Currently, the mobile operating system market resembles a duopoly, with Google's Android and Apple's iOS in a league of their own. It wasn't always this way, though. Smartphone enthusiasts will remember that at one time, Nokia's Symbian was the most widely used mobile operating system in the world. Symbian couldn't compete in the touchscreen era, but for a time, Microsoft's Windows Phone looked to be a credible competitor to Android and iOS.
Microsoft acquired Nokia's Devices and Services division in 2014, and Windows Phone was starting to succeed in the budget smartphone market in some countries. However, it all went downhill from there as Windows 10 Mobile — Windows Phone's successor — failed to take off in the market because of various reasons. In 2016, the company discontinued the Lumia smartphone lineup, and we haven't seen a new mobile device from Microsoft since then. It's worth noting, though, that rumors are abound regarding a new ARM-powered Surface device codenamed "Andromeda".
In the past, we've seen many phones leak after being canceled by Microsoft. Probably one of the most notable canceled smartphone leaks was the Nokia McLaren, which had 3D Touch functionality. Now, another prototype of a Windows Phone has shown up in a video, being used alongside the Lumia 950 XL and the Surface Pro 4.
The prototype was called the Lumia Hapanero, and the interesting thing to note is that it supports pen input via the Surface Pen. (It's also worth noting that Microsoft's "Andromeda" device is rumored to have note-taking capabilities.)
The Lumia Hapanero was supposed to be released at Build 2015. It had a Snapdragon 810 system-on-chip with 4GB of RAM. Microsoft was said to be testing two variants of the device: one with a Full HD display, the other with QHD resolution.
In the video, it's obvious that the Surface Pen doesn't work very well on the Lumia Hapanero, but it does indeed work. On the other hand, the Lumia 950 XL doesn't recognize any pen input. (The prototype versions of the Lumia 950 and 950 XL did support pen input, according to leaks.) Of course, the unfinished nature of pen input support doesn't matter as the device will obviously never be released in the market.
The prototype device is powered by an old version of Windows 10 Mobile. The unfortunate thing to note for Windows Mobile fans is that Microsoft has officially confirmed that Windows 10 Mobile won't receive any feature updates in the future.
Seeing the Lumia prototype in a video also reaffirms the "what could have been" question for Windows on mobile. Although it had a lot of potential, Microsoft failed to make the mobile platform competitive against its rivals. Here's hoping that the tech giant learns from its past mistakes to do better in the future.
Earlier this year, the Indian smartphone brand CENTRiC had launched four new budget smartphones – CENTRiC L1, CENTRiC P1, CENTRiC P1 Plus and CENTRiC G1. All these devices are priced under Rs. 10,000 and came with 4G VoLTE support. Now, the company is all set to launch a new smartphone called Centric A1. It is priced at Rs. 10,999 and offers unibody metal design. The smartphone will be available in Metallic Earl Grey, White & Peach Gold, Gold & Peach Gold color options.
Unlike many other smartphones in the budget segment, the CENTRiC A1 packs uncompromised specifications. It sports a 5.5-inch In-cell display with Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) and includes Dragontrail Glass protection on the top. Under the hood, the CENTRiC A1 is powered by a 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 (MSM8937) Octa-core processor coupled with Adreno 505 GPU. It includes 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage that can be expanded additionally up to 256GB via a MicroSD card.
On the rear of the device is a 13MP camera with PDAF, 5P lens, and dual LED flash. There is an 8MP front-facing camera with LED flash and 90-degree Field-of-View for wider selfies. The device supports dual SIM dual standby using the hybrid SIM slot. It is backed by a 3,000mAh non-removable that is rated to give up to 15 hours of talk time and lasts up to 210 hours in standby mode. The CENTRiC A1 also supports Quick Charge 3.0 that can give 4 hours of talk time with just 10 minutes of charging.
The fingerprint sensor is placed on the rear of the device. Connectivity options include 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, A-GPS, FM Radio, 3.5mm headphone jack, and USB Type-C port. It runs on Android 7.1.1 Nougat out of the box, and there is no information about the Android 8.0 Oreo update. It also includes a bunch of sensors including Gyroscope, E-Compass, G-Sensor, Light sensor, Proximity sensor, and Hall sensor.
The CENTRiC A1 measures 152 x 76 x 7.8 mm and weighs 160 grams. Beneath the display are the three capacitive navigation button for back, home, and multitasking (left to right). Let us know, would you be interested in using a smartphone from a relatively new brand. Share your opinion with us by commenting down below.
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