14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has just rolled out a new preview build of Windows 10 Mobile for users enrolled in the fast ring channel, thus providing them with early access to several new features and improvements.
Build 10136 comes with improvements to Cortana, the personal assistant that was previously available on Windows Phone and that will soon land on Windows 10 for PCs too. In addition to several tweaks to Cortana's homepage and the hamburger menu, Cortana now comes with a dark theme too, as well as with options to track flight and packages.
Photos and Camera improvements are also part of this build, so starting with 10136, you can easily see the photos you took in a specific month and double-tap to zoom on a picture. Lumia 640, 640XL, 930, Icon, and 1520 also come with a new Lumia Camera Beta, which Microsoft says you should make your default camera app and which brings additional features based on your hardware.
And last but not least, Windows 10 Mobile 10136 comes with improvements for one-handed use, which should really come in handy on devices with screens of 5 inches or greater, such as the Lumia 1520.
Microsoft added a feature inspired from the iPhone 6 Plus, and if you press and hold the Start button on your phone, the screen automatically slides down to let you reach items at the top of the screen with your finger. To go back to the initial screen setup, just tap the blank space or press the Start button again.
How to install
One major requirement that needs to be taken into consideration is that Windows 10 Mobile 10136 does not install as the previous builds.
You need to go back to Windows Phone 8.1 with the Windows Phone Recovery Tool, install the Insider app, enroll in the fast ring and only then install build 10136. This is because of a migration bug that prevents other builds from installing 10136, so if, for example, you are on 10080, you won't be offered the new version.
Windows 10 Mobile build 10136 also ships with one bug, so everyone needs to take the following into the account (which Microsoft says is super important!):
“At the end of the upgrade the Lock screen will appear frozen without the date and time for up to 10 minutes. Please be patient and let it sit - eventually the date and time will appear and it will allow you to unlock your phone. There is a post-upgrade migration status screen missing, which normally would show you that it was making progress. If you get impatient and restart or mess with locking/unlocking your phone, you’ll wind up in a funky state - so just relax and let it do its thing.”
There are also several bugs, including issues with installing language packs (which can still be installed with some tweaks), Skype might not work after upgrade, the PIN pad to enter your PIN might not be displayed (press emergency call and then back to see it), while some tiles could be duplicated for apps like Search and Phone.
If you're OK with all of these, just flash your phone back to Windows Phone 8.1 and install 10136 right away to see how it works.