They have their 8X and 8S devices which was a partnership with HTC to make custom phones designed for Windows Phone 8. Google tried to make their own phone wit

They have their 8X and 8S devices which was a partnership with HTC to make custom phones designed for Windows Phone 8. Google tried to make their own phone with the S, etc but at this point the model that has worked for them in terms of bringing a phone to market and getting carriers even with the Nexus 7 on board has been working with a manufacturer to partner on building a phone rather than building it themselves. When Google built the Nexus One they only sold it online and unsubsidised and it flopped. The question is, can Microsoft bring a smartphone to market with good margins, carrier deals, etc. When Windows Phone hasn't had much of a response from carriers thus far. It's a different game to a tablet and their relationships with Nokia and HTC don't seem to signal that they want to build a surface phone.