Not too long ago, Microsoft announced they are working with select group of Xiaomi MI4 users, allowing them to download Windows 10 for phones technical preview on their devices and test it out. Xiaomi’s Hugo Barra dropped a little more light on the partnership and said it’s an experimental program from Microsoft “working directly with the Mi fan community in China.”
Barra said it will not be a dual-boot option or an operating system running on top of the default Android version, but a full-fledged Windows 10 ROM. Select customers chosen to take part in the program are able to flash the ROM on their devices in a similar fashion as other Android ROMs, and use Windows 10 on their devices.
“Microsoft is working on a build of Windows 10 specifically for Mi 4 devices. This Windows 10 build will not be running on top of Android nor be available as a dual-boot option. A small number of Mi 4 power users from the Xiaomi Forum in China who choose to take part in this experimental program will have to manually re-flash their Mi 4 devices with this Windows 10 ROM, in the same way they would re-flash other Android ROMs,” says Barra. “At Xiaomi, we are very supportive of users trying new things and we encourage them to do so all the time! That’s why all of our devices ship with unlocked bootloader, for example. That’s also why Xiaomi welcomes Microsoft team members to interact directly with members of the Xiaomi Forum in China.”
There’s no word if Microsoft will launch it for other Android devices, but Barra says the software giant will announce more details about the program in the coming months. If successful, the program can definitely bring Windows 10 to more devices, giving users the ability to test the operating system on their Android handsets.
Further reading: Microsoft, Windows 10, Xiaomi
