Specialists speculate that Microsoft could stop manufacturing hardware within two years

Microsoft is one of the most popular companies in the world and a good part of its fame has been achieved thanks to its products in the form of _software_Windows in its different editions, the Microsoft Office suite, Internet Explorer, Skype... there are many names that come to mind, mythical brands that, however, do not navigate alone, because seeing the success they had, from Redmond they also thought I could bet on the _hardware_.

Thus came the first Xbox and later the range of Surface products of which this year we have had its most recent exponents in the form of the Surface Pro and Surface Laptop.In between, the failed business that led Nadella's to buy Nokia to make mobile phones. We already know how the invention turned out, although more than due to bad _hardware_, due to weak _software_ and poor planning. The fact is that at this point, Microsoft continues to grow by building on _software_ and _hardware_ but are both legs equally important?

Well, according to Gianfranco Lanci, Corporate President of Lenovo, no. Let's remember that in the past, Mr. Lanci assured that he did not see the future of Windows 10 Mobile clearly and we have to admit that, over time, he was not lacking in reason,

And now he's back at it boasting a bleak future for the Surface range in general, so much so that he claims that before In 2019, the company will abandon the Surface line to focus on the development of _software_, which is what really gives it benefits.Azure, Windows in all its versions or Microsoft Office would be the bases on which the future Microsoft will grow, beyond the launch of its own products in the form of _hardware_.

And the truth is, in principle it's hard to assimilate it, at least if we take into account the quality of the products that have been released in the last times. The Surface Studio rivals the iMac, the Surface Pro exemplifies a convertible done right, and the Surface Laptop is a great laptop, well, if you don't count Windows 10 S.

Good products but not best sellers

And yes, they are quality products (if we ignore the flaws with the Surface Pro 3), but not products that sweep stores. And it is that the bulk of the population does not have a Surface Studio or a Surface Laptop.When buying a computer with Windows, either by price or availability in the markets, one usually opts for an option from one of Microsoft's _partners In this case, Lenovo, Asus, HP, Acer... are much more popular among the user, eating up the possible sales in _hardware_ of those from Redmond. The enemy at home, come on.

The sales results are not very good and except for the range of Surface convertibles, which have a fairly stable market (not it means that they are best sellers) the rest would not contribute too many numbers to the profit account of those from Redmond. In fact, Satya Nadella, current CEO of Microsoft, has more hopes in the development of _software_ than _hardware_.

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In the same vein as Lanci, Canalys CEO Steve Brazier has positioned himself, saying that Satya Nadella would opt to abandon the product line in the form of _hardware_because he&39;s a _software_ guy and signaled the demise of the smartphone line, something really surprising when you consider the rumors pointing to a new product line."

The enemy at home

What does seem to be clear is that from Redmond they don't see the situation clearly, especially because they compete with experienced manufacturers that have the same _software_ that they themselves they sell and at much more popular prices Acer, Dell, Lenovo, Samsung or HP are the enemy at home and the continuous launches they make make things very difficult for Microsoft.

This translates into a drop in sales of the Surface range in the second quarter of this year. A fall that reaches 26% and although a large part of the responsibility is due to the range of mobile telephony, the truth is that the figures are not encouraging. Especially if we see how, for example, the cloud and business sectors grew by 11% and 21% respectivelyA growth and a contrast with the previous figures that would be opening the eyes of many in Redmond.

Source | The Register In Xataka Windows | Lenovo is not clear about the future of Windows 10 Mobile despite the announced support from Microsoft