Microsoft Surface Phone release date, news & update: Patent design shows a Surface Pen slot; Many believe it’s the headphone jack

The Surface Phone is Microsoft’s new hope of making a mark in the smartphone market. With some jaw-dropping specs, the handset will be a great competitor to the Apple iPhone and Samsung Galaxy series phones. If latest reports are to be believed, the alleged design of the Microsoft Surface Phone has surface on the Internet and everyone is busy finding out more about it.

According to Tom’s Guide, a new Microsoft Surface Phone design patent filing has been reported by Patently Apple and the new design shows a slot for a stylus on top. The patent does not reveal how the Pen works. However, any Universal Windows 10 app that supports Pen input will reportedly work fine with the Microsoft Surface Phone. Microsoft is packing its upcoming Windows platform with top features for the Windows 10 Anniversary Update.

Some of the top features in the Windows Ink Workspace include Screen Sketch, Sketchpad and Sticky Pad. The leaked Microsoft Surface Phone drawing does not feature any headphone jack. This means audio output could be delivered via USB Type-C ports, similar to Apple iPhone 7 and rumoured Samsung Galaxy S8.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella had teased in November that the company is developing the “most ultimate mobile device” and that the company will continue in the mobile market not following what other market leaders do. While Microsoft has a chance to fill a void in the mobile market with the Surface Phone, it will be interesting to see if consumers can look at the device different from that of the Lumia phones.

The leaked Microsoft Surface Phone drawing also does not feature a fingerprint scanner or a camera button. This has led many to believe that Microsoft will continue with its Windows Hello facial recognition feature. However, Windows Central believes that the patent drawings are unlikely to be of the Surface Phone. It also says that what many believe as a Pen slot is actually the 3.5mm headphone jack.

The Microsoft Surface Phone is expected to be unveiled in fall 2017 and will reportedly sport the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor, 512GB storage space and 8GB RAM. A full desktop-grade Windows 10 installation can be mirrored within the device.