14 DAY TRIAL // As we reported to you yesterday, the new phones that Microsoft introduced at MWC 2015, namely the Lumia 640 and the Lumia 640 XL, come with Windows Phone 8.1 Update 2 from the very beginning, which is pretty much the first official confirmation that a new update is coming before Windows 10 for phones.
In terms of features, Windows Phone 8.1 GDR2 (Update 2) isn't really exciting, but it seems to be a new step towards Windows 10 for phones, which will completely revamp the operating system and its looks.
Windows Phone 8.1 Update 2 seems to be more like a release supposed to keep devices updated until the new OS version arrives, but there's still no word on when this new update could arrive on all handsets across the world, besides the ones recently launched by Microsoft.
What's new
The first thing you might notice when using a device powered by Windows Phone 8.1 Update 2 is that on the Start screen there's a small “All apps” shortcut that gets you to the app list, so in addition to swiping left, you can also click it to see your apps.
The settings screen is the one that received the biggest changes, as all options are now grouped in categories to easily find them. For instance, the personalization section groups start and theme, ringtones and sounds, lock screen, notifications and actions settings, while network and wireless allows you to set up Wi-Fi connections, NFC and VPN.
App permissions are also available starting with this version and you can control which programs have access to what features of the phone, including calendar, camera, contacts, messaging, and microphone.
Other than that, Windows Phone 8.1 GDR2 is pretty much the same as its predecessor, but there's no doubt that a number of fixes and performance improvements are also part of the package.
We've contacted Microsoft for some words on a potential release date and will update the article accordingly when we get an answer.
