Microsoft is apparently working on a new Windows 10 Mobile device for 2017; Surface Phone expected in 2019

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By tech2 News Staff /  09 Mar 2017 , 17:03

Microsoft may be working on a new Windows Phone device for the year. While not the much-awaited Surface Phone, this device is expected to be a regular Windows 10 Mobile-based smartphone.

The new device, which is expected towards the end of this year, is said to be just like the regular Windows Phone devices that a fractional minority of the smartphone world still uses today.

The new phone is not expected to feature the ARM compatible version of Windows 10 or support Win32 Windows Store apps, reports Softpedia.

Softpedia points to various German sources which also suggest that a Windows 10 Mobile-based device is coming this year and that a Surface Phone with an ARM-compatible version of Windows 10 will come around 2019.

These are rumours of course, and we can’t see why Microsoft is even working on Windows 10 Moble devices even today. Microsoft has lost so much market-share in the smartphone space that the sales figures border on insignificant.

Microsoft fans still hold hope for the Surface phone, and to be fair, there’s no reason not to. The Surface lineup is showing a lot of promise even today, with the Surface Pro 4, the Surface Book and the Surface Studio together forming a compelling collection of elegant and unique computing options.

One can only hope that the Surface Phone meets these expectations.

WhatsApp announced staged rollout of Video Calling feature for everyone in coming weeks

By tech2 News Staff /  15 Nov 2016 , 13:38

WhatsApp will start the roll-out of ‘Video Calling’ in coming weeks in stages. The company was working on the video calling featured behind in closed beta test since last 4-5 months. It launched the features as a hidden feature for Android Beta users last month and we tried the quality and reliability of the feature as soon as it was rolled out. This rollout will be for everyone across Android, iPhone and Windows Phone devices.

WhatsApp video calling

The company detailed that the feature has been frequently requested by users all across the world. This comes as a natural step in the feature evolution for WhatsApp after the introduction to Group Chats, Voice calling and most recently the launch of web and Windows client for users. WhatsApp users can converse with each other using the feature without having to go to any other VoIP platform like Skype or Viber.

Mr. Neeraj Arora, Head of Business, WhatsApp and Mr. Manpreet Singh
Image Credit: WhatsApp

“Video calling is one of the most requested features from people in India. We’re proud to have the opportunity to launch this feature in India, where we now have 160 million users, and we look forward to seeing people use WhatsApp to talk to their friends and loved ones face to face,” added Jan Koum, CEO and Co-Founder for WhatsApp. The company is working on additional features like ‘Two-Step Verification‘, GIF search inside the app and a new Snapchat ‘Snaps’ like ‘Status’ feature that will allow users to share distructable images or videos to the contact list or individual WhatsApp contacts.