It's fair to say that Windows Phone hasn't exactly taken the market by storm in the two and a half years since it launched. The story for Microsoft's mobile OS is still something of a mixed bag - in some markets, such as Finland and Italy, its market share percentage has soared into double digits; but there remain many regions where the platform is struggling, such as in the US, where Nokia, the largest Windows Phone vendor by some margin, saw its sales fall by almost 43% last quarter.
These are uncertain times for Windows Phone to be sure, but that's not stopping manufacturers from lining up a new range of handsets, which a tipster on Reddit claims to have knowledge of. The informant refers to some devices that we already know about, including HTC's mid-range 'Tiara', but adds to previously revealed details on that handset by claiming that it will come in two variants - one with LTE, and one without, for different markets.
Reference is also made to two new Nokia handsets that we've already become acquainted with: 'EOS', which is expected to feature a high-end PureView camera - possibly with a 41MP sensor - and a quad-core chipset; and 'Catwalk', which is believed to be a thin and light device with an aluminium body. Adding to the information already revealed, it's claimed that neither device will include integrated wireless charging but, like the Lumia 820, will offer this feature through optional covers. Nokia is expected to announce one or both of these devices at an event in London on May 14.
But beyond the devices that we already know about, two new handsets are also named. Huawei, which has already released its W1 Windows Phone is said to be lining up the 'Ascend WQ 5'. While we can't verify this specific information, Neowin has received confirmation from a Huawei executive that a second "higher-end" Windows Phone will be added to the company's range this year.
Samsung is also said to be preparing a new Windows Phone, referred to as 'Cronus LTE'. Assuming the handset materialises, you can expect it to take on the new ATIV branding that the company has adopted for all of its Windows Phone and Windows devices. This, and all of the handsets mentioned above, are said to be arriving between May and August of this year.
Finally, the tipster appears to refer to 'Max' as an OS update beyond the 'GDR2' (General Distribution Release 2) update which is rolling out soon. It's unclear whether 'Max' refers to the GDR3 update which is expected to bring support for 1080p resolution displays and quad-core processors, and which should arrive before the end of this year, ahead of the 'Blue' update for Windows Phone which is now expected to arrive in early 2014, as Paul Thurrott revealed this week.
While the information revealed by the tipster today certainly sounds credible, bear in mind that it does come from an unverified source, so for now, be sure to approach it with caution, rather than treating it as gospel.
Source: Reddit | via WMPowerUser
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