What should we expect in the next Windows 10 build for phones?

Just last week the long 54 day vigil of waiting for a new Windows 10 Technical preview build came to an end as Windows Insiders received build 10041 – the first build released since 23 January 2015 for Windows 10 on the desktop.

This week we find ourselves deep into another period of waiting and this time it is for the next build of Windows 10 for phones – or as it was referred to at WinHec – Windows 10 Mobile.

Today is day 41 since that last build was pushed to Windows Insiders and while we wait let’s take a look at what should be expected in this next build.

More Devices

I think more than the updates, tweaks, fixes and features there is a huge expectation that more Windows Phone handsets, especially the flagship hardware like the 1520 and 930, will be included in the next build.

When Microsoft released that first Windows 10 for phones build in February they explained the absence of those devices in that initial build as an issue with partition stitching. The explanation made sense however, that did not do much to change how frustrated Windows Insiders were at not getting their hands on that build.

A hack surfaced shortly afterwards that allowed those 1520 and 930 users to install the Windows 10 build on their phones but within about a week Microsoft updated their Insiders app on Windows Phone to block it.

Universal Apps

When Microsoft held their big Windows 10 consumer event back in January a significant portion of the demos focused on the universal apps and how they looked on both desktop and phone hardware.  When the Windows 10 for phones build was released these universal apps were missing because they were apparently not ready yet.

After over 40 days users are going to have some expectations that they will finally be able to test the universal app experience between their mobile and desktop devices. With an expected summer release window opening in just three months for Windows 10 it is time to begin using those apps as they were intended before the official release is here.

By the way, on a separate but related note, yesterday Microsoft released the technical preview for their Windows 10 developer tools.  This means Windows developers can begin building their own universal app experiences or modifying their current apps for Windows 10 specific features.  Currently the Windows Store is not accepting submissions for Windows 10 apps but they should begin accepting those apps soon as Microsoft will want to have a stock of apps that are Windows 10 ready when the OS releases this summer.

What else would you expect to see in this next Windows 10 build for phones?

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