Surface Phone, Microsoft’s most important device before launching

The Surface Phone isn’t real yet but it is already proving to be one of the most important devices Microsoft will ever launch.

Microsoft, however, is still upbeat: “Microsoft remains committed to Windows as a platform and will focus our small screen experiences on the emerging 3-in-1 Category.”

At the end of 2016, the Lumia 650 is still the only phone Microsoft has launched this year.

November also marked a year after the release of Windows 10 Mobile alongside the Lumia 950/Lumia 950 XL pairing.

Both those phones were once heralded as a new era for Microsoft devices – but a year on and you can’t buy a Continuum device directly from Microsoft.

The latest leaked specs suggest the Surface Phone is set to come with 6GB of RAM, the most recent Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset and the ability to use laptop-like accessories.

Microsoft did confirm to TechRadar the company plans to “support Lumia phones such as the Lumia 650, Lumia 950, and Lumia 950 XL, and phones from OEM partners like Acer, Alcatel, HP, Trinity, and VAIO.”

With Microsoft focusing directly on 3-in-1 devices, the company has to succeed with the Surface Phone.

Mobile World Congress is the second home for Microsoft – the last two years have seen the announcement of the Lumia 650, Lumia 640, Lumia 640 XL and even the Surface Pro 3 – so it may be we see the Surface Phone before March 2017.