Microsoft Surface Phone release date: Flagship not coming at all? 2018 delay spells bad news

The Microsoft Surface Phone has been the subject of many discussions for a while now with high expectations of the first smartphone from Microsoft after Lumia.

The Redmond-based company has a launch event set Oct. 26, but the handset is not expected to be there as Microsoft puts the spotlight on their first ever Surface all-in-one personal computer (PC).

Although the event will not be smartphone-free, the Microsoft Surface Phone will not be the center of attraction in the mobile department there.

According to Microsoft analyst Mary Jo Foley, Windows smartphones from OEMs will be featured there instead of the Microsoft Surface Phone.

Foley has also expressed doubts about the handset seeing the light of day. "If and when anything like a Surface Phone ends up materializing, it will likely be late 2017 or maybe even not until 2018, my contacts have said recently," the expert stated.

This suggests that even the analysts are now uncertain about the fate of the Microsoft Surface Phone, which was expected to save the software giant from falling completely out of the mobile competition.

The Lumia failed spectacularly to capture as many fans as Microsoft have hoped and the failure is definitely blown up on the web.

Despite this, fans of the Windows Mobile hope to see Microsoft come back with a bang. Microsoft Surface Phone ought to do the job, but it appears that the company itself is not sure what's next for its mobile plans.

For now, fans will just have to wait and see. The Surface-branded handset was supposed to be launched spring next year so Microsoft can add features from the Redstone 2 update on the Windows 10 software.

Unfortunately, it appears that this spring 2017 launch is not on the table anymore. At the moment, nothing is set in stone with regards to Microsoft's plans for the Surface Phone or any handset for that matter.