Should there be? Guess that's a matter of opinion.

Personally I don't see any real reason for MS to have a handheld. My view is MS is only interested in providing devices where they feel they need to in order to support their software in the marketplace or as a platform to compete with others (Xbox vs Sony, Zune vs Apple for example). I don't believe they are ever in it for the hardware though - they want their OS and standards in play and when a market isn't using them or is being overrun by a company not using them (again, for example Sony with PS2 or Apple with iPhone/iPod were both terrible and dominant platforms from MS perspective using little to no of their software).

Hence their obvious interest in a mobile OS and the handheld market and tablets. But a dedicated gaming handheld? I just don't see it fitting the company focus and approach. I guess some gamers would love an Xbox handheld to link to their console but I just don't see MS being interested.

TBH I'm still not sure MS would even be producing their own console if Sony and Nintendo ran MS OS and infrastructure in a similar manner to the PC market. For me hardware is just a means to an end for MS, and in the case of a dedicated handheld their is no real endgame or need for them.

Mobile in general is a different matter of course - hence their big focus on that at the moment.

So no, not unless gaming handhelds started to rival smart phones and tablets for general social and interactive use vs primarily being closed loop gaming systems. I guess Vita is trying to be more social so it might be interested to see how it fares, but for the moment I'm saying no.

They make PC accessories. If you want to consider that hardware, you can...but we all know that they don't make or want to make any necessary hardware needed for a dedicated handheld device. Even their Zune HD was put together from various components none of which were developed by microsoft.

As far as your other point, I think you are wrong in thinking all Ms is going to be doing is Windows.

People don't realize that microsoft spends 15% of their total revenue on R&D, a lot of which never makes it out in to the market. This is a lot more than Google and Apple do, combined...

http://d2o7bfz2il9cb7.cloudfront.net/main-qimg-dec36ecb69c717ef74232ed3e96da2d9

Commercially, they are not stupid to sit on windows alone now that there is actual competition in the OS market. Go over their BUILD conference from September. They currently clasify their business in to 7 different avenues. Windows OS, Xbox, WP, Azure Server Services, Search (Bing)...2 others I can't remember off the top of my head. I see them expanding organically just like any company and they have the R&D to do whatever they want.

You don't spend 7 billion on Skype so you can put an app on your phone and desktop and call it a day. They have already tested massive city wide Wifi hubs in England (Cambridge) - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/broadband/8600854/Super-WiFi-white-space-trials-begin-in-Cambridge.html

lol beat me to it.  they tried  with the zune.  if zune would have caught on it wouldve had a next gen capable but it never made it.

Initially Microsoft may have thought that Zune MP3 hardware may be a viable business but pretty fast they adjusted their strategy with Zune (2006 and after) After that Zune's sole purpose was to test the market for Windows Phone 7 and future UI software and interface, not to give them a dedicated handheld device in the market. 

Pretty much everything you see in terms of software and user interface on WP7 new Xbox dashboard and upcoming Wndows 8 metro UI, originated from Zune.

Exactly! competition breeds efficiency

There isn't much money to be made with a dedicated handheld. The system will have to be sold at a loss to have any chance of competing with the 3ds. There aren't countless of perpherials that can be sold for a handheld to help them make back the money. Other then Fable, and a Banjo game, Microsoft's exclusive lineup is not well suited for a small screen handheld. I really can't think of anyway a microsoft handheld can be profitable, or lead to something that will be profitable. What microsoft could do is work with their partners to make windows 7 phones with better performance, and try to develop some handheld quality games exclusively for windows phones. 

dedicated devices in 2011 don't matter that much and if MS was to start now,they just won't sell

Ninty and SONY are continuing cause they built a brand name before so they can continue on it as they have added advantage

You may also ask why didn't they start earlier,its cause when last generation started XBOX brand was very small so they didn't concentrate in this segment


Over that,MS just doesn't have first party studios to support it

Because Microsoft likes to humiliate its fans.

Haha. Microsoft has "fans"? I mean yeah, Selnor...but fans means there is more than 1.

Oops. I probably meant that Microsoft likes to humiliate fans of Xbox.