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> throw out every bit if mobile tech they had

WP7 run on Windows CE kernel, same as Windows Mobile. It uses embedded version of .NET and Silverlight, both pre-existing. Even the touchscreen friendly UI language (once called Metro) existed before windows phone, the first product was Zune.

The only bits they had to throw out is marketing bits, branding, logos, that kind of BS. The tech however is an evolution, not "back to square one".




Windows Phone 7 was two major versions ago, and its CE base was ditched with WP 10.


That is correct. But you mentioned Windows Mobile, so I presumed by “back to square one” you meant WM 6.5 -> WP 7.0 transition.

They indeed replaced the OS kernel while transitioning from WP7 to WP8.

However, they inherited the rest of tech things from WP7. Both .NET and Silverlight were almost same as in WP7, they released the new non-Silverlight UI platform later with WP 8.1 update. Same applies to GUI design, marketplace and other online services. They even inherited non-tech things as well, i.e. logo and branding.

You see, at no point they were starting things from scratch. Instead, they released new generations of products largely based on the stuff they already had developed and tested.




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