Microsoft's annual developer conference, MIX, is underway this week in Las Vegas and its focus has been fixed on the recently-introduced Windows Phone 7 Series platform.
In the midst of a barrage of new details, Microsoft has been showcasing a new Windows Phone 7 Series handset from South Korean manufacturer Samsung.
The handset, pictured above by istartedsomething.com, was described by Microsoft as a "slate" and becomes the third Windows Phone 7 Series device to date - following an ASUS prototype used at launch and an LG device with a QWERTY keyboard shown earlier this month.
Specific details on what is presumably still a prototype are few and far between, but Microsoft did describe the handset's display as "really nice and bright" - it looks almost OLED-like - before flipping it over and revealing a "terrific" five-megapixel camera.
Whilst detailed specifications remain absent, Microsoft did hint at the innards of all Windows Phone 7 Series products by shedding further light on its standardised hardware requirements.
Microsoft revealed that all devices will feature an ARMv7 Cortex/Scorpion CPU or better, a GPU supporting DirectX 9, at least 256MB of RAM and at least 8GB of Flash storage. Providing a common user experience, all Windows Phone 7 Series handsets will also be required to feature a capacitive touch screen with four or more contact points and an array of sensors - including assisted-GPS, an accelerometer, compass, light sensor and proximity sensor. Should the manufacturer opt to implement a camera, it will need to capture at least five megapixels and come equipped with a flash and dedicated camera button.
The standardised specifications should certainly help improve the overall quality of Windows Phones, but we're still quietly hoping that the fabled Zune phone will make an appearance somewhere down the line.
*Update* It turns out Microsoft wasn't showing off a new Samsung handset at all. Instead, the software giant took an existing Samsung phone - namely the i8910 HD - and tacked Windows Phone 7 Series on top. Sorry folks, a real Samsung Windows Phone 7 Series product doesn't yet exist.
