I followed Twitter with interest today as Microsoft laid out their new Windows 10 wares.
Seeing how the long awaited Lumia flagship mobiles, the Microsoft Lumia 950 and 950 XL were the main event, it was strange that Microsoft chose to gear up the press for their other tech announcements.
Having seen Microsoft's exciting new Surface Pro 4 and superb Surface Book, I can understand why these devices stole the show.
The tech media seem to be very pleased with these laptop/tablet devices, and the poor Lumia 950 has had to take a back seat.
I am excited about these devices, even if I'll never stump up the cash to buy one - They are likely to be costly, and let's face it, you can do as much with less, even though it isn't anywhere near as cool.
What about the new flagship phone?
I'm glad that Microsoft don't produce mobiles and then cast rumours to the wind about a smaller or larger version some months after launch: It's quite clear, the Lumia 950 comes in a standard size, or the XL size.
Mobile Fun Tweeted that the Microsoft Lumia 950 will cost £450 unlocked in the UK - which is a bloody good price for this phone.
There had been rumours a few weeks ago that Microsoft would "charge more than the iPhone 6 for the Lumia 950", which I thought was a crazy pricing strategy.
Flagship mobiles have rapidly increased in price over the past three years: Nobody should have to pay more than £500 for a mobile phone in this day and age, yet prices for the latest models frequently exceed this figure by a few hundred pounds.
Microsoft would have been silly to expect anyone to pay a huge amount of cash for a phone that runs an operating system that is found only on around 2-3% of all smartphones globally. Only BlackBerry seem to think that it's still ok for them to charge a fortune for their dated hardware (I'm still waiting to see what eye-watering price they pin on their PRIV Android/BlackBerry slider phone).
I also learned that only the AT&T network in the USA will be stocking the Lumia 950 and 950 XL, which is a big shock - Here in the UK, Vodafone, O2 and EE all Tweeted that they will be stocking the Lumia 950 (at least). We are lucky to have such networks here in the UK, with much better pricing than our US counterparts.
Are these devices enough to make the world ditch Apple and Android? No. Not a chance.
But, there is no reason why the continual push of Windows 10 can't hook customers in. After all, the increasing insecurity of Android must surely (hopefully?) be making some customers reconsider their blinkered choice of smartphone.
Within a few years, most PCs will be running Windows 10, and given that Windows 10 Mobile could make integration a lot easier for individuals and businesses, the ubiquity may be just what Microsoft has sorely needed for many years.
As for whether the Microsoft Lumia 950 and 950 XL are the right mobiles to boost Microsoft, I don't agree that they are. They are more of a token gesture, but at least they are the pioneers of the Windows 10 movement into device integration.
Who knows, maybe since BlackBerry disappeared from the radar, businesses might consider Windows 10 devices over these dated solutions.
