Microsoft’s Next Big Salvo: The Lumia 950 Twins?

Microsoft’s next stab at flagships to stand up to Apple’s and Samsung’s Big Boys

Nokia, after its unbelievably long reign over the mobile phone market, hit a sandbar, called escapism. So convinced were they of their unchallengeable position in the marketplace that they scoffed at the idea of iOS and Android ever being able to trump Symbian. And then reality struck.

The iPhone launched, and gone were plastic keys, phones that were islands unto themselves, bringing in iOS a desktop-like OS, then Android started making waves and then the App Store took birth bringing infinite device capabilities (via mountains of remarkably useful apps).

Nokia’s entire range of products suddenly became dated, and forgotten on store shelves. People formed lines outside Apple and Samsung stores.

Not only did Nokia miss the smartphone boat (with the launch of the iPhone, and then Android), it even convinced itself that the iPhone and these new fangled “smartphones” were going to be damp squibs, and hence stuck to it’s flawed choice basis “market research”. The tide of time put paid to Nokia’s poor decisioning and soon Nokia was struggling to stay afloat. They failed, Nokia hit rock bottom.

Finally, they saw the light and tried to climb onto the smartphone bandwagon. Releasing their first contemporary smartphone, the Lumia 800 more than four years after the launch of the stupendously successful iPhone.

Yet, for all their mistakes, one can never ever accuse Nokia of being complacent — Nokia gave the Lumia series their best shot, releasing twenty five smartphones in less than three years. Somehow, despite some very, very good materials, configurations, designs, colour and hardware, the Lumia series never really caught the fancy of the public — loyal or otherwise. It perhaps had to do with Nokia’s undying love for Windows OS as their go-to OS for all smart devices.

Eventually, Microsoft acquired Nokia’s mobile phone division in 2013, and decided to carry the Lumia torch forward. Microsoft, created a subsidiary named Microsoft Mobiles and retained the Lumia name so as to build on the brand equity and goodwill.

And they’re now going all out to boost sales. They’re putting out some new models soon.

Microsoft has sent out invites for a media event on October 6, which is apparently focused on Windows 10 devices. We believe Microsoft’s going to unveil their long-rumoured flagships — Lumia 950 (codenamed Cityman), and Lumia 950 XL (codenamed Talkman), with both devices showcasing Windows 10 Threshold 1 update.

The rumoured specs for both the devices are quite impressive, however we have conflicting indications about the design scheme. Earlier, sources had suggested that Microsoft will implement an all-metal body, whereas newer sources now point us towards a polycarbonate body.

Looking at the rumoured specs, the smaller sized Lumia 950, is said to carry:

• A 5.2-inch QHD (2560 X 1440p) OLED display and the SoC powering the device is a 64-bit hexacore Qualcomm Snapdragon 808
• 3 GB RAM.
• 32 GB of internal storage. In addition it has a microSD card slot for expandable memory
• Powered by a 3000 mAh removable battery.
• The rear camera is a 20 megapixel PureView with a dual LED flash and seems to be surrounded by a chrome ring
• A 5 megapixel front camera.

The Lumia 950 XL on the other hand, is said to be equipped with bigger hardware:

• A larger 5.7-inch QHD (2560 X 1440p) screen (hence the XL in the name), with OLED display
• A 64-bit octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 chipset which is superior to that of the Lumia 950.
• 3 GB RAM
• 32GB internal storage with a microSD slot for expandable memory
• Powered by a 3,300mAh removable battery.
• The Lumia 950 XL has a 5 megapixel front camera
• The rear camera is same as 950’s in terms of pixels (20 megapixels) however comes with a triple LED flash, which appears as a 1-mm silver ring, immersed in the circumference of the back camera pod.

Both the devices will support dual-SIMs, 4G connectivity, Bluetooth 4.1, Qi wireless charging and the USB Type-C connectors.

Supposedly, both the devices will apparently use enhanced biometric technology in the form of an Iris scanner.

As leaked by a Spanish retailer, the international prices for the Lumia 950 XL and Lumia 950 are expected to be INR 56,000 and INR 50,000 respectively; thus being comparable with the price tags of the 16 GB variants of the iPhone 6s Plus and iPhone 6s respectively.

Microsoft haven’t official said anything about the launch, specs, or even looks of both the devices, so everything remains in amorphous state for now.

Originally published at Chip-Monks.