14 DAY TRIAL // Windows 10 Mobile is a dead operating system, right? Right. This is something we’ve heard from pretty much everyone in the last 12 months or so, as Microsoft has pushed the platform to maintenance mode and is waiting for the mid-2019 end-of-support date to completely abandon it.
The last major update that Windows 10 Mobile received was called feature2, and it was more or less a stripped-down version of the Creators Update (version 1703) that was released for PCs with many more features.
What happened next is something that everyone knows. No new updates other than critical security fixes, Microsoft confirming that features and new devices weren’t planned for the Windows 10 Mobile, and the company recommending users to switch to Android or iOS.
And yet, it looks like Microsoft has quietly worked on a new version of the operating system behind the closed doors, as Windows 10 Mobile version 1803 was spotted online this week. As MSPU notes, there’s a new Bluetooth stack for Windows 10 Mobile April 2018 Update, a version that technically, does not exist and which Microsoft has never talked about.
Don’t start the party just yet
So what does this mean for the future of Windows phones? Is Microsoft about to release a major update for Windows 10 Mobile? No. Or maybe Microsoft wants to keep the platform alive for a little longer, and this is a sign that there are better things to come for Windows phone? Certainly not.
On the other hand, there’s a good chance this is just an error, and there’s no such thing as Windows 10 Mobile version 1803. Or if it is, it’s something that Microsoft has been working on internally with no plans on releasing it, other than for enterprises or a limited number of customers probably requesting and willing to pay extra for a series of improvements.
On another front, the public launch of Windows 10 April 2018 Update is projected to begin on Tuesday, so who knows, maybe there’s something coming to Windows phones as well.