Uploaded by AR 4789 on YouTube, the video creatively reimagines the recently unveiled Windows 12 concept, tailoring it for mobile devices with a smartphone-friendly user interface.

The creator is not new to conceptualizing Windows for mobile; they showcased a Windows 11 Mobile concept about a year earlier. This earlier attempt sought to blend Microsoft’s desktop OS features with smartphone functionality, resulting in an unusual fusion of Android style, iOS features, and various elements from Windows 11’s interface.

Although Windows 12 is not yet a reality, we have insights into Microsoft’s direction for its desktop OS and the user interface innovations it’s considering.

Concept artists have used these insights as inspiration, producing various imaginative and diverse interpretations of what the future generation of Windows, including its mobile version, might look like.

While we might anticipate a successor to Windows 11, possibly labeled Windows 12 or something similar, the revival of Windows Mobile seems unlikely in the near future.

Regrettably, these creative videos remain confined to concepts like a mobile-sized taskbar with features such as a Start menu button, Copilot, Task View, File Explorer, and Microsoft Store.

In today’s market, dominated by Android and iOS, even a $3 trillion company like Microsoft faces significant challenges competing with giants like Apple and Google. This was evident in the unsuccessful venture of the Android-based Surface Duo, which fell short of established brands like Samsung.

Microsoft has shifted its focus from smartphone manufacturing to integrating AI into its products, even in unexpected places like Notepad.

It’s probably time to bid farewell to the dreams of a Windows Mobile comeback. Instead, it might be intriguing to envision concepts where Copilot is integrated into the most unexpected products and aspects of Windows.

Belfiore has been with the Redmond-based technology giant for some 32 years. During his time at the company, he led several efforts, ranging from Windows 10 (its apps and even features like Sets) to Office, OneNote, and Edge.

But he is most vividly remembered for his time overseeing Windows Phone — managing the fledgling mobile OS and coordinating the whole ecosystem with the Nokia and Lumia brands.

His ride with Windows Phone was not always smooth. An infamous episode in 2011 had him taking to Channel 9 to laugh off issues with belated updates for the phone operating platform. He took a lot of heat for this, so much so that he had to publicly apologize.

Well, Belfiore has decided to leave the firm where he has spent over thirty years.

He announced today that he will retire next summer to focus on his kids:

Today I shared with my team that after 32 fantastic years (!) I'll be retiring from @Microsoft!

What's next? 1) I'm staying on until summer to help with the transition (SO MUCH GOODNESS COMING), then 2) focus on the two kids still at home & the 1 who just started college.

— Joe Belfiore (@joebelfiore) October 27, 2022

Now, in the corporate world, the phrase of spending more time with the family is often code for a forced departure. But that is not the case here.

Belfiore took a leave of absence for one year in 2015 to spend time with his family and then returned to work at Microsoft until 2020 when he took another substantive break to travel with his family. But now, though, he is done for good.

That is exactly what he announced internally in an email to employees before sharing his decision publicly. ZDNet confirms that his move is a personal decision.

Most of you will know Belfiore for his time in charge of the Windows Phone division, which he led from 2009 to 2013. He then went on to lead the Windows 10 team for almost five years. In 2018, he took a leading role in the Essentials Services Group at Microsoft.

This was a division that included Windows 10, Edge, Surface software, and several mobile applications.

The Microsoft Corporate Vice President currently heads the Office Group alongside CVP Ales Holecek, and the executive will serve as a senior advisor and coach to aid the transition until summer 2023.

Still, the man had a tough job and was a beloved Windows Phone frontman.

Or a version thereof.

Public demand led Gustave Monce, a well-known Windows Phone hacker from France has published a short video that shows the upcoming operating system running on the final flagship phone that Microsoft launched under the Lumia brand.

The famed hacker managed to get an ARM64 build of Windows 11 working on the nearly six-year-old handset after about a day’s work.

And the result is quite impressive:

The video doesn’t show all there is, but screenshots are available here that show Windows 11 running on the smartphone.

Obviously, Windows 11 was not designed to work on 5.7-inch phone with outdated specs, but the OS looks pretty much usable. The transition from portrait to landscape mode usually takes a couple of seconds to happen, but this is par for the course.

Monce even managed to make calls, even though Windows 11 doesn’t ship with a phone stack. This was done by leveraging the Windows Phone component that is used for handling calls.

Pretty fun to see Windows Phone hackers trying to breathe new life into the last phone Microsoft released.

This is a phone sporting a Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor all the way back from 2015. On the topic of specifications, Redmond recently confirmed that Windows 11 will not officially be supported on Qualcomm SoCs older than Snapdragon 850 from 2018.

