Microsoft will reveal details about lumia 650, including pricing and availability, through their official blog. The news is somewhat expected as the phone is not exactly worthy of a press event and Microsoft is likely going to keep their presence at Mobile World Congress low-key.
As reported on Tech Times, The Microsoft Lumia 650 will be a mid-range smartphone, and is expected to feature a 5-inch 720p display. It will be powered by a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 210 chip and 1 GB of RAM. The handset will include 8 GB of internal storage, which can be expanded via its microSD slot. It will ship with an 8-megapixel rear camera, 5-megapixel front-facing shooter and 2,000 mAh removable battery. The smartphone will have a premium metal frame and choice of Matte White or Matte Black color options.
The wireless charging won't be included, but this could change before the smartphone's 1 February unveiling. The specifications and Lumia numbering indicate it's designed as a budget Windows 10 phone.
Window Central noted that all of the companies focused on building their next-generation OS from the ground up to compete with iOS and Android. BlackBerry began work on its touch-focused BlackBerry 10 OS, which would power the BlackBerry Z10 and Q10. Palm dropped its aging Palm OS for webOS, which would power the company's Pre smartphones and TouchPad tablet.
Palm and BlackBerry were never able to gain traction competing with iOS and Android. Nokia showed signs of success, as its Lumia series quickly became the face of Windows Phone even though licensees like Samsung, HTC and LG all offered handsets running Microsoft's new smartphone OS.
As quoted on Business Insider that The device is thought to be the last Microsoft smartphone to use Lumia branding, at least for 2016. The name first debuted on Nokia's Windows Phone 7 devices and has persisted through the years and Microsoft's acquisition of Nokia to remain in use today. The company is expected to drop the brand later this year though and begin to launch new flagship phones under its existing Surface name, the premium brand used for its convertible tablets.
For now, this remains nothing more than speculation. Microsoft is understood to be undergoing a restructuring of its devices business and what that means for the brands remains unclear. Whether it be the last Lumia or not, the 650 looks set to launch on February 1, making it the fourth first-party Windows 10 Mobile device on the market.
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