Windows Insider Program User Guide. Insider Program User Guide for Windows Mobile 10

Recently, I often hear statements from users that the mobile version of Windows 10 is dead and you need to quickly dump it, but is it really so? Let's try to take a closer look at this issue.

Frankly, Windows users are amazing people and at the slightest rustle they panic and say that everything is lost.

Let's start with a little history. Windows Mobile first appeared as early as 2000, which was based on Windows CE, which in turn appeared in 1996, after which there were already 6 versions of Windows Mobile that were supported until 2012. Yes, at the beginning of the 2000s, Windows Mobile was on horseback, but with the advent of other mobile operating systems that were more responsive to users, the share of Windows Mobile dropped sharply, but nevertheless, Microsoft supported it as long as possible, until the release of Windows 8.

Microsoft understood that Windows Mobile needed a restart and on February 15, 2010, Steve Ballmer officially introduced the new Windows Phone mobile OS. Back then, Microsoft and Nokia signed a cooperation contract. Oddly enough, but it so happened that the Nokia brand also needed a restart, and therefore, for a certain amount of money, Microsoft simply bought the Finnish mobile division. After that, a fruitful cooperation began. Nokia was engaged in their smartphones, which were great in design, of course this does not apply to cinder blocks like the 920 Lumiya, but then there was its revolutionary mother wireless charging, which leveled this defect a little. Carl Zeiss optics were the highlight of smartphones and they took really good pictures, even by today's standards. Microsoft, in turn, was engaged in software and exclusive support for Nokia, since in fact it was already their company. And the people who followed the tandem of these two giants were sure, including me, that it would turn out just bombing phones that would wipe out the nose of all sorts of iPhones and Samsungs, but this did not happen. When Windows Phone 7 came out, they turned out to be some nondescript and little functional. And in principle, both developers and users, oddly enough, were not particularly upset. And they said that this is supposedly their first joint device and everything is still ahead. And after the release of the new Windows Phone 8 platform, some work on the bugs was already visible. Smartphones looked pretty nice. The aforementioned flagship Lumiya 920, although it looked like a brick, was still popular. After, by the way, Microsoft updated the smartphone to version 925. He looked much cooler and thinner. Even I could not resist then and bought a Lumia 820. The 920 was too big for me, as it seemed to me, and the 720 was rather weak. Although Lumia 720 was the most beautiful smartphone at that time. The Lumia 820 had an excellent 8MP camera with dual LED flash and good design, which won me over. It seems to me that it was during the existence of Windows Phone 8 that the mobile OS was at the top of its popularity. After that came Windows Phone 8.1 and the new 3rd and 4th line of Lumia smartphones, which from the design side were great. Moderately elegant and not oversized.

Then Microsoft announced the release of Windows 10 and again renamed Windows Phone to Windows Mobile. Released at the end of 2015, the 5th line of smartphones called Lumia 950 and 950 XL is a kind of cosplay on the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. Frankly speaking, the phones turned out to be not the best and with a rather buggy OS then. Microsoft understood that it could not give such a system to other older smartphones, so it delayed the release of the tenth Windows until March 2016, after which all smartphones of the 3rd and 4th line, Lumia 1520 and third-party smartphones were able to receive this cherished update. The second line of smartphones did not officially receive Windows 10 Mobile, but anyway, through Windows Insider, Microsoft allowed them to upgrade to version 10 without problems, but after that, of course, they banned the release of assemblies for these smartphones, summarizing this by saying that smartphones are too old, but the Top Ten they could get.

