Microsoft prepping Continuity-like features for Windows 10 alongside new flagship handsets - report
Just over a year after closing its acquisition of Nokia's phone division, Microsoft is reportedly set to reenter the high-end handset space with a pair of new Lumia devices that will feature powerful internals and carry the mobile banner for Windows 10.
Microsoft's Lumia device lineup currently lacks a high-end flagship.
The new devices --?said to be codenamed "Cityman" and "Talkman" --?will follow the "phablet" trend with high-resolution displays measuring 5.7 and 5.2 inches, respectively. Qualcomm has been tabbed to supply 64-bit Snapdragon processors for the handsets, according to Unleash The Phones.
The larger Cityman could ship with an 8-core processor, 3 gigabytes of RAM, 32 gigabytes of storage, a 20-megapixel rear camera, a 5-megapixel front-facing camera, and a removable 3,300 mAh battery. Users will be able to expand the internal memory with a microSD card.
Talkman, meanwhile, would step down to a six-core processor and 3,000 mAh battery while keeping other specifications the same.
Rumored for both phones is a new tri-tone flash module for the rear camera, sporting three LEDs. Apple's True Tone flash --?introduced with the iPhone 5s and refined in the iPhone 6 --?uses two LEDs.
Microsoft is also said to be planning a new feature for Windows 10 that would operate in much the same manner as Apple's Continuity, allowing users to place and receive calls or carry on SMS conversations via their computer. There is no word on whether Microsoft intends to introduce other desktop-to-mobile features a la Handoff or AirDrop.
Last week, Microsoft announced plans to entice iOS developers to Windows 10 by offering support for Objective C. A dearth of high-quality third-party apps has plagued Windows Phone since its release.
Microsoft's Lumia device lineup currently lacks a high-end flagship.
The new devices --?said to be codenamed "Cityman" and "Talkman" --?will follow the "phablet" trend with high-resolution displays measuring 5.7 and 5.2 inches, respectively. Qualcomm has been tabbed to supply 64-bit Snapdragon processors for the handsets, according to Unleash The Phones.
The larger Cityman could ship with an 8-core processor, 3 gigabytes of RAM, 32 gigabytes of storage, a 20-megapixel rear camera, a 5-megapixel front-facing camera, and a removable 3,300 mAh battery. Users will be able to expand the internal memory with a microSD card.
Talkman, meanwhile, would step down to a six-core processor and 3,000 mAh battery while keeping other specifications the same.
Rumored for both phones is a new tri-tone flash module for the rear camera, sporting three LEDs. Apple's True Tone flash --?introduced with the iPhone 5s and refined in the iPhone 6 --?uses two LEDs.
Microsoft is also said to be planning a new feature for Windows 10 that would operate in much the same manner as Apple's Continuity, allowing users to place and receive calls or carry on SMS conversations via their computer. There is no word on whether Microsoft intends to introduce other desktop-to-mobile features a la Handoff or AirDrop.
Last week, Microsoft announced plans to entice iOS developers to Windows 10 by offering support for Objective C. A dearth of high-quality third-party apps has plagued Windows Phone since its release.
Comments
The problem they'll have is their worthless OEM's. You'll have thousands of idiots wanting to know why this doesn't work on their HP Stream 11's.
Woohoo- Microsoft bringing you yesterday's flagship features, tomorrow!
The problem they'll have is their worthless OEM's. You'll have thousands of idiots wanting to know why this doesn't work on their HP Stream 11's.
You'll have thousands of smart people asking why it doesn't work on their HP Stream. Out of something like 5 computers I've attempted to use their Miracast Airplay imitation, 4 didn't have the right video card or network card or whatever, and the one tablet that did, got stuck in phase 2 pairing.
Of course these days continuity makes sense but it took Apple to show the way for M$ and Android. Of course the competition will never give Apple any recognition as usual.
Can't say a lot for the Windows cow, but Windows Phone is done. It was done in its first year when consumers decided they didn't care about it.
And they still don't. "Flagship" phones won't change anything when the platform itself is a dud. It's a redundant platform that is an anomaly beside both Apple and Google, which, between them, cover all the bases in every market.
The only way to make a real dent is to change the game completely like Apple did in 2007. Something totally mind-blowing which will chart the road ahead *for everyone else*.
And that isn't happening. Because it isn't in Microsoft's DNA.
Ballmer's replacement is a company peon that is the product of Microsoft's culture (or lack thereof.) What they needed was fresh, outside vision. Something totally radical.
Can't say a lot for the Windows cow, but Windows Phone is done. It was done in its first year when consumers decided they didn't care about it.
