Windows 10 Mobile - Build 10586 - Release
On Nov 18, MS released Windows 10 Mobile build 10586 - the release version of TH2 for Mobile devices.
The release coordinates with the availability of the new 5 series Lumia devices the 950 & 950XL and also synchronizes build numbers with Windows 10 Desktop.
In an earlier post on Nov 1, I mistakenly stated that 10581 was the "RTM" release. But then I started reading from other sources that 10586 was the build that would be on the 5 series and was wondering when it would show up for Windows Insiders. Well now it has.
As with all recent Windows 10 Mobile builds - I installed it on both a Lumia 735 and 635. In both cases the download and install went flawlessly. And while MS did post a potential issue with upgrading over 10581 that had performed a reset, I had not done that, so was good to go.
But it is a little disconcerting that MS was still having those types of issues this late in the game. Also at this point it's harder to spot all of the fixes. At least MS did list them this time, but some seemed very esoteric and probably targeted to specific models.
I also noticed today a number of native app updates including the Store, Movies & TV, Groove, Photos, XBox, etc. And I've also noticed one consistent nuisance bug which is that when you go to "All Apps" several of the MS native apps, like News, Weather, Insider Hub, etc are listed but have a blank colored icon.
I do have to applaud MS for keeping their word of making Windows 10 Mobile available to legacy devices. From threads I have read on popular sites, most folks are able to upgrade including those with 2 series devices, so 920, 1020, etc, and as I mentioned have had no issue with my 3 series devices.
Overall, Windows 10 Mobile is a pretty big improvement over Windows 8.1 Mobile and like with Windows 10 desktop, if you want the new versions of the native apps, you have to go there. With that said, the experience is pretty good on the native side. There are common UI elements, like settings that works the same way on Mobile as it does on Desktop, and many of the native apps a very desktop like experience.
In my opinion - if you have a legacy Lumia device and want to improve your experience until your next refresh, then yes make the move to Windows 10 mobile. The real question will be - when you reach that refresh - will you be buying another MS Mobile device ?
MS has had the same challenge with Windows Mobile it has had for a while now and that is the lack of many popular 3rd party apps. And while MS has tried various approaches to make it easy to port iOS/Android apps to Windows Mobile, it doesn't really seem to catching on that well with ISVs. Plus providers like Google will most likely never provide Windows 10 versions of Chrome, YouTube, Maps, etc...
Regardless of any of the potential future plans MS may have around Windows Mobile platforms as I discussed in my post on the Lumia line, until MS can attract the popular app & game ISVs to develop for the platform, Windows Mobile will be delegated to the backwaters of the mobile market.
So now it's on to the Redstone branch. It's going to be interesting to see how long MS is going to continue to support the legacy Lumia line as Windows 10 continues to move forward.
The release coordinates with the availability of the new 5 series Lumia devices the 950 & 950XL and also synchronizes build numbers with Windows 10 Desktop.
In an earlier post on Nov 1, I mistakenly stated that 10581 was the "RTM" release. But then I started reading from other sources that 10586 was the build that would be on the 5 series and was wondering when it would show up for Windows Insiders. Well now it has.
As with all recent Windows 10 Mobile builds - I installed it on both a Lumia 735 and 635. In both cases the download and install went flawlessly. And while MS did post a potential issue with upgrading over 10581 that had performed a reset, I had not done that, so was good to go.
But it is a little disconcerting that MS was still having those types of issues this late in the game. Also at this point it's harder to spot all of the fixes. At least MS did list them this time, but some seemed very esoteric and probably targeted to specific models.
I also noticed today a number of native app updates including the Store, Movies & TV, Groove, Photos, XBox, etc. And I've also noticed one consistent nuisance bug which is that when you go to "All Apps" several of the MS native apps, like News, Weather, Insider Hub, etc are listed but have a blank colored icon.
I do have to applaud MS for keeping their word of making Windows 10 Mobile available to legacy devices. From threads I have read on popular sites, most folks are able to upgrade including those with 2 series devices, so 920, 1020, etc, and as I mentioned have had no issue with my 3 series devices.
Overall, Windows 10 Mobile is a pretty big improvement over Windows 8.1 Mobile and like with Windows 10 desktop, if you want the new versions of the native apps, you have to go there. With that said, the experience is pretty good on the native side. There are common UI elements, like settings that works the same way on Mobile as it does on Desktop, and many of the native apps a very desktop like experience.
In my opinion - if you have a legacy Lumia device and want to improve your experience until your next refresh, then yes make the move to Windows 10 mobile. The real question will be - when you reach that refresh - will you be buying another MS Mobile device ?
MS has had the same challenge with Windows Mobile it has had for a while now and that is the lack of many popular 3rd party apps. And while MS has tried various approaches to make it easy to port iOS/Android apps to Windows Mobile, it doesn't really seem to catching on that well with ISVs. Plus providers like Google will most likely never provide Windows 10 versions of Chrome, YouTube, Maps, etc...
Regardless of any of the potential future plans MS may have around Windows Mobile platforms as I discussed in my post on the Lumia line, until MS can attract the popular app & game ISVs to develop for the platform, Windows Mobile will be delegated to the backwaters of the mobile market.
So now it's on to the Redstone branch. It's going to be interesting to see how long MS is going to continue to support the legacy Lumia line as Windows 10 continues to move forward.
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