So that's what I mean by all this. This story was needed to restore some consistency. To be honest, there were even skeptics who, back in the early 2000s, said that Windows Mobile was an unnecessary OS that would soon die, but almost 20 years have passed and the system is still alive. It has had its ups and downs, but still there are people who use it and don't want to give it up. Even Microsoft itself claims that it will not stop releasing builds for smartphones on Windows 10 Mobile. This is already a good sign, it's another matter if Microsoft was silent at all, otherwise you can hope that mobile Windows in the form in which it is now will receive updates for several more years. Yes, my God, even Windows RT, which has ten times fewer users than Windows 10 Mobile, still receives updates, even one owner of this tablet once told me that a menu was added to the RT version Start, as in Windows 10, while, let me remind you, the system was released in 2012, 5 years ago, and after that you will say that Windows 10 Mobile is dead? I currently have a Lumia 830, the phone came out in the fall of 2014, now it's already 2017. Approximately 2.5 years have passed and the smartphone is still receiving updates. Many Android smartphones cannot even afford this. Even if suddenly updates stop coming out for this platform, then that the phone will immediately turn into a brick? It will still work, except perhaps there will be problems with some applications, but looking at the tighter Windows RT, which is less popular, while everyone has already forgotten about it, except for Microsoft and some enthusiasts, then we can say that Windows 10 Mobile will still be live very long.

Personally, I can say for myself that, for example, I broke the Lumia 820 in 2014, when I was riding a bike and fell on the right side, and just on that side I had a phone in my pocket and I still haven’t been able to fix it , due to the lack of the required part. The Lumia 830 was already under repair once, although it was under warranty, but still it was, so the Lumia smartphones themselves are likely to die faster than the mobile operating system from Microsoft.

Yes, Microsoft is preparing new smartphones that should be closer to the functionality of full-fledged Windows 10, but the mobile regular Windows will also live in parallel, no one is going to refuse it. I have been hearing for about 2 years now that the mobile system is dead. And is she dead now? No, more alive than all the living.

If we talk about the problems of Windows 10 Mobile, then there is only one. These are very expensive devices. If Microsoft were to sell these devices at a loss, like the Xbox 360, for example, then the system would have a much larger base of both users and developers. It is valuable that we kill two birds with one stone. Since users, looking at branded smartphones from Microsoft, still chose similar phones on the Android system, since they are cheaper and better in terms of characteristics, and wealthier people took the iPhone because it is an iPhone. Like, if you have an iPhone, then you have taken place in this life. And smartphones on Windows Phone and Windows Mobile were mainly taken by enthusiasts and those people who wanted to try something new. Some leave gradually to other systems, while others return, as they are used to this OS.

Microsoft has paused for now, there have been rumors of a full-fledged Windows 10 on smartphones with Intel Atom processors, but Intel has curtailed their production, and now Microsoft is relying on Qualcomm, whose new chips support Windows 10 and DirectX 12 at the hardware level. ARM chips will be be embedded in both smartphones and laptops, while thanks to the Andromeda project, the system will adapt to the device, it will even be possible to run x86 applications thanks to the emulator of this architecture.

Switching to another mobile system or staying on Windows 10 Mobile is up to you. I am by no means defending Microsoft, since it is they who are mostly to blame for the mobile market, but even now this system suits me completely. There are plenty of applications in the store, the protection is pretty good on a smartphone. What else do you need to use? If you still play toys on your phone, and there are no necessary games on this OS, then most likely Windows Mobile did not suit you initially. I repeat once again - the system is not dead and yet, perhaps, it can even surprise with something.

Many gadget owners often wonder how to install Windows 10 on a mobile phone if it supports the new product. The answer is quite simple, Microsoft developers have released a version of OS Windows Phone 10 specifically for smartphones. However, not all gadgets support it. Therefore, let's look at examples of how to install Windows 10 Mobile on unsupported smartphones and compatible devices.

How to install Windows 10 Mobile on Nokia Lumia?

Since Microsoft bought the Nokia Lumia brand, the new Windows Phone 10 operating system was immediately adapted to these devices. However, this only applies to new Lumia models. Old smartphones that were released by Nokia are not included in the list of compatible devices, which can be viewed on the official website of the developer.

If your mobile phone is compatible with Windows 10 and you decide to install a new operating system, then follow the instructions:

We charge the device to 100%. The battery of the gadget must be full.

• Personal data may be deleted during installation. Therefore, we copy everything you need to a USB flash drive or computer.
• We follow the link to the official website of the developer and register in the customer support program.

A new page will appear. We go down and accept the terms of the license agreement. We press "Send".

