After patenting the final design, hinge mechanism and more of the foldable Surface Phone/Andromeda hardware Microsoft has now patented its locking mechanism. Check the details from a recently granted Microsoft patent below.
BACKGROUND
Electronic devices may be available in foldable or pivotable form factors. In order to restrict the pivoting movement of two or more portions of such devices, locking of the portions in certain positions, for instance closed positions, may be desired.
The locking design uses embedded magnets to lock the device in its closed position.
Mechanical arrangements, such as dents or latches, may be used for locking such devices. An electronic device or electronic device assembly may comprise a first portion and a second portion, a first magnet disposed inside the first portion and rotatable about a pivot axis with respect to the first portion, and a second magnet disposed inside the second portion and rotatable about a pivot axis with respect to the second portion. The first and second magnet may be configured to rotate so that the first and second magnets magnetically engage each other when the distance between the first and second magnet is equal to or smaller than a first distance.
With Andromeda appearing as one of the SKUs of Windows Core OS in latest Windows 10 Preview builds. it seems Microsoft may be finally on track to a 2018 launch for both Andromeda OS and device.
We earlier posted a tip from some of our retail sources about Microsoft talking to channel partners about a new Surface category of devices. The tip had claimed that Microsoft may be on fast-track to at least talk about Surface Phone/Andromeda device hardware in H1 2018 and a possible release in H2 2018.
Surface Phone/Andromeda device Features, Specs, UI & other details:
You can read our exclusive coverage of Surface Phone/Mobile top features/specs/UI design, photos & other details here. We posted some evidence that shows that Microsoft is already working to curate Apps collections for the Surface Phone/Mobile.
A recent job opening has revealed that Microsoft may be working on a 1st-party hardware (Surface device/phone) powered by just announced Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor.
We had exclusively reported that 2018 may see Surface Mobile (Surface Phone) & Windows mobile devices from top vendors too. In a recent poll, our readers selected Surface Phone as the most appealing name for the ultimate mobile device from Microsoft. Surface Mobile and Note names came at 2nd and 3rd rank.
