Is the Surface Phone round the corner? Microsoft patents device with surprising features

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella speaks at the Future Decoded conference in Mumbai, India, February 22, 2017. REUTERS/Shailesh Andrade - RTSZQQF

Tech giant Microsoft has made the patent of its Surface Phone public, in a move to build up to the anticipatory launch of the new device.

In an earlier report from Forbes, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella had said the new phones “will not look like the phones that are there today”.

The patent, as reported by The Economic Times, is titled as “Wireless Communication Device” and it talks about a bendable smartphone with antennae, battery, SIM cards and screen connectors split over a hinge to create a dual-winged device.

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No date has been fixed for the Surface Phone yet but it is expected to be out by the fourth quarter of 2017, which, interestingly, happens to be the time when the iPhone 8 and the Samsung Galaxy 8 will hit the market.

Rumours circulating about the iPhone 8 suggest that the device will have a 5.8-inch edge-to-edge OLED screen, enhanced pixel resolution, glass body, with a face recognition that will eliminate the need for a fingerprint sensor or a home button. Also, this time Apple is said to be adding wireless charging capabilities to the iPhone, something that competing tech giant Samsung has done with its phones since 2014.

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Media reports speculating about Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy 8   specifications state that it will be having a 6.3-inch Super AMOLED screen with 4K resolution, 6 GB RAM, dual 13 MP camera and an advanced Snapdragon processor.

The move by Microsoft comes after it reported a two percent drop in Windows Surface revenue owing to product lifecycle transitions. Its phone revenues also dropped to dead zero in the previous quarter.

Meanwhile, Microsoft plans to continue with its cloud expansion policy that is driving exponential growth and resulted in much better profits than expected for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017 ending on June 30.

As of now, there seems to be no way in stopping the Redmond-based tech giant from going experimental with its devices.