Now we go to the Windows Phone Store and download the program for evaluating the new OS.

After installing the application, you should click "Get preview builds".

In the next window, you need to sign in to your Microsoft account.

After that, the version of the update will appear in the Windows Insider program (the very first line). You need to go to the gadget settings, select the "Update" item. It will start searching for updates. Installation will take up to 30 minutes or more.

If you don't like the new operating system or if critical errors occur, you should connect the device to a PC and download the Windows Phone Recovery Tool and restore Windows Phone 8.

IMPORTANT! After installing a new OS on the phone, there may be problems with language packs, connecting to a Wi-Fi network, an alarm clock and a calendar, and other standard programs. They will have to be downloaded from the Store again.

How do I install Windows 10 Mobile on unsupported devices?

The question of how to install Windows 10 on a mobile phone is of interest to many. Therefore, we suggest that you read the instructions for installing the OS on unsupported devices.

IMPORTANT! All actions you perform at your own peril. It is worth copying all the data from the phone. The manual is intended for Lumia models manufactured by Nokia.

What is necessary?

A device that has Interop Unlock with Registry Editor or just has Registry Editor installed.

• A utility for editing the WP SDK8.0 registry if there is no Interop Unlock installed.
• Utility CustomPFD Registry Editor for hacking Windows Phone 8.

Instruction

On unsupported Lumia, run the CustomPFD Registry Editor.

• We follow the branch HKLM/SYSTEM/Platform/DeviceTargetingInfo.
• We find the parameters (strings): PhoneHardwareVariant, PhoneManufacturer, PhoneManufacturerModelName, PhoneModelName and write down their values ​​on a sheet so that in case of an error these parameters can be returned back.
• The following values ​​need to be replaced:

PhoneHardwareVariant on RM-1085

PhoneManufacturer at MicrosoftMDG

PhoneModelName on Lumia 950 XL

PhoneManufacturerModelName on RM-1085_11302

We return to the "Insight" program (we wrote above how to install it). Choose a slow update circle.

• We are waiting for the download to finish and reboot the device (in the classical way, no pulling out the batteries and pressing the buttons).
• Ready. Windows 10 Mobile is installed on your device. For more detailed instructions on how to install Windows 10 on your phone, see the video.

How to install Windows 10 Mobile over Android OS?

Before trying to install Windows 10 on Android, there are a few key points to consider:

Not all smartphone processor chips support the Microsoft operating system.

• Windows Phone 7, 8 only support ARM and i386 processors. Things are different with Windows 10.
• The new operating system requires a lot of memory. Weak gadgets should not be flashed under Windows 10, as you can damage the old OS beyond the possibility of recovery.

Instructions for installing Windows 10 over Android will be as follows:

Download the sdl.zip archive.

• Download the sdlapp.apk program.
• Install the application on the phone.
• Extract the archive data to the SDL folder.
• Copy the system image file to the same directory (usually c.img).
• We start the utility.
• We are waiting for the installation to finish.
• We reboot the device.
• Ready.

It is important to note that we do not recommend installing a Microsoft product on Android. Operating systems may conflict and damage to the device itself is possible. If you are eager to learn how to install Windows 10 on an Android phone, then it is worth noting that it is better to wait for the official method or change your phone altogether. That will be more reliable.

For detailed instructions on installing Windows 10 on Android, see the video.

The latest mobile operating system Windows 10 Mobile, designed for smartphones and small tablets, has been released. It is a stripped-down version of Microsoft's new operating system for personal computers - Windows 10.
And now you will find out what the new Windows 10 Mobile (which some also call Windows Phone 10) is like.

• History of appearance
• Supported Devices
• Conclusion

History of Windows 10 Mobile

Microsoft will go down in history as the company that started the custom software market. For a long time she held the undeniable leadership in this segment, which led to some stagnation. In the relatively recent past, the situation began to change, and various mobile devices began to fully compete with desktop computers. At the start of this process, Microsoft looked pretty decent: the first versions of Windows Mobile for PDAs successfully competed with Symbian and Palm OS, taking tasty pieces of the market pie from them. But in the future, the process began to decline: Apple became the unspoken standard in the world of smartphones with its IOS, and Google began to introduce its Android into almost all available devices. The importance of this opposition has been exacerbated by the fact that various forms of information devices have become combined through cloud technologies, multilateral synchronization and other things. And if Microsoft abandoned this market, then sooner or later it would be forced out of its native niche - the supply of corporate software for desktop PCs.


