Rumor: Microsoft is working on a cheap smartphone with a metal housing

Microsoft is said to have plans to launch a low-cost, mid-range smartphone with a metal housing. The release would be sometime in the spring, but exactly what specifications the device has is still unclear.

The rumors come from WM Poweruser, who claims it has sources with information about the Microsoft smartphone. Although most of the details are still missing, the Redmond-based company plans to manufacture the housing from metal. What’s in that housing in terms of hardware remains unclear. Microsoft has hardly released smartphones based on metal; the latest was the Lumia 830 that hit the market over a year ago.

Microsoft would like to position the device as an affordable smartphone with ‘average’ specifications. As a result, it seems that the device will have a place in the product portfolio between the low-end Lumia 550 and the high-end Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL. These smartphones have not yet been officially announced, but information has already been released several times.

According to WM Poweruser, the metal smartphone with an unknown name will be released sometime in the spring of next year. First, Microsoft would like to release its high-end smartphones, and some time after that the mid-range smartphone. There is no exact release date yet.

On October 6, Microsoft will hold an event in New York that revolves around hardware for Windows 10. It is expected that new smartphones will also arrive on the scene, including the Lumia 950 and the Lumia 950 XL. It is not clear whether the mid-range smartphone with a metal housing will also be announced.