Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has ditched the mobile operating system his company built – Windows Phone – in favour of rival Android.
Gates revealed the move to Android during an interview with Fox News Sunday.
The 61-year-old multi-billionaire did not reveal what model Android smartphone he had opted for – although most rumours point to the Samsung Galaxy S8.
Gates said he was using an Android device with “a lot of Microsoft software” on it, which suggests it is the special Microsoft Edition of the Samsung Galaxy S8, which comes bundled with a slew of the company’s software.
Microsoft started to sell this special edition Samsung Galaxy S8 in its retail stores earlier this year.
The Samsung handset comes preinstalled with a load of Microsoft apps, including Office, OneDrive, Cortana, and Outlook.
Obviously, these Microsoft apps can be installed on any Android phone around – but the Microsoft Edition has everything you’d need straight out of the box.
Whether Bill Gates is using a Samsung Galaxy S8 or another Android phone, one thing is abundantly clear – he still has no interest in the iPhone.
The renown philanthropists famously banned iPhones and iPods in his home in the past.
Although, he does admit Steve Jobs was a “genius” in the Fox News Sunday interview.
Microsoft has slowly wound-down its mobile efforts, with the US technology company ending support for one of the most popular versions of its Windows Phone software, Windows Phone 8.1, earlier this summer.
Those who want to ensure their Microsoft smartphone is updated with the latest security patches and features should upgrade to Windows 10 Mobile, Microsoft said.
Rumours that Microsoft is secretly working on an all-new flagship smartphone, the so-called Surface Phone, have swirled around online for years.
Microsoft General Manager for Surface Ryan Gavin offered smartphone fans an intriguing tidbit about the long-rumoured device last year.
Mr Gavin was speaking to Business Insider about the latest refreshes to the Surface line-up, which included an overhauled Surface Pro, brand-new Surface Laptop and desktop behemoth, Surface Studio.
However there is clearly something missing from Microsoft’s impressive array of in-house devices – arguably the most important personal computing device of all, the smartphone.
Rumours of a high-end smartphone built by Corporate VP for Surface Computing Panos Panay and the team behind the Surface Pro 4, Surface Book and Surface Studio are nothing new.
Back in December 2015, it was reported that Microsoft had green-lit a Surface Phone for release in late 2016.
Sources claimed Intel was heavily involved with the project and that it aimed to make a smartphone that bridged the gap between a phone and a mobile productivity device.
Many believe Microsoft still plans to launch its own smartphone.
And should the Redmond company ever decide to add a smartphone to its Surface range, we can be sure that it “will not resemble what we know and think of as a phone today,” Mr Gavin told Business Insider.
CEO Satya Nadella made a similar comment back in November 2016.
Speaking to the Australian Financial Review, he said: “We will continue to be in the phone market not as defined by today’s market leaders, but by what it is that we can uniquely do in what is the most ultimate mobile device.
“We don’t want to be driven by just envy of what others have, the question is, what can we bring?
“That’s where I look at any device form factor or any technology, even AI.”
Microsoft has never formally acknowledged the existence of a Surface Phone, although it has made several hints.