Microsoft Mobile was a subsidiary of Microsoft involved in the development and manufacturing of mobile phones. Based in Espoo, Finland, it was established in 2014 following the acquisition of Nokia’s Devices and Services division.
Hardware products
Lumia
Lumia was a line of touchscreen smartphones and, previously, tablet computers, introduced in November 2011. All Lumia mobile telephones run on the Windows Phone operating system. The only Lumia tablet Lumia 2520, running Windows RT, was introduced in November 2013 and has been discontinued. The Lumia is Microsoft’s flagship phone portfolio.
In October 2014, Microsoft officially announced that it would phase out the Nokia brand in its promotion and production of Lumia smartphones, and that future Lumia models would be branded solely with the name and logo of Microsoft. In November 2014, Microsoft announced its first self-branded phone, Microsoft Lumia 535. Rebranding the Lumia line from “Nokia” to “Microsoft” did not affect sales, though some critics believed that the change might influence consumers’ decisions due to Nokia being an established phone brand, compared to Microsoft.
In October 2015, Microsoft announced the first Lumia devices running on Windows 10 Mobile platform, the Lumia 950, Lumia 950 XL, and Lumia 550. In addition. Microsoft stated that most Lumia devices would be able to upgrade from Windows Phone 8/8.1 to Windows 10, from December 2015.
In October 2017, Microsoft executive Joe Belfiore revealed that Microsoft would no longer develop new phone hardware, and that Windows 10 Mobile would only receive maintenance releases and patches from then on, citing its low market share and Microsoft’s abandonment of its mobile business.
For its Microsoft Lumia series Microsoft Mobile created such exclusive content as the Lumia imaging apps (that make use of the PureView technology on higher end Lumia devices) and new software was often tested through the Lumia Beta Apps.
Nokia X
In mid-September 2013, a media report revealed that Nokia tested the Android operating system on both its Lumia and Asha hardware. On 11 December 2013, a report showed that development of the Asha-like device, codenamed “Normandy“, was continuing, despite the finalisation of Nokia’s acquisition by Microsoft. In February 2014, in Barcelona, Spain, the Nokia X family was unveiled at Mobile World Congress. These devices, which were aimed towards emerging markets, run a modified version of Android known as Nokia X Software Platform, which was aligned towards Microsoft services and did not use Google Play Store. In a company memo released in July 2014, it was announced that, as part of cutbacks, Microsoft would end the Asha, Series 40, and X range entirely, in favor of solely producing and encouraging the use of Windows Phone products.
Asha
The Asha series consisted of feature phones and low-end smartphones targeted mainly at emerging markets. The series has a mixture of full-touchscreen, “touch and type”, QWERTY, and traditional T9-keypad devices. Originally, the Asha devices ran on Nokia’s veteran operating system Series 40. Nokia later created the Asha platform as a result of their acquisition of Smarterphone. In May 2013, the Asha 501 became the first device running under the new OS, and all new Ashas since have been running on the new Asha platform. During the July 2014 job cuts and restructuring at Microsoft, these device lines were moved to “maintenance mode”, and would be discontinued, along with Nokia X and Series 40, in favour of solely producing Windows Phone products.
Series 40
Series 40, or S40, was a software platform and user interface (UI) on Nokia‘s broad range of mid-tier feature phones, as well as on some of the Vertu line of luxury phones. It was one of the world’s most widely used mobile phone platforms. On 25 January 2012, Nokia announced that the company had sold over 1.5 billion Series 40 devices.[159] Although S40 has more features than the Series 30 platform, it was not used for smartphones, where Nokia primarily used Windows Phone and, until 2012, Symbian. However, in 2012 and 2013, several Series 40 phones from the Asha line, such as the 308, 309, and 311, were advertised as “smartphones” although they did not support smartphone features like multitasking or a full-fledged HTML browser.
Series 30+
Series 30+ is a software platform and user interface that was used by Microsoft Mobile for its entry-level mobile devices. The first Series 30+ device was the Nokia 130, which had basic features such as a flashlight, FM radio, USB charging, video playback from microSD cards, and Bluetooth and USB connectivity, but no internet access. The Nokia 215, released in 2014, allowed users to browse the internet with Bing and MSN Weather and came pre-installed with Opera Mini.
Series 30
Series 30, or S30, was a software platform and user interface created by Nokia for its entry-level mobile devices. S30 phones are not capable of running Java apps. By mid 2014, Microsoft discontinued S30 for its Nokia-branded mobile devices.
Mobile accessories
Besides phones Microsoft Mobile also produces mobile-phone accessories such as the Bluetooth enabled Treasure Tags. In newer devices Microsoft has bundled the Swedish company Coloud’s headsets as opposed to first-party hardware. In late 2014, Microsoft launched a portable battery charger called Microsoft Portable Power, succeeded by Microsoft Portable Dual Chargers.
Treasure Tag
Treasure Tag, originally Nokia Treasure Tag, is an NFC and Bluetooth enabled keychain companion to Lumia devices. When Treasure Tags are attached to small valuables, such as keys or wallets, the Lumia device can show a map to help locate them.
Treasure Tag Mini, originally Nokia Treasure Tag Mini, was launched by Microsoft in 2014 as a successor to the original Treasure Tag. It added support for iOS and Android (including Nokia X devices). Compared to the original, the Treasure Tag Mini comes in fewer colours, has shorter battery life, lacks NFC capabilities, and has no notification tones.