An unannounced Microsoft smartphone recently showed up at the Bluetooth SIG website, accompanied by listings for the new Lumia 950 and 950 XL smartphones.

The surprise model is referred to as the Microsoft ms1, and there are virtually no details about it… but it’s interesting to note that it’s model number doesn’t look like those for any other recent Microsoft Lumia devices. So maybe it’s not a Lumia device.

microsoft ms1

There have been rumors that the team responsible for Microsoft’s Surface tablets could be working on a Surface phone. It’s not entirely clear where it would fit in the company’s hardware lineup — after all, Microsoft already offers a range of phones including entry-level, mid-range, and premium models.

The upcoming Lumia 950 and 950 XL will also be among the first smartphones to support Continuum, allowing you to dock them and use an external display, mouse, and keyboard to run desktop-style apps.

It’s likely that a Surface phone would offer similar functionality… but it could have a different design and possibly more PC-like hardware. One recent rumor suggests a Surface Phone could have 4GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, and an Intel Atom x3 processor, for instance.

This week Wired published an article profiling Microsoft’s Surface chief Panos Panay on the even of the launch of the Surface Book and Surface Pro 3. That article mentioned a phone prototype… but provided no other details, which led me to wonder if it was actually a Surface phone or just another Lumia product that’s in development.

But at a time when Microsoft has been earning high marks for its smartphone and tablet hardware, maybe it wouldn’t be a big surprise for the company to task the team responsible for those products to work on a phone.

Or maybe we’re reading too much into model number listed on a regulatory agency website.

via WMPowerUser

 

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11 replies on “Microsoft MS1 hits the Bluetooth SIG (maybe a Surface phone?)”

  1. Surface phone is the only way for Microsoft to attract buyers. Android and iOS devices are toys at best, and the market doesn’t need 3 of those toys running the same garbage apps.

    1. Saana is RM-1152 so not so sure on that it could be (M)icrosoft (S)urface 1

      1. I really do hope the suspicions are right. I’ve been needing an upgrade and nothing, available for Sprint, has really been up to par with what I want/need. A Surface phone would definitely entice me back to my Windows Mobile roots (not Windows Phone, but original Windows Mobile). As long as there are primary apps that will allow me certain customizations that I’ve been used to doing on Android, then I have no problem with the lack of app development in the Windows 10 mobile ecosystem.

        1. Pretty sure its going to be in first quarter 2016 after they launch W10M about the time Redstone comes out, expect an amazing device ala surface book

          1. That would be awesome. Part of me hopes that the rumors about LG shipping mass quantities of foldable displays for a “large US software company to compete with Apple and Samsung,” is actually tied to Microsoft (as mentioned in the same rumors). A foldable “surface phone” would be amazing.

          2. Oh, yeah. I’ve seen similar with what Samsung has shown on their Youm announcements.

            I love the idea of having a foldable phone that can help me multitask on the go. Would definitely be sweet to see that sooner than expected.

  2. They won’t use an ATOM X3, but I do remember hearing a rumor that Intel is testing the Core M in smart phone form factor.

    1. it was dumb that they didn’t do it earlier…a 6″ Surface phone that can run native desktop apps would be cool

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