Windows 10 Mobile-powered HP Elite x3 finally hits the market with a $799 price tag

Announced at this February's Mobile World Congress, the HP Elite x3 has finally reached the market. This is a pricy $799 Windows 10 Mobile-powered dual-SIM phablet with a 5.96-inch, 1440 x 2560 resolution AMOLED screen that's powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of expandable storage. The microSD slot shares the same slot as the secondary SIM card, though, which means you can't have both dual-SIM connectivity and a microSD card installed.

Anyway, the HP Elite x3 also rocks a 16MP rear camera, an 8MP front-facing cam, an iris scanner for eye recognition security, a fingerprint reader, NFC, USB 3.0 Type-C, and stereo speakers along with a big 4,150mAh battery. The specs-intense device is also IP67-certified for waterproofing. The HP Elite x3 is also bundled with a bespoke Desk Dock that features a DisplayPort, Ethernet jack, power port, and three USB ports. Connecting the HP Elite x3 to it and adding a monitor, keyboard, and mouse turns the phablet into a Windows PC.

While Microsoft seems to have given up on producing its own smartphones, it's still pursuing the Windows 10 Mobile dream with the help of manufacturing partners like HP. There's no question that the Elite x3 is a capable smartphone, but does it have what it takes to steer buyers away from the familiar, comfortable and no less accomplished Android and iOS?

Transforming into a PC isn't really something that many consumers are after, seeing that they prefer to use their smartphones instead of a desktop. Meanwhile, the business professionals that this smartphone obviously targets seek the kind of mobility provided by laptops and tablets. So, cool and technologically accomplished as it is, Microsoft's Continuum trick doesn't seem to have arrived in the right time and place.