All the way back in June 2012, when Microsoft first announced Windows Phone 8, it delivered the unhappy news to all existing users of its mobile OS, Windows Phone 7.5, that they would not be able to upgrade to the newest version. Instead, those users received a modest upgrade to version 7.8, but after that... nothing.
Indeed, 7.8 was effectively a dead end for all those earlier Windows Phones, and Microsoft confirmed as much earlier this year. In July, it announced that mainstream support for 7.8 would end on September 9, 2014. After that date, it said, there would be no further additions or enhancements to the OS (although the few users still holding on to those older devices had already become well accustomed to that reality long before Microsoft's announcement).
But although that date has come and gone, it has since emerged that Microsoft has given Windows Phone 7.8 a stay of execution, albeit a brief one. As WPCentral reports, the company has quietly extended its mainstream support deadline by five weeks - it will now end on October 14, 2014.
No explanation has been given for the decision to extend the support cut-off date. If it sticks to the new date, Microsoft will only provide essential security updates to Windows Phone 7.8 users after that.
Source: Microsoft via WPCentral | image via Hardware.info
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