Microsoft Confirms That Windows Phone 8 Will Be Upgradeable to Windows Phone 8.1

When Microsoft has announced that Windows Phone 7 could not be upgraded to Windows Phone 8 when it first got released, WP7 users were not too happy about it. Some have even wondered if the same fate will be seen for Windows Phone 8 users when 8.1 comes along. However, according to a Microsoft official, that won’t be the case, meaning phones running on Windows Phone 8 will be able to upgrade to the updated version of the OS.

“We will not have the same experience as we had when Windows Phone 7 was upgraded to Windows Phone 8,” said Greg Sullivan, Windows Phone director of public relations at Microsoft, speaking to Computerworld at CES. ”We won’t run out of head space on Windows Phone 8 any time soon.”

It wouldn’t have made any sense not to be able to upgrade since the incompatibility between Windows 7 and 8 was due to a shift to a new kernel. Windows Phone 8.1 won’t see such a major change in its core, meaning current handsets would be compatible with updated versions of the OS for the foreseeable future.

This doesn’t mean all Windows Phone 8 handsets will be updated to 8.1, as it will be dependent on manufacturers and carriers whether they wish to upgrade an existing device or not. But an upgrade path will certainly be available, and we should find out which handsets will be making the jump around the same time Microsoft announces Windows Phone 8.1.

Thank you VR-Zone for providing us with this information