In case you are still holding onto a handset running Windows Phone 8.1, it’s important to note that mainstream support for this model has ended.

Lifecycle support date for Windows Phone 8.1

Before the availability of Windows 10 Mobile for select handsets, the last significant update to Windows Phone 8.1 was Lumia Denim, which began its rollout process back in December 2014.

There were some Windows Phone 8.1 devices which got an upgrade path to Windows 10 Mobile over the last 16 months, but Microsoft hasn’t exactly been pushing its users to go for it. The company didn’t inform them this option was available. If you somehow became aware of this, you had to go to the Store and download the Upgrade Advisor app which would determine if your device was eligible for this update.

The lifecycle support date for Windows Phone 8.1 began on June 24, 2014 and Microsoft promised to offer support for three years which also included security updates.

The company said that its updates would be incremental and each would build on the update that preceded it. Customers will need to install each one of them to remain protected. The distribution of these updates may be controlled by the mobile operator of the phone manufacturer from which the device was purchased.

Windows Phone 8.1 in statistics

The latest statistics coming from AdDuplex showed that 73.9% of Windows Phone users are using Windows Phone 8.1 and only 20.3% of users are using Windows 10 Mobile.

In other words, if Microsoft doesn’t extend the lifecycle support date, current Windows phones will be unsupported. Microsoft hasn’t offered an extended support date yet.

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