Photos of an alleged Samsung Galaxy S8 running Windows 10 Mobile are now making the rounds on the internet, showing what they claim is a special edition of the recently launched smartphone that is powered not by Android, but by Microsoft's dead mobile operating system.
And although these photos could have made everyone very excited because a phone manufacturer of Samsung's size would be close to launching a Windows phone, hopes were ultimately dashed simply because all the photos are fake.
First of all, a closer look at these photos shows that it's all just bad Photoshop, with some UI parts barely visible, because whoever created this could give the impression that Windows 10 Mobile is using the curved edges of the Galaxy S8 in a similar way to Android.
Then there's the Samsung edge menu that appears in every screenshot, which on Android helps users make the most of the curved screen and quickly access certain features, such as contacts, weather forecast, or certain apps, from the edge of the screen.
And finally, there's the technical side, as Windows 10 Mobile can't run on the Snapdragon 835, according to Microsoft's own documentation. Although the Snapdragon 835 was supposed to be on the supported CPU list for Windows 10 Mobile, Microsoft likely removed it as plans for its mobile platform changed over time.
At this point, Snapdragon processors are still part of Microsoft's plans, but for a different project, as the company has signed a partnership with Qualcomm to bring the full version of Windows 10 to ARM chips.
This means that while the Snapdragon 835 isn't part of Microsoft's mobile vision, it certainly has a place in the PC, where it's expected to power devices running Windows 10 on ARM. The first PCs with this emulation system are expected to launch later this year, and the Snapdragon 835 will be the chip powering them.
