2019 at 3:53 PM, RV_ said:

Frank,

You've lost me.

Frank you've lost me. Microsoft popularity is drowning? Howso?

Actually I was pointing out the Microsoft mobile market. Not the computer popularity. Because Microsoft has a strong hold in the computer market because of their worldwide popular software Microsoft windows.

[RV_]

Frank,

That's two year old news as Microsoft sold Lumia and got out of the phone market two years ago. We've been using Android phones, which now have 75% of the mobile phone market. The point of the whole thread was that Microsoft is now building two devices using Android, the Duo Microsoft Android phone, due out later this year which is a Microsoft phone, first in three years, by then, but will run Android. And the Neo which I'm not interested in.

Mobile devices include tablets which MS where is not losing ground but gaining because their Surface tablets run full Windows 10, and Windows programs as well as Apps. Apple has gone from market leader to 25% or less cell phone market share, and the Surface mobile tablets are beginning to gain market share over Apple iPads.

And of course based on the dissatisfaction with all the bugs in iOS and the MacOS, and little innovation which I cover in another article I just posted by Adrian Kingsley-Hughes here:

Notice I did not say Apple is Drowning, just passed along facts Apple users already know. That author was the pro Apple author who used it all himself, and urged us to switch and try Apple for years.

Edited December 8, 2019 by RV_

[Darryl&Rita]

From Bill Gates, himself. How even a great company can be distracted. 

[RV_]

Amen Darryl, good article, thanks. Microsoft coulda shoulda woulda - just like the TELCOs owned the Internet with dial up and refused to foot the cost of fiber to the home, and cable took over. We're approaching a new era as Space X continues to launch what is now a expected to be a constellation of ~ 12k LEO minisats. Gates tried the Sat idea too investing in Teledesic in the waning few years of the last milenium:

" Teledesic was notable for gaining early funding from cellular pioneer Craig McCaw, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, and Saudi prince Alwaleed bin Talal,^[4] and for achieving a radio frequency spectrum allocation in the Ka-band for non-geostationary fixed satellite services." Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teledesic

I decided to go all in again and bought a new Dell 27" touch screen Inspiron 7000 i5/16GB/128GB SSD BOOT DRIVE, And a 1TB storage drive - Also a Surface Pro 7, black, with black typecover, i7/16GB RAM/256GB SSD, AND a Surface GO 8GB RAM/128GB SSD. Unlike my previous Surface tablets starting in Jan 2013 with a used Surface RT, and a Pro 3, then a Pro 4, both Factory refurbs with warranty, and a refurb Dell 2020 all with one and two year factory warranty, this time I bought new. Why? Because the slow down from the fixes for pre-generation 8 Intel processors from Spectre and Meltdown are not present in the 10th Gen processors which all of these are now. I still have the Surface Pro 4/i7/8GB/256GB SSD. However prior to the Pro 6 and Pro 7 the processors were dual core. The Newest Pro 7 10th generation i7 quad core machines are about twice as fast as the Pro 6 i7 quad core machines.

When they start selling the Microsoft duo dual screen hinged phablet I'm getting one too. My Motorola Z3 started acting up so I picked up the Z4 to tide me over until the duo debuts in late 2020. It will be using the Android operating system with a Microsoft touch. Yay! And they seem to have overcome their update stumbles of the past year for their Windows OS. For what I now do on my systems I can't see much difference between the i5 and i7. And I dropped from the 2k screen to the 1080p touch screen. I do all my watching on the 4k Vizio 65" P Quantum in the living room and the 4k M-Series 65" and Vizio 4k D series 43" bedroom set. It's been a great year and as soon as we put in the new carpet we can totally unpack the boxes and settle in. Just got through updating and painting the inside in grays and updating our Ring security systems with a total of six cams, two the battery spotlight cams with sirens. Everything set up easily albeit they took the last month to set up all the electronics.

So we're happy with Microsoft again, and love living in Colorado. We will re-evaluate next year and decide about which Tesla, and if we want to stay here for good. Regardless I'm selling about 3/4s of my toys, and glad for it. Now that were approaching 70, I'm 67, I'm so glad we fulltimed in our mid 40s for seven years. I could not do now what I did then physically. Life has a way of working out just fine.

Safe travels, and Happy Holidays!

Edited December 14, 2019 by RV_