WP8.1 reviewed by several websites.
WPCentral
TheVerge
PhoneArena
Anandtech
Engadget
CNET
PocketNow
IGN
ETC
Yes this preview is for public consumption, this is the
real deal. The "real dev preview" is the Windows Phone SDK, so devs can prepare for the release of Windows Phone 8.1. If you're waiting for the so called "official release" that's the carriers official release and not Microsoft's.
I hate it when a mod of a forum spread wrong info. See page 1 of this thread.
Either you are not a techy or you are just a kid. Wrong info? Nothing said is wrong. Dev Preview VS Real Deal has been explained in plain words. English.
Read deal is an OS update, tweaked by manufacturers or modified or bulked upon by firmware update. If you want to come along and show me a list of sites that have reviewed "Windows Phone 8.1 Developer Preview" to highlight features of "Windows Phone 8.1 OS" sure do. But that still doesn't equate to real deal. The real update for general public is an OS+Firmware. RTM - doesn't equate to final version. The full form for RTM is released to manufacturers/for manufacturing. That means the software is ready as it is on Microsoft front. But unless firmware update is bundled by specific OEMs, that OS won't run on hardwares without bugs. Now go and look at stickies on the forum. These stickies have been read post by post by moderating team here and have been evaluated for FREE (yeah, we don't earn money here) for the benefit of community to make it simpler to understand what bugs are in OS, what bugs are firmware related.
So no "official release" is not carrier official release. It is the release from OEMs to carriers then to manufacturers. The work completes when manufacturers, test it, tweak it, make and add new drivers, firmware for each and every hardware running the OS and then it goes to carrier so that they can add their share of radio tweakings to make it compatible with their network and then goes to you, me and everyone else.
Probably, learn to hate less, learn more.
wow you are in for a big ball of disappointment. Firmware can't work miracles, which is what 8.1 needs at this point.
Refer to what I suggested up there. Yes, firmware will fix - glance screen, battery, phone heat up, 3G/4G radios, WiFi, GPS, touch, double tap, speaker sounds etc - these features are out there where people think it is the OS that's broken.
The real problem here is only IE11 and Music Hub that Microsoft needs to fix. Music hub update is in pipeline. IE11, we have to probably wait till GDR1 in July.