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Microsoft's Surface Hub 2X Plans Reportedly Hit a Wall

Originally planned for release this year, Microsoft's Surface Hub 2X conferencing devices may be on an indefinite hold, according to a Petri.com report by Brad Sams.

Sams on Friday cited unnamed "people familiar with the company's plans," who indicated that the Surface Hub 2X "will not be shipping as previously announced."

Microsoft had announced in September that the Surface Hub 2X was expected to be available sometime in 2020, but no exact launch date was mentioned. Surface Hub 2S devices shipped last year, and they were described back then as having a swappable processor cartridge that could be used to upgrade the machine, adding Surface Hub 2X capabilities.

Described differences between the Surface Hub 2S and 2X models seem slight. Surface Hub 2X devices can be tiled on a wall for displays, and they can maintain a proper screen view after being rotated. They also permit multiple user logins, unlike Surface Hub 2S devices.

When contacted, Microsoft had no comment on the status of the Surface Hub 2X. Its press relations just offered the following statement, promising more information "in the coming months":

We have an ongoing dialogue with our customers on Hub and are working to align the road map to best meet their needs. The top two priorities for Hub in 2020 are deploying the 85" device and rolling out an OS update that includes many top features customers have been requesting since Surface Hub 2S launched, including improving IT integration, deployment and management capabilities at no cost for all version 1 Hubs and Hub 2S devices. We'll have more to share in the coming months.

The Surface Hub 2S has a 43.2-inch width display, according to Microsoft's "Tech Specs." The proposed 85-inch model, described above, appears to be new.

Surface Hub 2 devices can only run Microsoft Office applications or Universal Windows Platform applications (that is, apps available via the Microsoft Store). In a blow to some developers, Microsoft recently announced plans to shut down advertising monetization for Universal Windows Platform apps on June 1, 2020.

About the Author

Kurt Mackie is senior news producer for 1105 Media's Converge360 group.

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