Yes, you read right. Microsoft has announced that the Windows Phone 7.8 OS will lose its mainstream support on September 9 as part of the newly updated list of its software products that will see either their mainstream or extended support end in the next six months. Windows Phone 7.8 is being axed after a mere 18 months.
Not surprising though, because Microsoft built the Windows Phone 7.8 as a stop-gap measure to minimize the indignation of Windows Phone 7.5 users, who were prevented from making the leap to Windows Phone 8. So after September 9, phones with the Windows Phone 7.8 OS won’t be getting any more updated OS features or major performance improvements. They will only receive free security updates for the next five years.
It definitely seems more expedient to get a new phone with the Windows Phone 8.1 OS than continuing the 7.8 for the next five years. Windows 7, the most installed OS on PCs, will also lose its own mainstream support on January 13, 2015 but its extended support will subsist till January 13, 2020.
