14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has already surrendered to Android and iOS in the smartphone business, but this doesn’t necessarily mean the company is giving up on mobile entirely.
While it’s investing heavily in Android and iOS apps and services, Microsoft is also said to be working on what’s often being described as a “new mobile device” that could be a modern version of the original Courier prototype.
Coming in the form of a digital notebook device, possibly with mobile capabilities, this new Courier-like Microsoft product has never been confirmed by the firm. Recently, however, Microsoft finally dropped a hint that a device that could be called “Journal” might indeed be prepared, though no other specifics were provided.
Microsoft Journal or Surface Journal
Microsoft watcher WalkingCat discovered some references to a Journal app in the recently-released Whiteboard app. “This is the accessibility title for the Journal application which consists of a left and right page for content creation,” this reference reads.
While this hint doesn’t reveal too many details at first, it does seem to align with Microsoft’s vision pretty nicely, as it’s focused on creators and content creation. Microsoft’s latest products are specifically aimed at creators, and the latest Windows 10 version is named accordingly – Creators Update.
It’s believed that Microsoft could adopt with this device a strategy similar to the one it embraced for Surface. This means the software firm would roll out a premium device with a new form factor and then encourage its partners to expand the ecosystem with their own products based on the same ideas in an attempt to provide potential customers with more choices in various price ranges.
At this point, it’s not yet clear when this new device could see daylight, but 2018 seems to be a likely target for Microsoft to introduce it. The company typically takes the wraps off new Surface models in spring and in autumn, but there’s no guarantee just yet that such a project is ready to see daylight.