The next update for Windows 10 preview supports more than 6 phones

By Kris Wouk Published March 28, 2015

windows 10 build supports more lumia devices 635 0129 — Malarie Gokey/Digital Trends

Last month marked the addition of mobile devices to the Windows 10 Technical Preview, but not many users were actually able to try it due to the small number of devices supported. The next build of Windows 10 will add support for many more phones, Microsoft’s Gabe Aul said in a blog post yesterday.

Currently, only the Lumia 630, 635, 636, 638, 730, and 830 are able to install the Windows 10 preview. Apparently this is due to the partition size required to install the preview. Aul writes that now a technique called “partition stitching” will allow many more phones — a total of 36 — to be supported. The update still leaves many phones out, particularly devices from HTC, Samsung, or any other third party — only Lumia devices will be supported in the new preview build.

Recommended Videos

A few high-profile phones, such as the Lumia 930, are still not listed among the phones that will see support in the new build. Aul mentions that if a device isn’t listed, it’s likely due to a device specific bug, but there is a possibility that more phones may make it into the next flight. In the same spirit, if a device-specific bug is found, that device will be removed from the upcoming flight.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

Even if you can install the Windows 10 preview, you might not necessarily want to. If you’re using a Windows phone as your day-to-day phone, you’ll likely want to hold off on the update for now. “This preview is still very much under development and you’re going to see some rough edges,” Aul wrote last month.

If you own a supported device and want to try the preview, you’ll need to sign up for the Windows Insider program and register your device to receive builds as over-the-air updates. Once a new build is ready, you’ll be prompted to install it, but you can roll your device back to the previous OS at any time.

The full list of phones Microsoft expects to support in the next build of Windows 10, which should come out next week, is below.

Topics

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Kris Wouk is a tech writer, gadget reviewer, blogger, and whatever it's called when someone makes videos for the web. In his…

Computing

Microsoft is forced to halt the Windows 11 24H2 update on some PCs

The Surface Pro 11 on a white table in front of a window.

Microsoft’s recent Windows 11 24H2 update is off to a bumpy start. According to a report by Bleeping Computer, users are facing compatibility issues across various hardware and software configurations, prompting the company to temporarily block the update for some devices.

The affected systems include specific Asus laptop models and configurations involving software like Voicemeeter, Safe Exam Browser, and older versions of Easy Anti-Cheat, commonly used in gaming.

Mobile

A fresh Windows Phone design homage may be coming from HMD

The HMD Skyline's camera.

Human Mobile Devices, better known as HMD, may be doubling down on its efforts to bring back popular Windows Phone designs following the release of the HMD Skyline. A smartphone currently associated with the code name Sage has been leaked on X, formally Twitter, and it has a very familiar look.

It shares the Skyline’s very distinctive, Lumia 920-inspired shape with squared-off shoulders, a flat rear panel insert, and curves at each corner to make the phone more comfortable to hold. The camera module is an island, and sits in the top-left corner of the rear cover. Just like old Lumia Windows Phones, the Sage is shown in several fun colors — a dark green, a blue, and a red. The leaked images show an HMD logo in the center of the phone’s rear.

Computing

Windows 11 to let you use your phone as a webcam

Using an Android phone as a webcam.

The Windows 11 update 24H2 includes a new feature called Connected Camera that lets you turn your smartphone into a webcam. The folks at PCWorld have tested the feature out, and it looks pretty easy to use, though you do need to have an Android phone to use it.

Using your phone as a webcam -- either for your desktop or your laptop -- isn't new, but native support for it has been patchy. At first, people had to use third-party apps to do the job. Then Apple users got Continuity Camera, and a few years later Android 14 users got a similar feature, too.