I gave up on Windows Phone after they abandoned all the Windows 6 users and the environment
Windows Mobile may have sucked, but it had an app environment and some very good apps
Oh look, Microcrap is bringing you the latest and greatest in mobile-to-desktop collaborative technologies, a year late! And where have I seen this before, hmmm, let me think, it's on the tip of my tongue... I think it was a company named after the fruit of creation...
So let's see, they're bringing out a Continuity rip-off, a Mission Control rip-off, and marketing it all as state-of-the-art and game-changing! What else am I missing? Probably quite a bit...
This just makes me more and more pleased with my decision to switch to ? 5 years ago, I switched to the innovation leader, and not some god damned copycat, wanna-be company.
Microsoft Windows Continuity like feature...Didn't know MS now is follower. Who still uses Windows at home? I moved to Mac in 2011 and never look back.
Well said. Microsoft are destined to be a footnote in tech history.
Of course these days continuity makes sense but it took Apple to show the way for M$ and Android. Of course the competition will never give Apple any recognition as usual.
you do know that you can use a PC as a Bluetooth headset to place and answer calls from the desktop since windows vista, right? You could even answer your phone with a MAC with Phone Amego for ages - It is part of the BT stack. Also, Mighty Text and DeskSMS has been around for like 3 years now - Apple simply blocked the iOS implementation. Only thing Apple did was bake these features into the OS
Oh look, Microcrap is bringing you the latest and greatest in mobile-to-desktop collaborative technologies, a year late! And where have I seen this before, hmmm, let me think, it's on the tip of my tongue... I think it was a company named after the fruit of creation...
So let's see, they're bringing out a Continuity rip-off, a Mission Control rip-off, and marketing it all as state-of-the-art and game-changing! What else am I missing? Probably quite a bit...
This just makes me more and more pleased with my decision to switch to ? 5 years ago, I switched to the innovation leader, and not some god damned copycat, wanna-be company.
But go over to The Verge and their phalanx of Microsoftian fanboys will all insist "what a masterstroke"!
One flash module good, duo tone better, so we are going to have... wait for it... 3 flash sources. This reminds me of The Onion gillette mkIII parody
Spot on lol. The Verge never disappoints a Mac fan when a good laugh is needed. Personally I far prefer Ars Technica for my tech feed.
Funny how you wave off the little feature called Continuity as 'only thing Apple did...' How come neither Microsoft nor Google bothered doing it then, earlier, considering both companies have been in the mobile market longer than Apple? But Continuity is only one shoe, the other being Handoff. To make it really useful Apple also had to just bake that in to iOS as well... And of course being able to start replying to an SMS or a mail on your iPhone and then switching over to complete them on a Mac isn't really that big a deal... And given Apple's track record of excesses they even made handoff in to a framework so app developers can do the same for their own apps... Oh not just app developers even web developers! Gosh...
Like a wise man once said, first is easy, right is hard...
Apple has been in a position to do this for years, with Darwin at the core of both iOS and OS X and now also the Apple Watch, but Apple isn't taking advantage of the potential,
M$ also showed great examples of how a touch UI and stylus are complementary.
M$ under the current CEO is turning into a very different company from what M$ used to be under Gates and Ballmer.
A lot of what M$ does right now (aside from some of the cloud shit) totally makes sense conceptually, except until they reengineer significant aspects of the Windows architecture the OS still sucks.
Meanwhile Apple with a fundamentally great OS goes to great lengths to Windows-ize OS X, castrate or kill Pro features and apps, and turn itself into a toy/consumer company because that's where the profits are right now.
Apple forgets that a product line without growth path is a dead end, and that spells death with a certain delay. There's a reason Jobs always had for each product line a pro and a consumer segment.
Since Snow Leopard the OS X Server product is useful at best as a home/toy server; but no longer for enterprise/pro/corporate use. Then the death of any meaningful server/rack-mount-adaptable hardware, then the death of Aperture, the departure of the Aperture/Final Cut products, the disappearance of WebObjects, Shake...
Apple currently follows the path of WordPerfect and other companies which didn't understand how "non profitable" components of their business were key to the case of buying any of their products in the long run.
This is not totally accurate, as anyone who does any research into the subject will easily find. Microsoft's proposed Continuum for Phones (which I believe is what the author of this article is talking about) will not just allow users to view mobile content on their PC, but will actually alter the mobile OS to work with a mouse and keyboard when they are connected, allowing the user to use a phone as they would a desktop. And for those of you who are wondering, yes you can also connect it to a larger screen. Microsoft doesn't expect you to attempt to do any sort of serious work on a 4 inch smartphone. That would just be ridiculous
Well said. Microsoft are destined to be a footnote in tech history.