This pretty much also means that first-generation Windows on ARM PCs powered by the older Snapdragon 835 will not be upgradable to Windows 11 when it hits store shelves.

On Tuesday, December 10, Microsoft will finally pull support for Windows 10 Mobile, on enterprise and consumer devices. Now that the Redmond Company have put Windows Phone, and now Windows 10 Mobile, firmly behind them, they can focus their attention on their next mobile strategy and it would appear that it’s going to be all about app-building, using a common Fluent design that will work and look fantastic on the Surface devices, when they are released.

There are those who put Microsoft down for attempting to bring out a mobile platform but others will miss Windows Phone and Windows Mobile. Microsoft’s attempt was something unique and it was released with all the intentions of being a contender against iOS and Android. Unfortunately, the only thing it had was promise and it was never built on and brought to fruition.

That said, Microsoft did have a responsibility to provide support for the devices it sold, in particular to their enterprise customers. That responsibility is now over and no more security updates will be issued for those devices. Of course, the device will continue to work and, so far, there is no indication that Microsoft will remove access to Microsoft Store apps. Other apps will be the sole responsibility of the OEMs and developers so, be aware, you may lose access to some apps and software in the near future.

So far, Microsoft’s attempts at joining the mobile market haven’t been too successful but the company continues to try. Now, their attempts are focused on persuading Android developers to use the Fluent language to redevelop their apps, along with other APIs, such as those that make the apps work on dual-screen devices – the Surface Duo, for example.

This could be a winning strategy for Microsoft, given the Duo device is interesting enough to make it worth putting the effort in. Of course, that will still depend largely on whether Microsoft pushes its partners and developers hard enough, more than they ever did for Windows hone and Windows 10 Mobile.  The clock starts now – they have one year in which to do this and succeed where previous attempts have failed miserably.

Do you still use Windows 10 Mobile? What will you do when support finally disappears?

Unlike some other applications, WhatsApp had been getting regular updates on Windows powered phones. But even it has set its sights on retirement, with the company revealing that it would no longer work on this particular operating system come January 2020.

And while users still have half a year to prepare for the demise of WhatsApp on Windows Phone, there is another milestone that approaches next month.

That of the app being pulled from the Microsoft Store in early July.

As revealed by the developers:

“You’ll no longer be able to use all Windows Phone operating systems after December 31, 2019, and WhatsApp might not be available in the Microsoft Store after July 1, 2019. Because we no longer actively develop for these operating systems, some features might stop functioning at any time.”

Straight from the FAQ.

Of course, none of this is surprising, as developers have been giving up on Windows 10 Mobile applications left and right. Microsoft itself is pushing users away from its mobile platform, and other companies saying goodbye is only logical.

Sad, but logical.

In a recent update to its FAQ page, the company details its end of support plans for the mobile OS.

And in the process, recommending users to move to Android or iPhone handsets as soon as possible, as the last updates for the Windows 10 Mobile operating system will launch in December this year. After this date, the mobile OS will be on its own.

Sure, the devices and apps will continue to work after this deadline, but Redmond emphasizes that the vulnerabilities in the operating system will remain unfixed without patches.

Furthermore, beginning March 2020, Microsoft will no longer allow the creation of device backups.

For this reason, the company recommends a migration to Android or iOS powered handsets, emphasizing that all of its apps are available on these platforms too:

“With the Windows 10 Mobile OS end of support, 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.”

As clear as signal as any, this.

Microsoft also touched upon what customers who recently purchased Windows 10 Mobile devices should do. In this case, the firm suggests contacting the retailer for any information on returns or reimbursements.

Of course, Microsoft itself does not sell Windows phones, but a few models like the HP Elite x3 continue to be available for purchase. These may be pulled shortly, with the platform headed towards a clear dead end.

Speaking of dead stuff, Microsoft does not guarantee that the Microsoft Store would continue to run after the December 2019 end of support deadline —it may, it may not.

The developers can pull their apps any time before this date.

The end is near.

Apparently, the RM-1182 has surfaced, providing us with a hint at what Redmond was planning back then. It was soon after the company purchase the Nokia Devices and Services division in 2014, and toyed with the idea of a Microsoft branded feature phone.

It ultimately decided to go with the Lumia for its smartphones and Nokia for those humble feature handsets, mainly because Nokia had such a strong presence in the feature phone market.

Things could have changed had this sleek little device made its way to store shelves, though.

Take a look at the device, first:

Aside from the Microsoft branding, the most interesting thing that stands out is that it sports a UI that is styled after Windows 10 Mobile — complete with transparent tiles and a customizable background.

It even came with Microsoft services baked in like Outlook Mobile and Calendar, OneNote and GroupMe. According to the report, none of these apps actually work in 2018, but they were quiet a power play on feature set back in the days.

