Good times; future fragmentation of Windows Phone

[D M C]

i think all Wp8 devices will get W10.
So, instead of worrying or predicting or guessing it would be better to wait until February when everything would be clear.

Until then enjoy W10 news.

 

[negative1ne]

I wouldn't say "Everybody wants updates."

Personally, and I know quite a few people that feel the same way, if something works the way I need it to, I don't need an update for it.

Most software as it updates over the years tends to just add bloat to it. Some add useful features, and that is welcome. If it already does everything it was intended to do and everything the users need, then there is no need to do further updates.

A lot of software these days, however, seems to be released before it was ready, so that software needs constant updates to bring it up to where it should have been when it was initially released.

And thats why i'm sticking with windows phone 7.8,
because it just works for me.

have yet to see a feature in 8/8.1 that makes it worth it.

nothing in 10 either.

later
-1

 

[Godson Arun Kumar]

This seems absurd. First of all windows 10 isn't going to be as great an update as 8.1 was to 8 for phones. The basic UI stays the same with no extra animations or widgets-like stuff. The major shift is in the universal apps. 8.1 was a heck of an update both in terms of visual animations and usable features and my 520 has stayed sharp through that. I don't see why a current 8.1 512 MB lumia can in any sense of the world not run windows 10. What I do accept is that some of those so called universal apps may demand 1 GB of RAM at least initially which may be optimized later on as has been done with many apps. And why would windows 10 be shown running on a 1520?, that's simple, the 6 inch full hd screen is better visually for being projected at a press event and there are no 512 MB RAM 6 inch screen lumias.

 

[Cleavitt76]

Here is the quote from the MS rep that the OP is referring to...

"Does that mean that today’s Lumia devices can be upgraded to Windows 10?

We’re making it as easy as possible to get Windows 10. Windows 10 has been designed to run well on today’s Lumia phones. Like any upgrade to a new platform, not every phone will upgrade or support all possible Windows 10 features, and certain features and experiences will require more advanced future hardware. Our goal is for the majority of the Lumia phones running Windows Phone 8 and 8.1 to join the Windows ecosystem along with an expected hundreds of millions of PCs, tablets and other devices running the next generation of Windows."​

First, the quote is from a sales exec at MS. It's a mistake to try to infer technical details from someone that is an expert in sales or marketing.

Second, his response is quite vague (again, sales guy) and it makes no mention of 512MB devices at all. The OP is making a huge leap by assuming that 512MB devices are the limitation he is referring to. It could be anything from "Hey Cortana" requiring SD800 series hardware which is already the case in WP8.1, to the faster camera support that is also only supported on current gen flagships in WP8.1, or some other new feature that would only be expected on higher end devices anyway.

Also, even if 512MB devices does turn out to be a major limitation in Windows 10, that still isn't really a good use of the term "fragmentation". This is more of a "legacy hardware" or "hardware limitation" issue than one of fragmentation. I would consider fragmentation to be incompatibilities between current generation software and hardware. This is pretty common in Linux bases OSes and Android because their open source development allows different groups to simultaneously pull them in different and incompatible directions. Limitations caused by obsolete hardware or missing hardware is not the same situation. My laptop's Wifi chipset is too old to support Miracast even though Windows 8.1 supports Miracast. I don't consider that an example of fragmentation though.

 

[Kaushik Dash]

Windows 10 for phone's preview would be in the same state as Windows 10 for desktop was when it was initially made available. There could be more UI changes and internal changes that could change hardware requirement. We may even see the start screen UI change, who knows.

 

[Harrie-S]

Windows 10 for phone's preview would be in the same state as Windows 10 for desktop was when it was initially made available. There could be more UI changes and internal changes that could change hardware requirement. We may even see the start screen UI change, who knows.

I think the first windows 10 phone preview will be much more stable than the windows 10 for PC. (Or at least it should). Users and Microsoft can not afford that a lot of devices will frees/brick or what ever.
So I do not expect a lot of new features in the first preview. But a step by step introduction.

 

[rhapdog]

I would hate it if the Windows 10 for phones restricts Cortana all over again like the Windows 10 TP currently does. Not very much functionality there yet.

Maybe I need to wait until a few other people install it before I do so that I can get that one question answered before I take the plunge.

 

[Kaushik Dash]

I think the first windows 10 phone preview will be much more stable than the windows 10 for PC. (Or at least it should). Users and Microsoft can not afford that a lot of devices will frees/brick or what ever.
So I do not expect a lot of new features in the first preview. But a step by step introduction.

I agree with you.

Is it going to be more stable than the desktop? Yes most likely for the reason you state.
What we see, is it the final UI? Maybe, maybe not. I am sure users will come up with some UI change suggestions in the uservoice and MS will listen to it.
More features? **** yes, there's no way they are going to include only a couple of new features.

 

[fatclue_98]

You're putting what you want on the general population. Most people I know hate updates, "oh, another one! It works just fine how it is right now!". My family, for example, only updates their stuff so they can get rid of notification.

Dude, he got you good. C'mon man!