14 DAY TRIAL // The owners of Windows Phone 8 smartphones should start receiving the next flavor of Microsoft’s mobile operating system as soon as next month, info coming from Australian wireless carrier Telstra unveils.
The update, spotted online before as Windows Phone 8 GDR2 (General Distribution Release), is now said to be expected for testing in the wireless carrier’s labs sometime in the second week of July, which suggests that the actual deployment might kick off before the end of the month.
As WMPoweruser notes, the operator expects the new software to arrive for testing for Nokia’s Lumia 920 smartphone first, around July 8, and to be delivered for the same purposes for the other devices in its lineup (Lumia 520, HTC 8X, and HTC 8S) one week later.
No specific info on when the update will begin rolling out to users has been provided, but chances are that all will happen in only a few weeks, should the testing go as planned.
Most probably, Telstra is only one of the wireless carriers preparing the release of this update, and others will also have the software ready for their customers in July.
Furthermore, the update should start arriving on unlocked smartphones around the same time, although Microsoft has yet to offer specific details on the timing.
For those out of the loop, we should note that Windows Phone 8 GDR2 is said to pack some appealing enhancements over the previous platform release, including FM Radio, as well as support for CalDav and CardDAV.
Should the info prove correct and Microsoft is set to start delivering the update next month, users should know that not all of them will get a taste of it right from the beginning, since it will most probably be a phased rollout.
However, the software will arrive on all devices in a matter of weeks after the deployment starts, so stay tuned to learn more on the matter.