Redmond, obviously, included apps like Phone, Photos, Camera, the usual suspects. Interestingly, the browser that it runs is Opera, which probably hints that this device was running the Symbian mobile operating system.

Perhaps, one of the reasons why the software titan decided to scrap the effort, who knows?

That said, the company seemed to be planning big here. It went so far as to include games like Asphalt and Spider-Man Ultimate, even a dedicated app store.

Of course, none of that came to transpire, as RM-1182 joined Lumia 750, 850 and a few other devices to never see the light of day.

Oh, the feels!

This was, if you recall, one of the last real headsets available that was powered by Microsoft mobile OS before the company decided to put the platform on life support. In fact, the software titan now actually recommends users to switch to Android or iOS.

So, while Redmond might have abandoned the platform, ever now and then we are treated with something we don’t see coming.

Case in point, this surprising little development.

Say what you may, but Wileyfox was one of the manufacturers that showed pretty good commitment to Windows phones, albeit at a time when the best days of the platform were well and truly behind.

But now the company has decided to restart production of one of its popular devices. The Wileyfox Pro is once again being manufactured, with the company saying that this is due to popular demand, and the result of feedback that it received.

Wily move, some may say.

Now, while customers can once again purchase the device, the hardware firm has actually discounted the device to a price of just £79.99 in the UK, down from its previous retail price tag of £200 — certainly making for quite a drop for those that want in on the action!

Perhaps as a backup phone, or whatever.

No change in hardware specifications of this handset, of course. The Wileyfox Pro is powered by a Snapdragon 210 processor that is paired with just 2GB of RAM and the smartphone offers 16GB of storage space.

The 5-inch display is protected by Gorilla Glass 3, a fingerprint reader is part of the package, alongside two cameras, an 8MP one on the back and a 2MP one on the front. 4G support also in.

Interested? Check it out here.

This talk came right around we got an official confirmation from Redmond that Surface Phone is no longer on the horizon. However, the source is an alleged Microsoft Store employee who revealed these details in a conversation where no other specifics were provided.

Basically, it is being claimed that the software titan wants to replace Windows 10 Mobile with Android, in order to remain an active player in the mobile industry with its own line of devices.

The quote:

“We will be creating a new line of phones for Microsoft phones. It’s like a new edition for Microsoft phones. It’s gonna be powered by Android that’s for sure.”

For sure.

You may be aware, of course, that Windows 10 Mobile is now in maintenance mode, and support for this mobile operating system is projected to come to an end in July 2019 — a year from now.

The company meanwhile is making a mobile push in the form of apps and services that it releases for competing platforms, iOS and Android. While the upcoming Andromeda, while new hardware, is actually a new type of mobile device, not exactly a smartphone.

All this, more or less, means that Microsoft is out the mobile hardware game.

However, while it has everything in place to power such an Android phone, the app and expertise necessary, it still is important not to get our hopes too high.

And that’s because Microsoft Store workers have been known to share inaccurate information in the past about products. Any detail that comes this way should be taken with a generous helping of salt, as the company rarely provides access to such details to its Store staff.

Not jus that, Redmond also sees Windows 10 as the future and wants to have it installed on all devices that it launches. The company has said this much on multiple occasions.

Let’s file this under rumors for now.

Extremely unlikely rumors.

Unsurprisingly.

Android and iOS are currently dominating the market, while fewer and fewer buyers are now interested in the Windows Phone platform. This has been the case for a while now, obviously, and Microsoft’s mobile platform has been nearing 0% sales share in a number of markets.

And that number only increased with this latest update.

The statistics provided for the three-month period ending March 2018 revealed that Windows 10 Mobile had hit rock bottom in most of the regions.

A recovery is practically impossible now.

The chart below shows the standings, and well, they make for a depressing read.

Significant drops have been recorded in nearly every market.

In Germany, for example, the sales dropped to 0.8% during the said quarter. UK and Spain had the platform falling to 0%, while France somehow maintained things at 0.6%. Americans, meanwhile, were somehow more attracted to the mobile OS, with 1.5% choosing Windows powered phones.

But that figure itself is down 0.3% from the previous year.

What’s surprising, is the performance in China, where the market share increased from 0.3% to 0.5%. In Japan, on the other hand, Windows only accounts for 0.1% of the phone sold there.

Sooner or later, Windows phones will completely disappear from the market, and probably in these market share figures too. Microsoft currently has the OS in maintenance mode right now, with an intent to retire Windows 10 Mobile entirely by the middle of 2019.

The company has stopped selling handsets, is not releasing any updates. And while it is said to be working on a new type of mobile device, running the full Windows 10 and part of the Surface lineup, details on it are scarce.

What we do know is that Windows Phone has seen better days, as it enters its twilight.