Microsoft Lumia 940 XL to feature iris scanner, polycarbonate body

A few days after Satya Nadella announced Microsoft‘s new smartphone strategy, a new report by Dutch website MyWindows.nl has suggested that the Microsoft Lumia 940 and Microsoft Lumia 940 XL will boast fairly impressive specs and new authentication technology. The report has since been removed.

Read more: Microsoft to reduce smartphone offerings for ‘more effective phone portfolio’

The Lumia 940 will feature a 1920×1080 5.2-inch screen while the 940 XL will have a bigger screen and more pixels at 5.7-inches and a 2560×1440 resolution. Both devices will feature polycarbonate bodies and not the metal unibody construction favoured by Samsung, Apple and recently Huawei.

In terms of processing gusto, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 will be used by the 940 XL, coupled with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage while the 940 will use the slightly slower Qualcomm Snapdragon 808.

But perhaps the real interest lies in both phones’ new technologies.

Microsoft will trial its iris scanner on the phones, which is a bold new departure from traditional authentication methods, like fingerprint readers but takes advantage of Windows 10‘s new support for biometric information.

Read more: Bye-bye passwords: Windows 10 now supports FIDO biometric authentication

Microsoft’s also employing a 20MP camera at the rear with three-tone flash, and a 5MP up front.

Microsoft has yet to release any concrete information regarding the devices, so gaze upon the spec-sheets with a raised eyebrow for now.

Feature image: Kārlis Dambrāns via Flickr