There has been a lot of confusing and rumours out there that, would the existing Windows Phone 7.5 devices will be getting the much awaited Windows Phone 8 update or not.
And there has been little conformation from Microsoft that these devices would not be upgraded to the Windows Phone 8, thanks to the lacking hardware the OS would need as it uses ‘different chipset’ than those present on the current devices.
The news comes in from a German Business Week article which has quoted sources from within Nokia and Microsoft which says that the current devices would not get the update and would have to settle for a Windows Phone 7.7 or 7.8 update which would be a stripped down version of the Windows Phone 8. It said, “An update is not technically possible because Windows Mobile 8 uses different chip sets.”
A Microsoft manager was quoted saying, “If people have the same functions on their smartphones, they do not care what version number the operating system is.” It seems to be going the Symbian way, where the first generation of the Symbian^3 smartphones like the N8, which have received the Belle update but not the FP1 which arrived with the PureView 808.
On the other hand, we feel that the present owners of Windows Phone 7.5 OS devices should be satisfied with this solution of Microsoft, as this would not make them feel neglected by the company and also they would be able to enjoy at least few features of the OS. We’ll know more on June 20, when Microsoft would give us a sneak-peak into the next-gen of its mobile OS.
What do you feel? If this decision turns out to be true, is it good enough?