The Lumia phone series have been 'killed' multiple times in rumors. According to different articles that surfaced this year, the Lumia line is set to end. This is quite predictable too, especially since the Lumia series have been slowing down for the past years. However, whether this indicates the birth of the Surface Phone or not, Microsoft has not confirmed yet.
Microsoft's Lumia Series To End
The latest Microsoft Lumia devices include last year's Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL. There were also a number of midrange and lower midrange phones that were released in the recent past. However, according to speculations, the company is set to end the series this year, quite literally, this December. It may not mean that Microsoft will stop selling the Lumia labeled devices. It can simply mean that their production is over.
This rumor is also supported by the price cut given to Lumia devices in the past months. Permanent discounts were given to most of the Lumia phones recently, which highly indicates the company's effort to dispose every single remaining stock.
The Microsoft Surface Phone
The Director of Engineering for Microsoft Laura Butler has been quite vocal in responding to Surface Phone rumors. According to one of her tweet replies, she said that the Surface Phone has not yet been confirmed.
Although, what she actually said in the tweet is that "Surface Phone not NOT confirmed." which actually used a double negative on the word "not". Whether this is just a typographical error or a clue, this certainly did not help solve the mystery.
This isn't even Butler's first time mentioning the rumored Surface Phone. During Apple's event day, she also responded to a tweet that says "Plot twist: Surface Phone gets announced". Butler responded with "Surface iPhone :)". Although she may actually just being candid, a source says that it is definitely unusual for a senior Microsoft figure to get in with the hype and mention the rumored Surface Phone a couple of times.