There’s an old joke, older than the internet, that can be reduced to: “Microsoft never develops anything new, the company just copies Apple.”

Told that way the joke isn’t really close to funny but put some decent patter in, and some timing and you’ve got a winner. Let’s give it a really lame shot. You’ll come up with a better version.

Engineer to Ballmer: Under this sheet, I’ve got the future of the company.
Ballmer: Is it innovative? Is it useful? Show me show me!
The engineer whips away the sheet revealing an iPhone
Ballmer: Is that an iPhone?
Engineer: No! It’s exactly like an iPhone but we call it a MiPhone. Mi stands for Microsoft!
Ballmer: Why is it better than the iPhone?
Engineer: Because, when people buy one of these we get the profits.
Ballmer: Brilliant!

That is a crazy joke, I mean it doesn’t even make sense! Microsoft would never make a Microsoft branded phone! First off the move would go against the company’s core belief that Microsoft makes software and partners with other company’s to churn out the hardware.

Yet that is apparently what is happening. According to The Inquirer Microsoft is planning on introducing a Microsoft branded phone. Which brings us to whether or not we should buy into this report. What would a Microsoft phone have to offer and why power it with a NVidia chip?

Let’s get the advantages out of the way first:
Microsoft gets to follow Apple’s trail, again.

Well that is it for the advantages. Time to take a look at what Microsoft would be up against:
The iPhone. Sure you could come up with something better but so far no one else has and the last time Microsoft made something more consumer friendly than Apple was… Well, I can’t think of the last time.

Even if the Microsoft phone is better it is an uphill battle
Right now there are lines for the Blackberry Storm from Verizon and the iPhone at AT&T has seen its share of lines. If you want an alternative you can get a G1 from T-Mobile. The only carrier left that halfway matters is Sprint. One supposes there are Sprint users who want a really great smart phone so if Microsoft partnered with Sprint the phone might make a splash.

The phone will run Windows Mobile.
Windows Mobile is like the worst candy you can get at halloween. For me that is candy corn which tastes like a soft sugared candle. You can dip candy corn in chocolate and it would taste like a sweetened crayon dipped in chocolate. Unless they have some insanely great revision in the works no amount of phone slickness can rescue the OS.

I doubt that Microsoft is coming out with a Microsoft phone in February but if the company does they should call it Zune* rewind.

VIA: MacDailyNews

The story might be fake but it is an excuse to post…

*The Zune experience is the most faithful reproduction of the iPod experience ever. It would’ve been awesome if the iPod didn’t already exist.