Microsoft have released a new build of Windows 10 Mobile to Windows Insiders on the Fast ring today, titled Build 10149. Insiders last week who choose to stay on Build 10080 rather than roll-back to Windows Phone 8.1 to get Build 10136 will be able to upgrade from Build 10080 to Build 10149 without any hassle. Included in this build is Microsoft Edge branding, improvements to the interface and Cortana, as well as an updated Photos app and automatic photo uploads onto OneDrive.
The Microsoft Edge branding has now replaced the Project Spartan branding. The address bar has also been moved to the bottom (finally) and this was changed based on user feedback. The option to view websites in either desktop or mobile view has also been included in this build.
A huge amount of UX improvements and refinements have been included in this build. Microsoft have fixed an issue where many Live tiles pinned to Start would appear blurry, meaning the Start screen should now look much more clear and crisp, especially on HD displays. Refinements have also been made to the controls with updated icons and visuals (the volume controls being the most obvious). The OS in general is also now a lot more reponsive to use. Microsoft say more work has to be done but the team is happy with the progress they’ve made.
Cortana’s Notebook is in its final stage with a combined Profile and Settings experience now. Quiet Hours has also been added in this build. A Flashlight option was also added to the Action Center in this build meaning uses who want to quickly turn on their phones flashlight can easily by using this toggle.
An updated Photo’s app is also now available on the Windows Store (Beta). This includes performance and reliability imporvements along with GIF support (requires 1GB RAM phones or higher) and links to saved photos, screenshots and camera roll are now available on the Albums page. The ability to upload photos automatically to OneDrive has also been added. You can enable this by going to the OneDrive app on your phone, then go to settings to set camera upload to be turned on or off depending on which you prefer.
The Store Beta also has a lot of updates for first party apps such as Outlook Mail and Calendar, Music, Movies & TV, and the MSN apps (News, Weather, Sports, and Money) and these are updating outside of the builds so fixes are delivered faster to Insiders. Bugs have also been fixed in this build including Call + SMS filtering not working, text notifications not appearing, Podcast app not working, apps not installing or updating via Store Beta and finally an issue where the navigation bar couldn’t be hidden.
Finally, and as always, this build does include some issues, the biggest being the post-upgrade migration status screen is still missing after upgrading to this build which normally shows you the progress of the post-upgrade migration. After upgrading, the Lock screen will appear frozen without the date and time for up to 10 minutes. After this though, the date and time will re-appear and you will be able to unlock your phone. The rest of the issues are not as major, but may be problematic and can be found here. It’s important to read over these if you’re trying the Insider Preview for the first time on any of your devices.
^Alan (@BeetleComet)
Alan Walsh is a games journalist, head writer at AR12Gaming. They contributed 52 articles to ICXM in 2015, focused on game reviews, Windows and PC, and Xbox news: leads editorial for AR12Gaming and reviews titles for OpenCritic.