The first attempts to win back lost positions were Windows Phone 7 and Phone 8. The critical mistake of the "seven" was the inability to upgrade to a new version of the OS. Those users who were quite satisfied with this operating system had to purchase new devices only because of the moral obsolescence of their smartphones. There was a situation in which Microsoft simply could not collect all of its potential customers. The eighth version of Windows took into account this shortcoming, and a number of important updates were released for it. Many Lumia models produced under the Nokia and Microsoft brands with Windows Phone 8 and 8.1 installed on them are now enjoying great success, which even surpassed Apple products in sales in a number of countries. And to the delight of their owners, the eight can now be upgraded to Windows 10 Mobile.

The first official information about Win10 Mobile began to appear back in 2014. Since then, 5 versions of this OS have been presented for various devices. Its current build is 10.0.10586.11 (Build 10586).

User interface (management) Windows 10 Mobile

After starting the operating system, the user can see the traditional lock screen of the device (by default it is blue).

To unlock the device and start working with it, you need to slide your finger on this blue screen from the bottom edge of the screen up and then the desktop with shortcuts (tiles) of programs will appear and it will be possible to start interacting with the device.

The appearance of the lock screen and its features have not changed much compared to how it looked in the previous version.

In the lock screen settings, you can choose the applications whose information and notifications will be displayed on this screen.
You can also set the time for the device to switch from displaying this screen to super economical sleep mode (screen off), in which, by the way, notifications from assigned applications are also displayed on the dimmed display.

Also in these settings it is possible to set a pin code to unlock the phone to continue working with it, which will protect your information in it from prying eyes.

As you can see, it is possible to change the background image to some of your own, after downloading it to the device. It is also possible simply, without changing the background, to choose the most pleasant color.

Incidentally, this feature is the first noticeable difference in this new version of the mobile OS from Microsoft.
This is the so-called “customization” (individual setting) of the background image for the lock screen, desktop, and even for each group of applications.

You can control Windows 10 Mobile using the device screen, your fingers, on-screen control buttons and special navigation and control buttons in applications (programs).

On-screen control buttons 3.

The arrow on the left returns you to the previous screen or to the previous browser page.

The window button in the center terminates the current application and returns to the desktop.

The "magnifying glass" on the right starts the search.
By default (on factory settings), pressing it opens a browser with a cursor already set on the search line of our Yandex system. In the settings, then it will be possible to change it to the Microsoft Bing service, which, in my opinion, is not relevant in our country.

Some features are still enabled by pressing the physical buttons on the device that has Windows 10 Mobile installed.

For example, on any modern device there is a power on / off button.
By the way, it is not possible to quickly reboot a device with Windows 10 Mobile or perform any other actions with its help. You can only turn it off and then on again.
But if you press this button simultaneously with the volume up button, you will take a snapshot of the current screen (screenshot) of your device.

The name of the long volume rocker button speaks for itself.

Notification Center

The ergonomics of the notification center have evolved quite a lot. The number of possible notifications in the top bar has increased, and there is a special icon to access the entire list of notifications. You can react to quick notifications immediately in this panel. In this photo, there are no notifications from applications yet, they are arranged vertically starting from the place where you see the text “No notifications”.
And, as you can see, from this center you can enable or disable the main functions of your device.
The inclusion of "Flashlight", by the way, is nowhere else, except for this center.

An interesting and convenient Continuum function has appeared, which allows you to use your smartphone as a personal computer. You simply connect it to your PC and your smartphone's desktop appears on a large monitor. And then you work with it as you are used to: using a mouse and a regular keyboard.

The touch keyboard is one of the key control tools of any smartphone and tablet.
Its role is especially great in this version of the OS, since at the moment there are no applications that duplicate its functions. An important innovation was the key for quickly moving through the text, which, using four arrows, allows you to quickly get to the required fragment.

