We need a Surface Phone for flagship

[Sam_Cook]

I could be wrong, but I don't think that the post was meant to imply that at all.

They were just pointing out that the bar for the first tier may have to be set a little lower. I assume they then meant that the other developed tiers would be available to all. I personally would have used the term developed, rather than US/UK.

I would be aghast if that post really was the most offensive thing that you had ever seen, as your comment alludes. Discrimination is a different thing entirely, and I think the use of the term is misplaced.

In terms of your comment on the surface phone, I really do agree. Lets give the Lumia brand some kudos back, and see it represent flagships and entry level.

While I wrote US/UK, I did intend developed nations as a whole.. I more or less jotted all of my immediate thoughts towards WP strategy down and didn't really edit for clarity before posting.

While I won't try and define what discrimination means to someone else, I have been the victim of discrimination more than once and hope that my post did not read in a discriminatory fashion.

And I agree - back when WP were still being written about in tech blogs, the Lumia line was a standout and was very recognizable, just like the Galaxy line is to Samsung. It would be a misstep to move away from it into something that might not catch on (Zune, anyone?)

 

[Sam_Cook]

Lumia One would be cool and fit within the product lines but would make revisions tricky. Like what will the next Xbox be?

Push come to shove they could go the motorola route and simply add the release year to distinguish which generation the device is. ie Lumia OneNote (2015) - 1st generation vs Lumia OneNote (2016) - 2nd generation.

 

[michail71]

My original intent in this thread was to really say we needed something better than these numbering schemes that make you feel like you're buying a video card. "Surface Phone" was just a suggestion for debate. The bigger number is not necessarily better either. It's more complicated than BMW's naming conventions.

To the general public "Lumia 940 XL" sounds like a generic hear today, gone tomorrow handset that the maker doesn't care to put much effort into marketing. It does not stand out in the marketplace.

BMW can do this because, well they have the history and reputation. NVIDIA and ATI can do it because there are no other choices and they can fool customers into buying lower end products because it has a bigger number than their last card.

 

[michail71]

Push come to shove they could go the motorola route and simply add the release year to distinguish which generation the device is. ie Lumia OneNote (2015) - 1st generation vs Lumia OneNote (2016) - 2nd generation.

I like that but the Note may be too Samsung like for legal.

Motorola's Razor line was very well known too. That was the phone to have at one point.

 

[peachy001]

While I wrote US/UK, I did intend developed nations as a whole.. I more or less jotted all of my immediate thoughts towards WP strategy down and didn't really edit for clarity before posting.

While I won't try and define what discrimination means to someone else, I have been the victim of discrimination more than once....... (Zune, anyone?)

Hi Sam, I pretty much meant entirely what you have said in the response to me and the other one.

Less devices would help. But, possibly release a Lumia Talkman, or Lumia Cityman. Obviously not using those names, but keep Lumia in there.

 

[John Snow4]

FFS i have been waiting for a Surface Phone for so damn long.

just give me the 6+ with 22 degree chamfered edges in VaporMG in the original dark grey or the Surface pro 3 light grey and call it a Day.

off topic, but make windows 10 phone not suck while your at it, WP 8.1 FTW

im sorry but the Asus Zenphone 2 looks nothing like the Surface 3 at ALL

 

[Jezza]

Whilst I can't say for sure that naming the flagship after the surface brand is the best idea, it certainly isn't a bad one. Regardless, Windows Phones could really benefit from a relaunch in conjunction with Windows 10 and by adapting the Lumia brand to a lower end model and adopting a new name (not necessarily Surface) for maybe two high-end or flagship phone(s).

Lumia over time for non-WP users has kind of blended in and doesn't really have much pull to gain the interest of new users, as such it needs to draw some attention. A new look, a new updated OS, a new name and a genius marketing strategy could help to gain some momentum.

 

[salazka]

not really. think of Lumia as the entry and mid range phones, and Surface as the flagship device. the equivalent of the iPhone and S series from Microsoft. Surface Pro has a great reputation in business circles and in the market in general, it would make sense that these flagship phones are geared towards the user who wants the bleeding edge of Microsoft Mobile and the high end quality of the Surface series.

 

[bo_woods]

And in plus these Microsoft flagships should represent a brand new chapter in Smartphones, and not be a continuation of Nokia's broken, and fragmented Lumia line. It's just too far gone.
Lumia should just continue as what it currently is as of now. A big web of budget phones hitting every price point.

Surface tablets, and Surface phones should tackle the premium tablet/laptop & Smartphone industries

MS's ecosystem will be nice n clean

Microsoft
-----
Surface
Surface Phone
Xbox

All running windows

All using MS services (office, MS Music, MS Video, Cortana)
--------
And Lumia will just be on the side as their budget WP business treated like an OEM that happens to work closely with MS... And maybe even eventually Lumia can just be sold off, but be put under terms to make them continue making good windows phones for the foreseeable future ( just to keep em around long enough where windows phone will have a large plethora of other OEM's hitting the budget sector). They probably should just all around stay working with MS.... (almost like HTC & MS, ignoring the fact that HTC makes many more androids)

 

[Hans Swolfs]

now that Lumia is getting known amongst the entire world, it would be a bad decision to rebrand it to Surface Phone (although I like the sound of it )...
Here in Belgium (small market probably) I see more and more Lumia ads, Lumia promotions from phone warehouses and so on...

So keep Lumia, but like has been said here, make the numbering straight forward :
low number : lower specs
higher number : higher specs
XL : larger format screen

Just my 2 cents

 

[EMINENT 1]

Guess what? I spoke to an att rep the other day and I mentioned I had a WP and we talked about some of their offerings and guess what she called it? Lumina. WTF!? I wanted to hang up on her, but I was talking to her in person.

So we finally have a rebrand of Xbox to Groove. Not the best, but better if Xbox was really confusing people.

Now we have the Surface Hub. Two form factors and completely different devices. The next logical progression is Surface Phone. The Surface brand is gaining a lot of traction on not only the Surface forums, but all other forums i've noticed recently. Lumia may be good in your country, but it is tarnished in the states, it's attributed to low budget devices and people that are unable to pronounce it. It just needs to go...

 

[CapoFantasma97]

Just saying, the world isn't all around US.
Surface isn't a strong brand in the world, while Lumia is, and it's getting more and more attention and market share.
Also, like branding XBox both as the console and the "entertaining services" was confusing people, a phone branded Surface would confuse the few people who knows or cares about Surface devices. Surface is the brand for the PC-tablets, not for phones.
Guess what, some people with low brand lumias like it, and look for high end LUMIAS.

At the moment the names of lumias aren't too confusing, even if too many low end were made in such low time.
People knows that a 520 is lower than a 830.
People understand that XL stands for big screen after they see it, while the --5 was somewhat confusing, even if was good for variants of a phone.

Let's return back to Surface Phone.
Let's say you are sure it won't be confusing because of "Phone" at the end.
A non-geeky guy questions him/herself "a Surface is a phone or a tablet?", and may avoid for example one of the 2 types of devices because he/she doesn't know Surface is a phone or a PC-tablet too.

 

[Cage Ata]

I'd love a surface phone but I agree with the above comments. It's confusing. Lumia is phone and surface is tablet, however there is no reason they couldn't design a flagship with the aesthetics of surface. Personally that would be one nifty phone

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