Skip to main content

Windows Phone 7.8 update hit by problems, forcing its release to be halted (Update: It’s coming!)

Microsoft Windows phone 7.8 updateAt the end of January, Nokia excitedly announced the availability of Windows Phone 7.8, the update which would add Windows Phone 8’s resizable Live Tiles and a few other features to older Windows Phone 7 devices. It’s release was greeted with a sigh of relief from the Nokia WP7 community, as the lack of information prior to that point made many wonder if it would ever arrive.

Since then, it has slowly but surely been seeded to Nokia’s entire range of Windows Phone 7 hardware, including the Lumia 510, 610, 710, 800, and Lumia 900. However, if your phone hasn’t received the update yet, the wait isn’t about to be over, as Microsoft has been forced to halt the update due to a software problem. CNet UK has confirmed this with Nokia, and according to an Omio report a, “minor issue in the Windows Phone 7.8 software,” has been discovered. Nokia Russia has also tweeted the update has been suspended, while at the end of February, Vodafone in Germany stopped the update from being sent to its subscribers.

Recommended Videos

While no information has been forthcoming on the nature of the problem, it could be related to reports of a bug which stops Live Tiles in Windows Phone 7.8 from updating. Microsoft’s Joe Belfiore confirmed in a tweet the company was aware of the problem, saying, “We identified a minor issue where some 7.8 tiles stop updating and we are working on a fix now.

So, a fix is on its way, but how long will Windows Phone 7 owners be made to wait for this one to turn up? It has never seemed like WP7.8 was a priority for Microsoft, so don’t expect it to be very soon. Plus, there has been no official comment on the update being stopped, so until there is, notification on it being restarted is highly unlikely. As before, all we can do is wait.

Updated on 03/15/13 at 10:50am by Andy: Well, it seems like Microsoft made fixing Windows Phone 7.8 a priority, as a new build of the operating system has been published and is on its way out to Windows Phone 7 devices now. According to Microsoft’s official update page, version 7.10.8862 fixes the problematic Live Tile issue, and also adds a few other missing features and improves overall performance. Users from Europe and Canada are reporting the update has already reached their phones.

Article originally published 3-8-2013.

Andy Boxall
Andy is a Senior Writer at Digital Trends, where he concentrates on mobile technology, a subject he has written about for…
Preorder the Light Phone III and save $200 (and your sanity)
Light Phone 3

We're now living in a world where a significant proportion of people are actually wanting to "de-tech" parts of their lives without going tech-free altogether. Compare this year's article about the joys of dumb phones over this classic from 2011 that told us young people prefer tech over the ability to smell. And that brings us to the Light Phone III, an upcoming phone that you can pre-order today that will help simplify your life without going "dumb." It's actually quite techy, but, as our Light Phone III teaser described it, it is all done in an "intentional" way. In other words it is a phone meant to serve you and not advertisers or the parts of our brains that respond to flashing lights and sounds. Preorder it now (it's estimated to ship in August) for a $200 discount, dropping the phone from $799 to $599, by tapping the button below. Or, keep reading to see why less is sometimes more.

Why you should preorder the Light Phone III
Matter and anti-matter, protons and electrons, the lightness and the darkness — opposites create balance, or so the story goes. The Light Phone III provides all of the most important features of a modern day smartphone: A camera, alarm, timer, calculator, calendar, directory, directions, a notes app, and a simple music and podcast player. It has GPS, Bluetooth, finger print ID, flashlight, noise-cancelling mic, and can even be used as a hotspot for your other devices. There's even a nice AMOLED screen.

Read more
I compared Opera Mini’s AI chatbot with ChatGPT and Gemini, and I’m impressed
Opera Mini AI chatbot running on a phone kept on a round table.

Opera Mini is a mobile browser with a decadeslong legacy that predates the launch of even mobile platforms, including Android or iOS. Its popularity has since dwindled, especially as Google and Apple offer more refined browsers, in Chrome and Safari, which are also preinstalled on phones. To keep up with this intense pressure, Opera -- the eponymous browser company -- has also taken some unwelcome steps, such as adding full-screen banner ads and a sensational news feed to its browser.

However, there is one area where Opera Mini is still relevant, and that is its data saving features, which used to be the selling point in the early days of smartphones when data was costly and limited. Though the issue like slow internet speeds or data caps are far less prevalent, we might still find ourselves stuck occasionally. And that's why Opera Mini can still be useful.

Read more
This is Huaqiangbei, the world’s craziest technology market
One of the many markets at Huaqiangbei

One of my favorite places to visit in China is Shenzhen. Established in 1979, the small fishing village north of Hong Kong has turned into the beating heart of China's technology scene, and nowhere is this more epitomized than in Huaqiangbei. 

A district in Shenzhen, Huaqiangbei, has become the go-to destination for exploring the latest technology. However, it's much more than this: it's also where you'll find the craziest and wildest range of technology devices, accessories, and components. 

Read more