Gabe Aul took to Twitter today to give owners of the Nokia Lumia Icon something that they're not used to: good news. Soon, users of the Verizon exclusive will be able to install new builds from the Redstone Development Branch on their devices.
This means that Icon users will be able to test out the latest Fast ring builds on the Windows 10 Mobile Insider Preview. Of course, you can't go and grab build 14332 right now, as it's coming soon.
Mary Jo Foley of ZDNet was the first to ask the obvious question, which was if this means that the Icon is slated for an official upgrade. After all, every other device that's eligible for the Fast ring can be upgraded through official channels.
With the exception of LTE bands and a few very minor things, the Icon is the same phone as the Lumia 930, so it stands to reason that if one can handle the Anniversary Update, the other can too. As we can see from Gabe's inability to confirm an official upgrade, this doesn't mean that they've worked out a deal with Verizon just yet.
Of course, Icon users (just like most other Lumia users) can still get Windows 10 Mobile, and always have been able to. Users can sign sign up for the Release Preview ring of the Insider Preview, and with the exception of getting cumulative updates a bit earlier than everyone else, it is exactly the same thing as an official upgrade.
While all "unsupported devices" can use this workaround, we know that eventually, they will stop receiving updates, possibly when the Anniversary Update hits the Production ring (and therefore the Release Preview ring) in July. Now, the Lumia Icon will be able to continue to receive new builds.
You can sign up for the Fast ring from your Lumia Icon right now, but you won't receive any Redstone builds just yet. If you want Windows 10 Mobile right now, you can always go for the Release Preview ring.
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