Nokia started rolling out the Windows Phone 7.8 update to its Windows Phone 7.5 powered Lumia devices in January earlier this year. However, recent reports indicate that Microsoft will not roll out the Windows 7.8 update to Lumia devices anymore.
Previously, Microsoft stated that none of the existing Windows Phone 7.5 devices, including the Nokia 900, would be updated to WP8. However, the company stated that Windows Phone 7.8, will be rolled out for Windows Phone 7.5 smartphones. But now it seems that isn't happening anymore.
"Here is the info about the update. Microsoft has stopped until further notice, the rollout of the update. Currently there is a new date for it," wrote the Vodafone Germany moderator in the forum on Feb. 26.
Nokia's Russian Twitter post also confirms that Windows Phone 7.8 update has been suspended. The tweet reads, "Microsoft decided to temporarily suspend distribution updates WP7.8 for finalization." The tweet from Nokia's Russian account was in response to a Lumia user who asked the company about battery issue after the user updated his device to Windows Phone 7.8 operating system.
The Windows Phone 7.8 is expected to bridge the gap between Windows Phone 7.5 and Windows Phone 8. The key new feature in Windows Phone 7.8 is the updated Start screen, with support for three resizable tiles. In addition, the number of accent colors has been doubled to 20.
The update allowed the lock screen of a device to offer support for automatically using the Bing picture of the day as the background. The update also enabled lockscreen support for a PIN/password to aid better pocket- and child-lock screen security.
The idea of the update was to make Windows Phone 7.5 users feel that their handset is new and fresh. The update would have also kept current Windows Phone users from switching to another mobile OS once their current contract expires. The devices that got the update included the Lumia 510, 610, 710, 800 and 900.
We will have to wait till Nokia or Microsoft releases an official statement to confirm if the Windows Phone 7.5 users will ever get the Windows 7.8 update in the near future.