Keyboards for sending SMS and taking notes in OneNote

As you can see, in two different applications, the keyboards are slightly different and tailored to their specific needs.

For devices with a large screen, it is possible to move the virtual keyboard to any of the edges of the screen, which makes it possible to type text with one finger. The second novelty in this area is the speed dialing of digital and additional characters. To access this function, you must hold one of the keys on the top row of the layout.

Windows Phone 10, like the eighth version, allows you to group “tiles” of various programs and their groups on the desktop by simply dragging them on top of each other and, if necessary, resizing them.

You can also change the transparency of these "tiles" in the way that suits you best.

The OS for the European and American markets is equipped with Cortana voice search, but Russian consumers will not yet be able to enjoy this innovation.

Compared to the 8.1 version of the OS, the Windows background 10 settings are much easier to figure out, it is clear that the designers took into account the wishes of users.
By reducing the font size, the context menu has become more compact, which has a positive effect on the convenience of working with it.
The main settings of the operating system are available through the "Settings" shortcut, which can be found by clicking "All Apps" at the bottom of the desktop.

Software included with Windows 10 Mobile

As you can see, there are already several “tiles” for launching programs (applications) available in this OS on the desktop. But, of course, not everything fit on it.
To see everything that is in Windows 10 Mobile, find the link “All applications” at the very bottom of the desktop in the right corner, clicking on which will take you to the list of all installed applications.
Just like in the previous version, ten sorts them alphabetically.
Below you can see all the programs installed in the system by default.

All Apps - Continued

All apps - end of list

Some applications immediately, at the time of the first launch, start trying to download (download) the program itself, that is, in fact, these are just shortcuts for their initial installation.
Moreover, in order to start downloading and installing them, you will first have to log in to your existing Microsoft account or create (register) a new one.

This list of applications contains one very useful application for everyone - “Lumia help + tips” (since I got acquainted with this OS in a Lumia brand smartphone).
I recommend that you immediately contact him if you have any questions about managing this OS and your device.
It also has a “User Guide”, a section with answers to “Frequently Asked Questions”, “Tips”, and even a video with instructions.
I hope that devices of other brands with this OS will also have a similar help system.

Also in the OS there is a program for contacting Microsoft technical support, which I also recommend contacting with any questions and problems.

Technical support

The menu of calls (calls) in the "Phone" application has also been seriously redesigned. Now users have access to three panels: dialing, speed dialing and history.

Journal and dial pad

Windows 10 Mobile finally has a search for the right contacts, which even old mobile phones have long boasted. The principle of its operation is known to everyone: we type the first letters or numbers of the contact, and all suitable options are automatically provided to us.

There is also a separate application for working with contacts, which has a concise name "People". Its feature is close integration with Skype and other social services. For example, all contacts from your Skype account are automatically exported to this application. You can also make video calls directly from it.

The browser is one of the most important programs for a mobile device. In the first versions of Windows 10 mobile, there were two of them: the classic Internet Explorer and the fresh Spartan (Edge). But in the last version provided for review, the long-suffering IE was completely cut out.

Microsoft Edge browser

The new Microsoft Edge browser has all the most advanced features. Particular attention is paid to user safety, for which there are a number of modes:
DoNotTrack - prohibits surveillance by various sites.
InPrivate - removes all traces of user activity on the Internet.
SmartScreen - automatically filters potentially dangerous resources.

Separately, it is worth noting the function of predicting user behavior, which automatically loads the page that is supposed to be visited next. Also implemented is the ability to view videos in full screen mode and a special mode for more comfortable reading of the text on the page.

To work with custom photo and video materials, a separate application "Gallery" has been created, which can be synchronized with the OneDrive cloud service.

Microsoft borrowed a number of applications from Nokia, which were slightly redesigned and presented in the new version of Windows Phone 10. At the same time, both original and modified programs are initially available. This primarily applies to the following applications:
The camera is a handy tool for working with the built-in camera of a smartphone.
Maps - navigation on various maps. There is a possibility of voice control using Cortana.

