Articles about Windows 10 Mobile

Believe it or not, Windows 10 Mobile is already three months old. Microsoft introduced its new smartphone operating system to the public in late-November, last year, when it released Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL. However, an update to Windows 10 Mobile for older devices has yet to make an appearance, forcing users to join the Windows Insider program to sample the goods.

We first heard that Windows 10 Mobile would roll out for popular Windows Phone devices in December, but just before the end of the year Microsoft announced that users would have to wait a bit longer. Now, we have a new official estimate -- is third time the charm?

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When Microsoft purchased Nokia's handset business, it was viewed by many as a way to stop the Finnish company from defecting from Windows Phone. In other words, Microsoft may have thrown money at a problem to prevent embarrassment. Since the purchase, Lumia hardware has been fairly beautiful and affordable, but sales have continued to be abysmal, while Windows 10 Mobile has seen delays.

Despite dark skies in Lumia Land, today Microsoft cranks out yet another handset. The Lumia 650 body is aluminum, and at $199, the phone is affordable too. Unfortunately for Microsoft fans, there is a huge catch that, for many, could make this business-focused smartphone worthless.

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Microsoft has decided to give more information about the updates it releases for Windows 10 by introducing a dedicated update history page on its site, where you can check all the major changes that the software giant includes. And, so that users of its new smartphone operating system are not left in the dark either, Windows 10 Mobile now also gets the same treatment.

However, before you get too excited, just like the update history page for Windows 10 is not exactly filled with all the relevant information you might need, the update history page for Windows 10 Mobile is not yet ready for prime time either.

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It has been over a year since Sony sold off its Vaio brand due to decreased laptop sales, but now it seems that the brand may be making a comeback in the form of a mobile device. The Vaio Phone Biz will be the company’s first smartphone and, surprisingly, it is running Windows 10 Mobile.

Vaio is trying to retain the design and build quality of Sony’s laptops by using high quality materials in its new handset. The Vaio Phone Biz features a very sleek aluminum build with a silver finish.

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The official launch of Windows 10 Mobile may have been delayed, but the preview builds keep on coming. Today Microsoft launches Windows 10 Mobile Insider Preview Build 10586.71, a cumulative update complete with a few extra bug fixes.

Some of the performance-enhancing features of today's build were made available to Insiders on Friday through the Configuration Update, but this is included in this cumulative update. If you're on the Fast Ring, there's another update to download as well -- Insider Fast Configuration Update. This ensures that future flights will be downloaded by updating expiring certificates.

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After Microsoft revealed that Windows phone revenue fell 49 percent and Lumia sales dropped to 4.5 million units last quarter, disingenuous headlines like "Windows Phone is dead" started to show up. Believe it or not, some pundits actually believe that Q4 was the quarter when the platform met its end, like it did not "die" a long, long time ago.

Objectively speaking, Windows Phone was never relevant enough in the modern smartphone market to be truly alive. Lumia sales, which have typically accounted for the vast majority of Windows Phone sales each quarter, were never strong enough to pose a threat to the iPhone line or let alone the Android crop. Windows Phone was a feeble player from the start, which lost any real chance of mattering years ago, outside of the Microsoft crowd that is.

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Yesterday, TripAdvisor made a couple of announcements. The first was innocuous enough, letting people know that there was now a TripAdvisor app for Windows 10 available to download for free. Lovely stuff, if you like that sort of thing. The second announcement is less pleasing. It will be "pre-loaded on millions of Windows 10 compatible devices".

This is clearly going to be something that divides opinion, but I don't think I'm alone in thinking that padding out Windows 10 Mobile with crapware might not be the best way to attract users. There's no denying that TripAdvisor can prove useful -- it's helped me to make dining decisions on more than one occasion -- but pre-installed apps are rarely, if ever, a good idea, and Microsoft is hardly in a possible to put a (nother) foot wrong with Windows 10.

