According to technology blog Gizmodo, Microsoft executives Wednesday said that the company has axed its intriguing ‘Courier’ tablet project, even though there were speculations that the prototype of the device was supposedly round the corner.

Last September, a promotional video of the prototype tablet, leaked from the Entertainment & Devices division of Microsoft, hyped the tablet as an easy-to-carry journal-like device that would enable users to jot down notes, and save images.

Seemingly a literal visualization of the “personal digital assistant” ideal for meting the needs of the present times, the Microsoft Courier tablet was supposed to feature a two-tone interface of touch and stylus actions, folding in the middle like a book.

With Microsoft never actually confirming the rumors about Courier, the tablet was apparently just an internal concept video, which caught the fancy of the people largely due to the fact that it was a radical departure from Microsoft’s “just put Windows on it” tablet strategy.

About the cancellation of the courier project, Microsoft corporate VP of communications Frank Shaw said: “It’s in our DNA to develop new form factors and natural user interfaces to foster productivity and creativity. The Courier project is an example of this type of effort. It will be evaluated for use in future offerings, but we have no plans to build such a device at this time.”