Microsoft suggests shift to iPhone as Windows 10 Mobile end of support date announced

AppleInsider

Microsoft is recommending users of Windows 10 Mobile devices migrate to other platforms, including iOS, after the software giant confirmed the end of support for the mobile operating system by the end of 2019.

Microsoft Lumia 950

A new support page advises the end of support for Windows 10 Mobile will occur on December 10, 2019, a date when security patches and other updates will cease being distributed by the company. While third-party services may provide support for affected devices, Microsoft itself will not publicly provide any more updates.

The end of support also only applies to smartphones running Windows 10 Mobile version 1709, reports Thurrott. For users of the Lumia 640 and 640XL smartphones, the last supported version was 1703, which will reach the end of support at the earlier date of June 11.

After the end of support, the automatic and manual creation of new device backups for settings and some applications will continue for three months until March 11, 2020, Microsoft advises. Some services, such as restoring a device from a backup or photo uploads, could continue for a further 12 months after each end of support date.

Under a section asking "What should Windows 10 Mobile customers do now?," Microsoft offers the frank suggestion to switch platforms, advising "we recommend that customers move to a supported Android or iOS device."

"Microsoft's mission statement to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more, compels us to support our mobile apps on those platforms and devices," the firm adds.

The end of the Windows Mobile and Windows 10 Mobile platforms has slowly rolled long for quite some time, with the platform losing market share to cheaper alternatives. Organizations that have relied on Windows Phone have shifted away to other mobile platforms, such as the NYPD which rolled out 36,000 iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus handsets in May 2018 following its use of Windows Phone hardware.

In October, Windows experience head Joe Belfiore confirmed time was effectively up for Windows 10 Mobile, noting it was hard to incentivize app developers due to the low volume of users. Belfiore also admitted Microsoft wasn't focused on building new features or hardware for the platform, another sign that it was to be abandoned.

In July 2017, Microsoft performed a similar announcement for the end of support for Windows Phone Version 8.1, the previous version of its mobile platform before Windows 10 Mobile.

AppleExposed

Bad news for the 5 people using this iKnockoff.

I remember my Apple hater friend(who thinks he's the smartest person in the world) praised Windows Phones for intergrating XBox Live accounts.

Seriously though, Microsoft can still support and develop new phones even with 1% marketshare. They waved the white flag back when they had something like 5% marketshare. Apple never folded under this kind of pressure. Shows how feeble these companies really are.

jungmark

They should roll out Balmer for a mock funeral. 

SpamSandwich

Crash! Boom!

racerhomie3

👋 Windows ☎️ 

muthuk_vanalingam

AppleExposed said:

Bad news for the 5 people using this iKnockoff.

I remember my Apple hater friend(who thinks he's the smartest person in the world) praised Windows Phones for intergrating XBox Live accounts.

Seriously though, Microsoft can still support and develop new phones even with 1% marketshare. They waved the white flag back when they had something like 5% marketshare. Apple never folded under this kind of pressure. Shows how feeble these companies really are.

Couple of points:
1. Since when did Windows phones become knock offs?
2. Apple never gave up with 5% market share - true. But why would they give up when they have the most valuable TOP 5% of the market? And why shouldn't Microsoft give up when they had the least valuable bottom 5% of the market? 

AppleExposed

muthuk_vanalingam said:

AppleExposed said:

Bad news for the 5 people using this iKnockoff.

I remember my Apple hater friend(who thinks he's the smartest person in the world) praised Windows Phones for intergrating XBox Live accounts.

Seriously though, Microsoft can still support and develop new phones even with 1% marketshare. They waved the white flag back when they had something like 5% marketshare. Apple never folded under this kind of pressure. Shows how feeble these companies really are.

Couple of points:
1. Since when did Windows phones become knock offs?
2. Apple never gave up with 5% market share - true. But why would they give up when they have the most valuable TOP 5% of the market? And why shouldn't Microsoft give up when they had the least valuable bottom 5% of the market? 

1. When they stopped making original Windows Phones and started making iPhone ripoffs like android.

2. How is this relevant to anything. Goal post moving much?

apple_badger

That headline, while strictly true, is a touch misleading. Microsoft is suggesting a move to Android or iOS, something that's mentioned, but the headline makes it look as if they're recommending only iOS. *I* recommend only iOS, but Microsoft seems to be less convicted :P 

tbornot

I wonder it it’s too late to get a Windows Phone pen to put with my Microsoft BoB pen I got so long ago?

MacPro

Someone had to ...

MplsP

The headline is not really accurate. According to the article, Microsoft suggests "customers move to a supported Android or iOS device." Not quite 'suggesting shifting to iPhone.'

I've never used a Windows phone but from what I read, it was a reasonable operating system. MS just came to the game too late, after the iOS and Android ecosystems were well developed and entrenched. It would have been a rough hill for them to climb no matter how good they were. The end of support is to be expected since they announced that they were stopping development a year and a half ago.

sflocal

AppleExposed said:

Bad news for the 5 people using this iKnockoff.

Please enlighten us about how Microsoft copied the iPhone?  Android is obvious, but at least Microsoft made its own phone from the ground up with its own OS.  Have you ever even tried one?  I actually preferred it over that iOS-knockoff Android any day.  Microsoft simply had zero clue how to compete in the mobile arena.

wood1208

Better to align with Apple than Google.

78Bandit

Windows Phone, when combined with Skype, OneNote, Excel, Word, and PowerPoint apps, was a powerful business tool.  It beat the pants off the iWork apps as well as the other office compatible apps that were available on iOS.  I did use MobiSystems office suite for a while, but found it didn't work as well as I wanted it to.  It was fine for emergency edits but things frequently turned out jumbled when I opened the documents once I was back on my computer.

