Windows Phone is a lesser talked territory when it comes to smartphone. But Windows Phone lovers would love it for their own reasons. Everything has its own pros and cons, its just which pros hold more ground or which cons are negligible. I happen to be one of those rare species who are happy with the pros of Windows Phone as an OS over others. Very recently after long delays Microsoft rolled out Windows Phone 10 update for Windows Phone 8.1 devices. I was certain though my device (Nokia Lumia 730) qualified for the update, Indian users would get the upgrade somewhere around mid Q-2 2016, due to belonging from India, as well as the device being a mid-range phone, not the flagship.
It came as a surprize, that just after a day of the announcement, the Windows Phone 10 was made available to us. It means either Microsoft rolled this update out globally at once, or unlike other smartphone companies they have started taking Indian consumers seriously. Either of the two is a welcoming move by Microsoft. This article is a step by step guide on how to get your Windows 8.1 Mobile updated to Windows Phone 10.
How-to guide: Updating to Windows Phone 10
If you are a proud owner of one of the devices that Microsoft has rolled out the Windows Phone 10 update for, you can proceed further. For others, do not worry, Microsoft is testing for your device too, and soon you might get one. Stay tuned.
Lumia 1520, 930, 640, 640XL, 730, 735, 830, 532, 535, 540, 635 1GB, 636 1GB, 638 1GB, 430, 435, BLU Win HD w510u, BLU Win HD LTE x150q, MCJ Madosma Q501 are the Windows Phone 8.1 devices initially getting the Windows Phone 10 Update.
Step-1:
Back up all your data. Go to Store (Windows Phone App Store). Search for Windows Upgrade Advisor and install it. Make sure you have your phone’s battery charged and internet on. Its a large update hence a WiFi network is preferred.
Step-2:
Open the Upgrade Advisor App, and click next. The app will check for space. In case there’s no adequate space in your phone and/or SD Card it will ask you to take appropriate measures, or free up space. Once done, the app will test for updates.
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Step-3:
If an upgrade is available for your phone, the next screen would make you happy. Go to Settings > Phone Update and scan for updates. New updates would begin to download and install. Last 20% of this process would actually be a lot lengthy, with sudden fluctuations in the phone memory. Some temporary installation file transfers to blame probably. Once downloaded, you will be prompted to install updates. Following which, you’ll get subsequent screens further informing about the nature of update and terms and conditions that you’ll need to accept before proceeding. Once agreed, the phone will restart, and would take about 15-30 minutes depending on your device for the update to install.
Step-4
Well, there isn’t any! Fourth step is taken over by the OS itself, you just have to stare at the screen for a few minutes after the phone reboots and before you can start playing with your phone. You’ll be greeted by the same lock screen, with a popup of all updates being installed, and a progress bar showing data backup in place. It would look like a familiar screen. On closer inspection, you would notice that the icons on the top (signal, wifi, etc) have changed, and the three soft keys on the bottom of the screen have grown thinner. The Windows logo that used to flash while rebooting has grown in size too. More Window-10-ish.
Windows Phone 10 Update: Initial Impressions
Its a newer territory to begin with. It has just hardly been a day since the update, I’m still exploring the list of changes that have taken place. The lock screen has changed its nature, and the bouncy lock screen has gone. Windows Phone users, if you get what I mean. Unlocking still happens via the pin, but the way the keypad appears has changed. All the icons have changed.
The extent of changes are different, but not that drastic. If I were to compare with Android platform changes in terms of UX and UI, a few changes can be compared to the transit of Gingerbread (Android 2.3) to Ice-Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0) meaning moderate, whereas few stuffs having drastically changed, comparable to that of Kitkat (Android 4.4) to Lollypop (Android 5.0). Operation is butter smooth and lag free, something that all Windows Phone users are proud of. For more detailed changes, stay tuned. in the meanwhile, feel free to drop your comments over your queries regarding Windows Phone 10 Update, and Gizmo Times shall be happy to help you with.
