Back from the dead: Windows 10 Mobile appears in Marvel's latest blockbuster movie

Microsoft has never truly gained traction in the competitive business of mobile operating systems. Neither Windows Phone nor Windows 10 Mobile could conquer a noteworthy piece of Apple's iOS and Google's Android market share. Not even the acquisition of the legendary Finnish phone brand Nokia could jumpstart Microsoft's involvement in the smartphone sector. After its own mobile operating system failed, Microsoft has since started to develop Android-based smartphones like the Surface Duo (US$634 on Amazon).

While there is still a small group of fans who cherish their beloved Windows-based Lumia smartphones, these devices have widely disappeared from the public's eye. Therefore it is particularly surprising to see a Windows smartphone appear in one of the biggest movie releases of the summer. In Marvel's "Black Widow", starring Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff, one of the characters can be spotted using a Nokia smartphone that is running Windows.

As seen in the picture below, it is difficult to identify the exact model due to the scene's low light conditions. The utilization of a Windows smartphone presumably is a stylistic choice by the producers, since it would be unreasonable to assume that Microsoft or Nokia has paid Disney money for the product placement of such an irrelevant device. Either way, the appearance is a nice easter egg for fans of Microsoft's unsuccessful mobile operating system.