Once Microsoft started actively supporting iOS and Android the use case for a WP went down a lot.  I'm happy with iOS and Microsoft at the moment, but I do wish Apple would look at how well live tiles worked on WP and give us more control over what is displayed on our home screens.

AppleExposed

sflocal said:

AppleExposed said:

Bad news for the 5 people using this iKnockoff.

Please enlighten us about how Microsoft copied the iPhone?  Android is obvious, but at least Microsoft made its own phone from the ground up with its own OS.  Have you ever even tried one?  I actually preferred it over that iOS-knockoff Android any day.  Microsoft simply had zero clue how to compete in the mobile arena.

Yes, I HAD one before iPhone was even shown.

Once they rebranded as "Windows Phone" they stole the iPhone design like 99% of the industry.

The original was well, more original.

And yes the software had some Microsoft uniqueness to it like tiles.

entropys

Bought a Nokia windows phone for my mother in law, who had never used a mobile before. It was dirt cheap. Thing is though, I was able to set up pictures of all the family on individual tiles so all she had to do was select who she wanted to call or text from the home screen. It was very easy to configure. Compared with an iPhone, the hardware was absolute rubbish, from battery life, build quality and performance of the touch screen.  But for $100 it was priced right and the UI was very good.

it is my. MiL’s 85th birthday tomorrow, and we have bought her a claimed new 6S plus 16Gb in an eBay sale (came in a plain white box without the fish photo on it though, with the accessories loose).  It should be enough storage.

vukasika

At th risk of getting flamed. I don't think Windows is finished with the mobile world just finished with the Windows Mobile platform. Processors are getting smaller and smaller.  Full blown Windows running on ARMs. Screens thinner and flexible. Hell, think about how beast the current iPad Pro is right now. Its only a matter of time before one of those amazing concept photos of a trifold slate that goes from being a phone to a decent size table becomes a reality.  I think Microsoft is taking a step back from a floundering platform to get prepped for the next wave.Time will tell, but I think competition in the mobile tech marketplace is good for all of us.

williamlondon

Does this mean all those people (on Ars especially) clamouring for a Surface Phone are going to be left with only their dismay?

muthuk_vanalingam

AppleExposed said:

muthuk_vanalingam said:

AppleExposed said:

Bad news for the 5 people using this iKnockoff.

I remember my Apple hater friend(who thinks he's the smartest person in the world) praised Windows Phones for intergrating XBox Live accounts.

Seriously though, Microsoft can still support and develop new phones even with 1% marketshare. They waved the white flag back when they had something like 5% marketshare. Apple never folded under this kind of pressure. Shows how feeble these companies really are.

Couple of points:
1. Since when did Windows phones become knock offs?
2. Apple never gave up with 5% market share - true. But why would they give up when they have the most valuable TOP 5% of the market? And why shouldn't Microsoft give up when they had the least valuable bottom 5% of the market? 

1. When they stopped making original Windows Phones and started making iPhone ripoffs like android.

2. How is this relevant to anything. Goal post moving much?

1. Any specific examples?

2. I asked a question relevant to the point, that was mentioned by you "Apple didn't give up with 5% market share, but Microsoft did". What is wrong in providing a context under which they took the decisions that they had to? Windows Phone was just NOT financially viable to persist with for Microsoft. Apple has also abandoned products which were financially NOT viable. This specific criticism of Microsoft was unfair IMHO, as far as I am concerned.

dewme

Microsoft's experience with Windows Phone underscores the genius of Steve Jobs and his ability to say "No" to things that are not worth focusing on. Microsoft could have, and probably still will, do great things in the mobile space. However, Microsoft led by Steve Balmer with the help of very smart people like Joe Belfiore, got suckered into trying to compete with Apple and Android head to head in a product category that they did not hold a strategic advantage. Much like we learned in 2008 that no company is too big to fail, we have now seen with Windows Phone (and Nokia, Blackberry, etc.) that no company is too smart to fail. No matter how big and smart you are you still must pick your battles wisely and try to control the outcome based on your own strengths while exploiting the weaknesses of your competition. You also need to understand the market. Apple crushed Nokia, Blackberry, and the pre-iPhone Neanderthal phones by exploiting the weaknesses in those limited function, non extensible, crude UX, standalone (no ecosystem) platforms. Apple also got lucky to some extent by realizing early on, but not right out of the gate, that third party involvement in the App platform was crucial.  

Microsoft has a crapload of very smart people, just like Apple, Amazon, Google, and thousands of other technology companies do. But you cannot just throw a bunch of smart people at a problem and expect that you're going to win the game. You need smart people at all levels and you need to pick your battles very carefully. Windows Phone was probably driven more by ego at high levels in Microsoft than a thoughtful understanding of where to best focus and invest resources in the mobile space. However, I wouldn't assume for a minute that Microsoft is going to fade back into the shadows. Under their current CEO they have licked their wounds and have moved on to other things.

[Deleted User]

MplsP said:

The headline is not really accurate. According to the article, Microsoft suggests "customers move to a supported Android or iOS device." Not quite 'suggesting shifting to iPhone.'

I've never used a Windows phone but from what I read, it was a reasonable operating system. MS just came to the game too late, after the iOS and Android ecosystems were well developed and entrenched. It would have been a rough hill for them to climb no matter how good they were. The end of support is to be expected since they announced that they were stopping development a year and a half ago.

You must be new around AppleInsider. Remember: 1) Any competitor or competing device is inferior in every way. 2) Any other thing is a copy/knockoff/‘feeble attempt’ of something Apple has already done well or will do in the future (phones, tablets, toasters, toilets, etc). 3) Simply mentioning Android without pissing on them means you’re an Android ‘fanboi’. Thanks for understanding how things work at AppleInsider.

BTW...I meant this to be a response to Sflocal who challenged AppleExposed.