Camera - settings

Maps application

The Live mail application has been replaced with the familiar Outlook Mail, which is closely related to the Calendar organizer.
Both applications are organically intertwined, giving a convenient opportunity to quickly work with events and letters. At the moment, both of these programs are far from perfect and contain many shortcomings. It's extremely difficult to set up more than one account in an email client, and there are no "Month" and "Week" tabs in the organizer, and these are just a couple of examples from a long list of bugs and shortcomings.

By default, the famous Microsoft office programs are not installed in the system, each of them can be ordered separately in the built-in application store. All of them are completely standalone, but are part of the new Office for Windows 10 package. This version of Office will primarily focus on cross-platform. The developers tried to ensure that documents created on different devices would look the same on each of them. For this purpose, a complex synchronization system was developed using OneDrive, SharePoint and DropeBox cloud services.

Below you can see a couple of screenshots of the well-known Microsoft Word text editor.

As you can see, its appearance is noticeably different from the desktop version. On the right screen below you see the font change mode, which appears when a part of the text is selected. Not all possible settings are visible here, which will appear if you move up the lower part of the program screen.

Another important innovation is the function of connecting to wireless printers, which, however, have special technical requirements: support for PCLm, Raster, and so on.

Also naturally in Windows Phone 10 there are built-in audio and media players. But their functionality practically does not differ from analogues for the previous version of this OS. And through them, it is still possible to purchase various legal content using the built-in application store.

By the way, the redesigned app store clearly traces the heritage of Google Play for Android. Its structure has become much more thoughtful and understandable compared to WinPhone 8.

Another important innovation in Windows 10 Mobile is the presence of a built-in file explorer. It displays the same folder and file structure that previously could only be seen when the device was connected to a PC. It also supports all standard functions such as creating a folder or file, copying and pasting. For most common file types, the system already has programs installed by default. For the most part, this applies to various pictures, videos and music.

Conductor

Other standard applications have also been slightly improved.

For example, the calculator can now convert various values ​​and has a couple of advanced modes.

And the watch has got a timer and a stopwatch.

And now the user of Windows Phone 10 has the ability to record sound directly using a voice recorder.

Supported Devices

At present, the Microsoft Lumia 950, 950 XL and 550 smartphones have already gone on sale, in which the new Windows 10 Mobile is already installed, however, it is still in its test version.

In the near future, Xiaomi Mi4 communicators, as well as mobile devices of the Xiaomi Mi Note line, will start selling this OS.

Also, the new Japanese smartphone NuAns NEO with the new Windows Background 10 on board will soon be on sale.

Presented new Acer Liquid M320 and Jade Primo with this OS, as well as Alcatel Fierce XL.

Almost all owners of devices with Windows Phone 8.1. will be able to upgrade their devices to the new version of Win10 Mobile. To do this, the smartphone must have at least 8 GB of internal memory.
If we talk about specific models, then it will be possible to update the models of the Lumia line with the numbers: 430, 435, 532, 535, 540, 635, 640, 735, 830 and 930.

Conclusion

Initially, version 10 of the mobile Windows OS was supposed to be available for download in the fall of 2015, but later the deadlines shifted and now the developer promises to present his new operating system in December this year.
However, many people began testing it a long time ago as part of the Windows Insider program, and already more than seven percent of all users of Microsoft mobile operating systems are actually using Windows 10 Mobile in their devices.

Many experts, based on the analysis of early versions of this system, express the opinion that the main goal of the software giant in the smartphone market is inexpensive models that will be actively distributed in developing countries. But at the same time, the absence of a flagship model can lead to a serious loss of position among US users, who are traditionally the most devoted fans of Microsoft products. At the same time, even in the low-budget Windows segment, phones have a serious competitor in the face of a variety of Android devices. At the same time, Google's OS is superior to Windows not only in terms of technical parameters, but in many cases it can also offer more favorable price solutions.
Windows Phone 10 could also be a replacement for the vanishing Blackberry if Microsoft acquires the company and all its developments.

