In a surprise move, the result of the Nokia buyout by Microsoft is a new Android based phone, the X2. (Yes, I double checked that it was not a 1st April story). BBC reports that the mid-range smart-phone will be Android based, but that the UI will look like Microsoft's Windows Phone.

At an estimated price of 100 Euros, the specs are not overwhelming, with 1 GB RAM, 5 MP camera. However, interestingly it's a dual SIM phone. That suggests it's targeting the Asian market, where people are shopping around for the best SMS and calling rates, and dual SIM phones are very popular.

As expected, the phone will not feature the common Google service apps, like Gmail, Calendar, Hangouts, Maps, and Youtube, but instead replace them with Microsoft equivalents like Outlook, Skype, and Bing. However, it also means that the Google Play store will not be available either, so Microsoft and Nokia will somehow have to back-fill their own market. Or perhaps developers will have to submit their Android apps to yet another market. Many open source apps are already dual-hosted on Google Play and the free software based app market F-Droid.