Microsoft releases Windows 10 Mobile's 10586 to the Insider 'Slow Ring'

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As if confirmation was needed that build 10586(.11) is the 'one', Microsoft has now made this available even to those on the Insiders 'Slow Ring'. The slow ring hasn't seen much action over the course of the last quarter, but it certainly provides a way for those wanting a stable experience to still get the latest OS months ahead of official 'over the air' rollouts. Build 10586 is the version of Windows 10 Mobile installed onto the first Lumia 950 and 950 XL units in the USA and has been 99% stable in my experience.

Anyone on the 'slow ring' should be able to upgrade in place, but - as ever - if anything seems out of place then it's always worth either hard resetting and restoring or going for the full 'new' experience and rebuilding as if starting from scratch.

It's also worth noting that, even though this is the version shipped in the initial batch of Lumia 550, 950 and 950 XLs:

  • the new phones will continue to get OS updates on a periodic basis - and I'd bet on one within a month
  • if you stay on the Insiders slow ring then you'll carry on getting new potential builds beyond 10586, ad infinitum. (If you want out, use the 'leave programme' function in the Windows Insider application, reboot and then uninstall this app.)

Plus just about every application and function is going to be updated on an almost daily basis through the existing Store mechanism. So there's plenty more to come.

Build 10586.11 has been known as 'RTM' - this stands for 'Release To Manufacturing', though with the programme of continuing updates, the idea of RTM isn't as 'set in stone' as it used to be, in my opinion....