C'mon, mate.... ....even if they were to crash and burn as fast as something of their size and inertia could (which, I sense, isn't going to happen under Nadella), they still rate a couple of chapters... ....not all paens of praise chapters, but a hugely important and impactful company in the personal computing revolution and all that's followed.
MS and Apple are certainly the most important since IBM. With Amazon and Google a tier below for now.
And whether, facebook and others still on an up curve join them over time is yet to be seen. But the Dells, HP (and Compaq), etc. - and more recently Samsung - are looking like the footnote companies - along with Lotus, Ashton-Tate, WordPerfect, and others.
And certainly I've missed some that belong here....
People should watch the keynote. While there's a lot of stuff that M$ is copying from Apple, there's also a bunch of things where they take the lead, e.g. adaptability of the GUI where they use the same OS on desktop, tablets, phones, IOT, hololens with the UI of universal apps adapting to the device it's running on, and phones dockable to big screen and keyboard and apps adjusting to a desktop type UI.
Apple has been in a position to do this for years, with Darwin at the core of both iOS and OS X and now also the Apple Watch, but Apple isn't taking advantage of the potential,
M$ also showed great examples of how a touch UI and stylus are complementary.
M$ under the current CEO is turning into a very different company from what M$ used to be under Gates and Ballmer.
A lot of what M$ does right now (aside from some of the cloud shit) totally makes sense conceptually, except until they reengineer significant aspects of the Windows architecture the OS still sucks.
Meanwhile Apple with a fundamentally great OS goes to great lengths to Windows-ize OS X, castrate or kill Pro features and apps, and turn itself into a toy/consumer company because that's where the profits are right now.
Apple forgets that a product line without growth path is a dead end, and that spells death with a certain delay. There's a reason Jobs always had for each product line a pro and a consumer segment.
Since Snow Leopard the OS X Server product is useful at best as a home/toy server; but no longer for enterprise/pro/corporate use. Then the death of any meaningful server/rack-mount-adaptable hardware, then the death of Aperture, the departure of the Aperture/Final Cut products, the disappearance of WebObjects, Shake...
Apple currently follows the path of WordPerfect and other companies which didn't understand how "non profitable" components of their business were key to the case of buying any of their products in the long run.
I watched and I was impressed myself. A phone that that can morph into a full PC (Monitor, KB, mouse) and have the mobile versions of the apps become the desktop ones without (it's claimed) missing a beat would be one very cool trick if they pull it off. And as many, many posters here have noted, the processors in phones are getting powerful enough to do exactly that.
I also wonder if Apple can stay out of the AR/VR space much longer. Some big implications do seem possible down the road.
And as a gearhead groupie follower of the industry since the IBM System 360 days, while the watch guts are interesting and innovative tech, I found the totality of the news coming out of Build more engaging than pictures of celebrities wearing solid gold gee-gaws that do nothing but scream conspicuous consumption.
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I'll disagree on a few points though. While - along with world markets and especially China - the business market is a major strategic target for Apple, OS X Server was never going to become a big Enterprise or even SMB segment of IT or Apple.
Along with iPhones becoming the de facto mobile phone choice in business and iPads carving out all kinds of vertical niches, when you look at the new IBM/Apple Enterprise Apps, OTOH, you're seeing Apple finally claim significant space in the biz world that will potentially be big to huge and in areas where it will be hard to displace them as both Android and Windows are far behind on tablet ecosystem.
Which is why I believe the iPad Pro is likely a real product we'll see soon.
The loss of Aperture and others is lamentable, but they also don't qualify as strategic, and if the trends in these spaces were running against Apple, they have plenty of other new places to focus, so cutting bait may have made more than short-term bean-counting sense. I'm only conjecturing of course, and easy for me to say as I don't use those products.
But consider that Adobe's Lightroom development garnered them revenue on both the Win and Mac platforms while Aperture's limited to Macs, so harder to justify the expenditures to keep up on an inherently smaller user base.
Continuum doesn't just bring "continuity-like" features, it brings an entire desktop experience from the smartphone allowing it to run any Windows software that works on ARM hardware. So while it's not full x86 Windows, it still has quite a bit of desktop software such as Office.
I like how this article is so intentionally misleading though. It reminds me of the good old days
It's also nice to see some good competition from Microsoft after so many years. Keep up the good work Satya!
Oh boy oh boy OH BOY! Now, if they'd only bring Ballmer back...
;>)
Cheers,
Cameron