The Windows 10 Technical Preview still wont' be available to Samsung, HTC, or other third-party phones -- and not necessarily to all Lumias, either.
The next build of Windows 10 will support a plethora of new Lumia devices, greatly expanding the number of users who will have access to the new Windows operating system.
The Windows 10 Technical Preview was previously only supported by a small number of devices: the Lumia 630, 635, 636, 638, 730, and 830, according to a Digital Trends report.
This was because of the partition size required to install it, but a technique known as “partition stitching” will allow the number of phones that support it to expand to 36, although many phones will still be left out — most notably, those from Samsung, HTC, or any other third party.
And not every Lumia phone will be able to install the Windows 10 Technical Preview. Lumia 930 is not one of the phones listed, which is probably due to a specific bug, and it’s possible a future flight will include it, according to the report.
Those who want to install the Windows 10 preview on their phone should be careful, however, especially if that is your primary phone. The preview is still in the development phase and may cause some problems for devices it is installed on. Those who ant the preview anyway will need to sign up for the Windows Insider program and register the device. Fortunately, you can roll back to the previous version at any time.
Microsoft is expected to officially unveil the list of support phones next week.
Lumia is Microsoft’s brand of mobile devices that were first introduced in November 2011 as a partnership between Nokia and Microsoft. In September 2013, Microsoft announced it would purchase Nokia’s mobile device business, and closed the deal last April, changing the name to Microsoft Mobile but continuing to use the Nokia brand until October, when it officially phased it out in favor of Microsoft branding.