Windows 10 Mobile To Reach OEMs Q3 Or Q4, Users A Lot Later

Here's one more revelation that could douse the enthusiasm of Windows Phone users eagerly waiting to be transformed into Windows 10 Mobile users. In some slides presented to its partners, a Microsoft spokesperson revealed that, although slated for a Q3 release, the mobile version of Microsoft's latest operating system won't hit its hardware partners until October at the latest. And that's only hardware partners, meaning that end users might not even get the update until end of the year at best, next year at worst.

Perhaps it is good that Microsoft never revealed a date for Windows 10 Mobile. Unlike Windows 10 for PCs, which has been announced to land July 29. Microsoft did leave a rather wide "Fall" margin, though it has never really said anything beyond that, and this is perhaps why.

The slide revealed that Windows Mobile skus will be available late 3rd quarter of the year, which usually translates to late September. That said, according to the source of this leak, the Microsoft spokesperson was actually even less generous in the estimate, pushing the date even back as October.

You might not consider that a bit late until you realize that we're just talking here about hardware partners and OEM and not when it will land on end users' hands. Given the usual testing and integration period, That could even take weeks or even months. Granted, there aren't that many Windows Phone manufacturers around like in Android, but images will still have to pass through carriers as well, with their own tests and integration.

Windows 10 Mobile might not be as big a jump as Windows 10 is for desktops, but the new version offers quite a few interesting things. The promise of universal apps is one, and the newly revealed Continuum feature is definitely something users would love to get their hands on. Maybe they will, in time for Christmas.

VIA: Neowin