A number of other experts believe that the giant from Redmond should direct its main efforts to conquer the corporate sector. Microsoft has a strong tradition in this area, because it started here and still various companies and organizations are the main consumers of their products. For progress in this sector, the IT corporation has everything you need: many years of experience, specialized services, extensive relationships with product suppliers and an extensive client base.

In any case, Microsoft has not yet lost this battle and, apparently, is not going to give up.
It still remains one of the leading enterprises in the world of the IT industry, has gigantic financial capabilities, and at any moment can make a serious qualitative leap and outperform all competitors. Sometimes being a lagging behind can bring benefits: there is enough time to analyze your own mistakes, the experience of competitors and find their strengths and weaknesses.

The future of Windows 10 Mobile has been a hot topic among fans and critics ever since Microsoft announced that Windows 10 Mobile development will move to and stay in the feature2 branch. While Microsoft has said the change is minor, Windows Central resource sources paint a different story; development of Windows 10 Mobile was separated from the rest of Windows 10 on other platforms. But why?

Microsoft separated the development of Windows 10 Mobile from the rest of Windows 10 because Windows 10 Mobile is no longer required for what Microsoft has planned for Windows on mobile devices. Sources suggest that Microsoft's next mobile device will run what the company calls Andromeda OS internally; a version of Windows that aims to be modular enough to run on any form factor and, as a result, eliminates the need for the Windows 10 Mobile edition. So Microsoft no longer needs a Windows-specific version of Windows 10, which means that Windows 10 Mobile is now redundant.

This is great news, except for one important detail; existing Windows smartphones will not receive updates to this "Andromeda OS".

feature2 branch

According to the sources, the feature2 branch exists to continue supporting what Microsoft's internal documentation calls "legacy ARM chipsets" for the next year and a half. The main goal of the feature2 branch is to continue servicing Windows 10 mobile devices through 2018 with bug fixes, security updates, and new enterprise-specific features. It is also reported that Microsoft will support the new UWP APIs that will be introduced in Redstone 3 and Redstone 4 on PC.

The reason these APIs are "backward" and not originally introduced is because the feature2 branch is technically Redstone 2 (but it's frozen). When Microsoft split Windows 10 Mobile into feature2, it also froze OneCore development in Redstone 2. Now, given that Windows 10 Mobile won't recreate the rest of Windows 10 development, that means Windows 10 Mobile will support Redstone 2 for the remainder of the own life.

So, to compensate, Microsoft will be supporting the new UWP APIs that will be introduced in Redstone 3 and Redstone 4. This means that if an app developer targets any new UWP APIs that will be introduced in the next couple of Windows 10 releases, those apps will continue to work with feature2 Windows 10 Mobile. This should give Windows 10 Mobile an extra boost to life in the next year or so.

That is why the Skip Ahead setting for Windows 10 mobile devices does not exist. There is simply nothing to miss. The only development of Windows 10 Mobile is Redstone 2.

It is indeed true that Microsoft continued to compile builds of Redstone 3 for Windows 10 Mobile for a while, but only to continue developing CShell on smaller engineering devices. However, sources have said that this is no longer the case as of last month as CShell will not be available for existing Windows smartphones. It's also worth noting that Microsoft's efforts to bring new APIs to Windows 10 Mobile are only planned until Redstone 4, but that could change.

App support won't last forever

Once the APIs stop receiving hits, Windows 10 Mobile devices will very quickly fall behind the rest of Windows 10 when it comes to supporting UWP apps. As developers start integrating the new APIs coming with Redstone 5, these apps won't be able to run on feature2 with Windows 10 Mobile, meaning devices like the Lumia 950 and HP Elite x3 will quickly lose support. applications. Microsoft may continue to serve Windows 10 Mobile with security updates in 2018.

Microsoft will continue to release production builds of Windows 10 Mobile (outside of the Insider Program) and may also continue to align them with PC releases such as the Fall Creators Update. But since development is split between Mobile and Desktop, Microsoft can choose to release mobile updates on its own schedule if it wants to.

In short, Microsoft will support Windows 10 Mobile for the foreseeable future to serve the remaining users.