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Joe Belfiore is now on a break from his job at Microsoft, taking an "educational trip" across the globe with his family. Given that Belfiore "runs the team building Phone/Tablet/PC versions of Windows" you might expect him to use a Windows phone to share updates with his followers as, after all, most are Windows enthusiasts.

However, Belfiore is publicly using an iPhone, and he expects his fans to be OK with it. You do not see Jony Ive, for instance, rocking an Android smartphone or a Windows 10 Mobile device, because that would not make the iPhone look like the best smartphone there is. So why would it be fine for Belfiore to use a rival's device?

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At the moment, Microsoft is all about Windows 10. Such is the company's focus on its desktop operating system, that you would be forgiven for forgetting that Windows 10 Mobile is on the way as well. But here Microsoft has a problem. Not only has Windows 10 Mobile failed to infiltrate the public consciousness, those who are aware of the impending release are singularly indifferent to it.

Clearly Microsoft is not happy about this, but there's not much that can be done to force people into using Windows 10 Mobile (although given the company's track record with pushing Windows 10 to desktops, nothing would come as a surprise). Instead, Microsoft is having to content itself by spreading cancerously to iOS and Android, spreading the diseases of Cortana, the Word Flow keyboard and more to rival platforms.

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If you are looking for another reason to purchase one of Microsoft's Windows 10 Mobile flagships, the software giant has just announced that it is now offering a free, one-year subscription to Office 365 Personal to Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL users.

The offer cannot only be redeemed by new customers, but also by existing users. There is one caveat though: it only applies to users in a select number of markets. Here is what you need to know.

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Continuum is one of the novel features that Microsoft has baked into Windows 10 Mobile. This enables users to essentially turn their smartphone into a more basic PC, using a Display Dock to connect the usual pieces of hardware -- a mouse, keyboard and monitor.

I say "more basic" because the device is severely limited in the number of apps it can display at the same time, as well as the type of apps that it can run: proper Windows software is out of the question with current hardware, only apps designed for Windows 10 Mobile are supported. But, now that Microsoft has introduced Continuum support in the Remote Desktop client preview, this feature is much more useful, and offers a more compelling argument for giving Windows 10 Mobile a chance.

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Microsoft plans to give Windows 10 users another option to speed up the process of unlocking their PCs. The software giant has introduced an app that enables remote authentication using a Windows 10 Mobile device.

Called Microsoft Authenticator, the app is currently undergoing internal testing and it seems to be designed with enterprise users in mind. Microsoft likely wants to make it easier to deal with complex passwords, which are recommended for meeting certain security guidelines.

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Microsoft has promised that Windows Insiders get Windows 10 builds faster in 2016, and it's Windows 10 Mobile users who get the first release of the new year. It's a few weeks since the release of build 10586.36 and now build 10586.63 is available for those on the Fast Ring.

You might expect from the relatively small jump in version numbers that this is something of a minor update -- and you'd be right. But despite the somewhat trifling nature of the changes, this release is noteworthy for a fluffed launch.

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Windows 10 Mobile is a curious thing. While the underlying operating system is fine, the lack of apps is just a massive deal-breaker for some. Look, I am not rooting against it -- the more platforms the merrier -- but consumers spend real money on these smartphones and it just isn't the best experience for their buck right now. With that said, the number of quality apps has been increasing, so for some consumers, it could be a valid option.

Today, Acer officially announces a really beautiful Windows 10 Mobile smartphone -- the Liquid Jade Primo. Believe it or not, this is a premium offering, unlike the horrendously cheap Liquid M220. Actually, it is extremely beautiful, with impressive specs too. Has Acer outdone Microsoft? Is it the new top Windows 10 Mobile smartphone?

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Microsoft is doing something about its smartphones business and according to the company’s CMO, it is something revolutionary, shocking, breathtaking.

I’m not being cynical here, I’m just reporting -- that’s the best part.

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