Microsoft is reportedly preparing to take the stage at next week’s Samsung Unpacked, as the two companies are said to have deepened their partnership ahead of the event.
The updated partnership may result in Samsung pre-installing more Microsoft Android apps in some of its smartphones, including the Your Phone app that connects to Windows 10 PCs, according to ZDNet’s Mary Jo Foley.
Microsoft is set to demonstrate how various Office apps and Your Phone will work in upcoming Samsung smartphones, according to Foley’s sources. This may include the Galaxy Note 10, which is expected to be unveiled at the same event.
With Microsoft no longer building smartphones, it has focused on making apps and services to maintain its presence in the market, according to Foley. One of the company’s efforts is the Your Phone app, which allows Android smartphone owners to link their devices to a Windows PC to transfer photos, as well as to receive and send text messages on the computer.
The two companies were already working closely in customizing Microsoft’s productivity apps to work well with Samsung’s Dex, the feature that allows its smartphones to launch a PC-like desktop when connected to a big screen. In addition, the list of devices that best support Your Phone is mostly made up of Samsung smartphones.
Samsung is currently releasing its Android smartphones with several Microsoft Office apps pre-installed, with more apps such as Your Phone to be included due to the expanded partnership. While some customers may view these apps as bloatware that do nothing more than take up internal storage, it remains to be seen how Microsoft and Samsung will further refine the apps to improve the user experience.
The star of the upcoming Unpacked event will be the Galaxy Note 10 though, which will follow this year’s announcements of the Galaxy S10 range and the Galaxy Fold. Rumors claim that there will be two versions of the smartphone, with the Galaxy Note 10 to be accompanied by a larger version that will be called either the Galaxy Note 10 Pro or the Galaxy Note 10 Plus. It has also been reported that the device will finally get rid of the headphone jack.
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