Microsoft's business is increasingly moving towards hardware

Foreign media published an analysis article on Tuesday saying that compared with Microsoft 's software business, the company's hardware business has always been an auxiliary business. But at a press conference held in New York today, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella put Microsoft hardware at the core of the company's strategy.

Microsoft unveiled a range of new computing devices designed in-house and powered by its Windows operating system at the event. The company unveiled two smartphones designed to help revive its struggling mobile phone business, a new tablet, and Microsoft's first laptop , the Surface Book, which has a detachable keyboard that allows its screen to be used as a tablet. Microsoft also showed off its latest Band smartwatch.

The release of a series of hardware products highlights that Microsoft has been accelerating its entry into the computing hardware field in the past three years since the launch of the first generation of Surface in 2012. Nadella said that developing hardware is crucial to Microsoft's ability to keep up with the rapid changes in consumer technology. Jan Dawson, an analyst at market research firm Jackdaw Research, said, "In Microsoft under Nadella's leadership, we have seen that computing devices have been taking an increasingly larger share in the company's strategy."

Microsoft's previous product structure was almost entirely software business. Therefore, it is not easy for the company to transform its product structure. Compared with Microsoft's software business, the profit margin of the hardware business is very slim. As the company begins to pay more and more attention to the self-designed hardware business, investors are still uneasy about what impact this will have on the company's performance.

The hardware business remains challenging for Microsoft, especially its smartphone business, which is still losing money. Over the past five years, Microsoft has been trying to boost demand for its smartphone operating system, but all its efforts have been in vain.

Microsoft has failed to revive the smartphone business it acquired from Nokia over the past year, and the company this summer took a write-down of about 80% on the $9.4 billion acquisition, essentially an admission that Microsoft needs to rethink its smartphone strategy.

At an event on Tuesday, Microsoft hardware executive Panos Panay touted the new Windows Phones, which have less than 3% of the market, saying, "If you haven't been considering them, wake up."

Terry Myerson, Microsoft's Windows business director, said that Lumia is Microsoft's best combination of software and hardware, and is also a sample to show hardware manufacturers the powerful performance of Windows computing devices. Myerson said that Lumia devices will follow the path of Surface. Surface was once a loss-making business, but it has now turned a profit and is sought after by some users.

Microsoft said the new Surface Book laptop will have a 13.5-inch display and will start at $1,499. Apple's upcoming MacBook Pro will start at $1,299 and have a 13-inch display. The Surface Book will go on sale on the 26th of this month, along with the latest Surface Pro tablet.

Focusing on the hardware business means that Microsoft will compete with hardware manufacturers that it has been cooperating with for decades. A Microsoft spokesperson said that the PC market is large enough for all manufacturers to survive. A Dell spokesperson said, "It is natural for companies to cooperate in many areas and compete in some areas." So far, Lenovo Group , the world's largest PC manufacturer, and HP have not commented on Microsoft's entry into the PC market.

Microsoft also announced Tuesday that developers will be able to buy its HoloLens virtual reality headset, which costs about $3,000, starting early next year. Microsoft hopes independent companies will develop software for the device to make it more appealing.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.