We knew it was coming, and yesterday Microsoft turned off access to the Windows Phone Marketplace for devices that aren’t running Windows Phone 7.5 Mango. Microsoft made the move because it wanted only devices with the added security and performance enhancements built into Marketplace Windows Phone 7.5 to access the Market. Further, making Windows Phone 7.5 a requirement paves the way for features Microsoft is building into future Marketplace updates.
Fortunately, nobody should be left out in the cold unless they choose to be; the Windows Phone 7.5 update is free and available to all current Windows Phone devices. All you need to do is head over to Windows Phone’s Update Central and follow the process outlined there to upgrade your device. We note that you’ll need to be physically connected to your computer to complete the upgrade, as Microsoft has not yet embraced the over the air update processes that are standard in Android and iOS.
[via Windows Team Blog]