Is Microsoft building Windows Phone 8 handsets ?

Microsoft has been known for being a software company, so much so that we forget that they are behind one of the most popular hardware devices today which is the Xbox 360 and the Kinect.

Microsoft changed our perception by introducing the Microsoft Surface, which brings the best of Microsoft engineering in both Software and Hardware into one product. But is the software giant going to stop with tablets ? Or are they also planning on manufacturing their own Windows Phone 8 smartphone ?

Last time the company attempted to create smartphone hardware was with their Kin lineup which wasn't very successful. But their attempt at their first tablet with the Microsoft Surface shows great promise.


Financial analysts Rick Sherlund, had the following to say in this regard;

Separately, our industry sources tell us that Microsoft may be working with a contract manufacturer to develop their own handset for Windows Phone 8. It is unclear to us whether this would be a reference platform or whether this may be a go-to market Microsoft branded handset. We would not be surprised if Microsoft were to decide to bring their own handset to market next year given that Microsoft has decided to bring to market their own Windows 8 ‘Surface’ tablet/PC products.

While the statement suggests that this may in fact turn out to be a reference platform, we find it hard to believe that Microsoft will invest in research and development for one reference model.

The other matter is Microsoft partnership with Nokia. A result which has made Nokia take a role of similar to a hardware division of Microsoft in designing the company’s Windows Phones. Could it mean that the close relationship between Microsoft and Nokia could result in Nokia building a Microsoft Windows Phone ?

This could be a similar strategy to the one followed by Google who has used Samsung to manufacture a Google designed device.

With the continuous growing popularity of smartphones and the success of companies like Apple and Samsung, it isn't surprising that Microsoft would be considering manufacturing their own hardware. Especially since those two companies combined account for over 50% of the market share.

As Windows Phone is still a growing platform, it will be difficult for Microsoft to take a chance on turning OEMs away from their platform. Especially if Microsoft chooses to compete against OEMs.

If Microsoft is planning to build their own device, I hope they use a manufacturer like Nokia to build a reference device similar to the Nexus series from Google.

source – PhoneArena