With new devices inbound, Windows Phone 8.1 hits RTM status

[Scorpus]

In the coming week at BUILD in San Francisco, Microsoft is set to officially take the wraps off Windows Phone 8.1, which the company has been working on for some time. The major update to Windows Phone 8 has been released to manufacturing (RTM) over the past few days, meaning OEMs now have a final version of the OS in their hands.

It's expected that new devices running Windows Phone 8.1 will be released towards the end of April. We're expecting to see a few new devices from Nokia, such as the Lumia 630, Lumia 930 and maybe a Lumia 530, plus the Samsung Ativ SE, and a new Windows Phone from HTC based on the One M8's hardware.

All existing devices running Windows Phone 8 will be eligible to run Windows Phone 8.1, Microsoft announced back at MWC 2014. Whether or not a handset gets the update will be up to the carriers, although the Windows Phone 8.1 Developer Preview should give enthusiasts access to the update regardless.

Numerous Windows Phone 8.1 features have been leaked over the past few months, including the 'Action Center', an interactive Siri-like voice recognition tool called 'Cortana', on-screen buttons, and a redesigned Windows Phone Store. There will also be several other tweaks, and potentially some features Microsoft has yet to announce.

Windows Phone 8 was first released at the end of 2012, and a major update is long overdue. Since 2012 we've seen incremental updates bring a few new features and support for new hardware, but Windows Phone 8.1 is sure to deliver the most impressive Windows Phone package yet.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/56187-with-new-devices-inbound-windows-phone-81-hits-rtm-status.html

 

[Jad Chaar]

Windows Phone 8.1 sure does have some nice improvements. Really excited to see how it works out.

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

And here I am still waiting for a Kit Kat upgrade, when that comes is anyone's guess.

 

[TheLastPanda]

And here I am still waiting for a Kit Kat upgrade, when that comes is anyone's guess.

I know how you feel. My cell is a year old and already feels abandoned. Rooting is always an option though.

 

[VitalyT]

This is a significant milestone for the OS. Although I'm not using a Windows phone, not yet anyway, many of my friends are, and have been quite happy with those.

One thing reassuring is when MS says it hits RTM it is really ready, not just on paper, like with Blackberry, uBuntu or any other LameOS. They do pay good attention to detail, such as security, performance, usability and cross-device compatibility.

It is also the only mobile OS that actually uses 100% of the hardware on which it is installed, not some BS 8-core that's underused 99% of the time.

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

I know how you feel. My cell is a year old and already feels abandoned. Rooting is always an option though.

Nah. I'll just wait.

 

[Jibberish18]

And here I am still waiting for a Kit Kat upgrade, when that comes is anyone's guess.

Don't feel anxious. HTC upgraded us (HTC One) to KitKat a few weeks back and it honestly feels like a botched and rushed job. I exaggerate to you in no way when I say I have hard reset and wipe partitioned my phone 15+. I kept getting random bugs that were not around in 4.3. This includes having terrible battery compared to before. This seems to be a bug with KitKat in general though as many people are complaining about it.

 

[gamoniac]

And here I am still waiting for a Kit Kat upgrade, when that comes is anyone's guess.

Don't feel anxious. HTC upgraded us (HTC One) to KitKat a few weeks back and it honestly feels like a botched and rushed job. I exaggerate to you in no way when I say I have hard reset and wipe partitioned my phone 15+. I kept getting random bugs that were not around in 4.3. This includes having terrible battery compared to before. This seems to be a bug with KitKat in general though as many people are complaining about it.

I guess not receiving KitKat is a good thing. I had an Android phone (Samsung) and tablet (Lenovo). Both were abandoned by the manufacturers only months after my purchases as far as software updates go. I since then jumped ship to Nokia 920 and never looked back. It even comes with MS Office and it does not slow down after a few updates, unlike my Android devices. I really don't see why WP won't gain market share the way things go.

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

Only months? You can count yourself lucky.

I guess not receiving KitKat is a good thing. I had an Android phone (Samsung) and tablet (Lenovo). Both were abandoned by the manufacturers only months after my purchases as far as software updates go. I since then jumped ship to Nokia 920 and never looked back. It even comes with MS Office and it does not slow down after a few updates, unlike my Android devices. I really don't see why WP won't gain market share the way things go.

It worked the other way around for me, I ditched my Win 8 Nokia 625 for a Galaxy S4 Mini and I've never looked back. I'm not overly fussed about Kit Kat, JB works just fine, I was just remarking.