A couple of days ago, famous leaker Evan Blass posted photos of what he suggested to be an Intel-powered Windows Phone and it goes without saying that many of those who clicked them thought it was the Surface Phone.
The Surface Phone is pretty much the most anticipated Windows Phone and is supposed to be Microsoft’s next big thing in mobile that should help reignite interest in the company’s smartphone platform. Given the previous rumors that the Surface Phone could come with x86 architecture, it’s easy to see why so many people believed this was it.
But a new report from Thurrott and citing sources familiar with the phone claims this wasn’t the Surface Phone, but only a project developed by Dell. Information remains rather vague at the moment, and the source says that the shots we’ve seen online might only be renders and not photos of the actual product.
Phablet or small tablet with cellular connectivity
What’s more important, however, is that the device was developed to run on an Intel chip and judging from the photos, it was supposed to come with a companion product like a laptop, which is a sign that Dell wanted to maximize the potential of Windows 10 Mobile and Continuum.
Judging from how big it seems in the photos, the phone was most likely a phablet or a small tablet with cellular connectivity, so a 7-inch display seems very likely.
As for the reasons why the phone was abandoned, very little is known so far, but it’s believed that bringing an Intel chip on phones is still a big challenge that manufacturers are yet to deal with. Cooling an Intel CPU without a fan in such a small body is still super difficult, while offering decent battery life continues to be impossible, especially if the end goal is to run desktop applications.
On the other hand, this project gives hope that someone might at some point actually build an Intel-powered Windows phone and Microsoft could very well be the pioneer in this direction. The Surface Phone is expected to launch next year, but specifics are not available at this moment.
