Microsoft News Roundup: Galaxy Z Fold 4 ‘Windows Phone,’ Xbox responding to PS5 price hike, and more

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With all the news that rolls out, it’s easy to miss a few tidbits here and there. Luckily for you, we gather together the biggest news from Microsoft land into a roundup at the end of each week. From a Samsung Galaxy Fold 4 being turned into a Windows Phone to Microsoft responding to the PS5 price hike, here are the biggest news stories from the past seven days.

Windows Phone lives… kind of

Windows Phone is dead and it isn’t coming back. Now that I’ve ripped that band-aid off, it’s time to focus on the pseudo return of the lost phone OS. YouTuber Mark Spurrell converted hisSamsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 into a Windows Phoneby using a combination of the Square Home and Win-X Android launchers. The end result was a Galaxy Z Fold 4 that looked like a device running Windows Phone 8.1 when closed and Windows 11 when opened.

The Galaxy Z Fold 4 can’t run two different launchers normally, but Spurrell worked around that limitation by using Bixby Routines.

In related news, our executive editor Daniel Rubino sharedfive things he loves about the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4(and five things he hates) as a Surface Duo 2 user.

Xbox won’t match PS5 price hike

Sony announced that the price of the PlayStation 5 would increase in several markets. While the United States is currently excluded from that list, the cost of the PS5 went up or will soon go up in Europe, Japan, China, Australia, Mexico, and Canada. Naturally, people wondered if Microsoft would follow suit with increased prices for theXbox Series XandXbox Series S.

Those concerns were put to bed, at least somewhat, with astatement by a Microsoftspokesperson to Windows Central.

“We are constantly evaluating our business to offer our fans great gaming options. Our Xbox Series S suggested retail price remains at $299 (£250, €300) the Xbox Series X is $499 (£450, €500)," they said.

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Microsoft did not promise that its console pricing would remain the same going ahead, but it confirmed that the cost of the Series X and S will remain the same for now.

HP unveils Dragonfly Folio G3

HP announced several devices this week, including the “world’s most powerful commercial AIO” and a4K streaming webcam. The biggest news of the week, however, was the HP Dragonfly Folio G3. That business-oriented 2-in-1 has a similar form factor to theHP Elite Foliobut packs much more powerful specs.

The Dragonfly Folio G3 features a 12th Gen Intel U-series processor, an OLED display, and an 8MP AI camera. Our executive editor Daniel Rubino said he was “blown away by it” in hisfirst look at the device.

“So far, the Dragonfly Folio G3 is the most exciting laptop I’ve handled this year. Actually, something else is coming that is very interesting, but in terms of being pragmatic, functional, and likely something you would buy, I think HP hit it out of the park,” said Rubino.

Microsoft shows of its library at Gamescom 2022

Gamescom 2022 took place this week in Cologne, Germany. There, Microsoft and several major companies throughout the industry showed off thebest Xbox games. Our Senior Xbox Editor Jez Corden was on the show floor and the rest of our team covered the event remotely.

The list of titles shown off is massive, but the ones that turned the most heads were Microsoft Flight Simulator, Sea of Thieves, A Plague Tale: Requiem, Age of Empires IV, and Minecraft Legends.

You can recap all of the biggest news from the event by checking out ourGamescom 2022 live blog.

Review roundup

With gadgets galore coming out all the time, our team of experts is always on the hunt for things to review. From routers to tablets to standing desks, here’s everything we reviewed this week:

Sean Endicott is a tech journalist at Windows Central, specializing in Windows, Microsoft software, AI, and PCs. He’s covered major launches, from Windows 10 and 11 to the rise of AI tools like ChatGPT. Sean’s journey began with the Lumia 740, leading to strong ties with app developers. Outside writing, he coaches American football, utilizing Microsoft services to manage his team. He studied broadcast journalism at Nottingham Trent University and is active on X @SeanEndicott_ and Threads @sean_endicott_.