Microsoft Lumia 940 release date with Windows 10: specs to include iris scanner, docking support

The next Microsoft Lumia flagship smartphone will come with several innovative features, a Fudzilla report said. Last week's article teased about some of the alleged features of the soon-to-be released Lumia 940 flagship phone. 

According to the report, a reliable source mentioned that Microsoft's latest flagship device will have several groundbreaking features that other phones do not currently have. One of the said features is the iris scanner using an infrared-like sensor, which is said to be the brand's way of competing against the fingerprint sensor of other mobile brands.

The report mentioned that the iris scanner is possibly more discrete compared to the fingerprint scanner. It means that the user does not need to touch or swipe the sensor of the device, thus even using gloves or other hand accessories would not impede with the function of the sensor. However, using the iris scanner could mean that the user must remove their eyeglasses so that the device can read the iris. 

Also, the new Lumia 940 might come with support for a docking station. This means the device can be easily connected to different accessories for the mobile product, or let it function as a standalone computer just like the defunct Atrix concept from Motorola.  

IB Times UK, on the other hand, reported that the handset would be able to determine whether the user is using their left or right hand. 

Meanwhile, the successor of the Lumia 930 will allegedly come out with a Qualcomm chip, which could either be the 28nm Snapdragon 805 or the 20nm Snapdragon 810. The device is also expected to feature a 20- to 30- megapixel camera sensor as well as three LED flash lights. 

Neil Broadley, the director of phone marketing at Microsoft, said that the company's flagship products will come out when Windows 10 is already available. 

"We remain completely committed and focused on new flagship products. That said, certainly we believe the best time to bring those flagship devices to market is when we have our very latest flagship software experience available. We're focusing our flagship development for slightly later when Windows 10 is available," he said. 

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