Microsoft got into the good books of customers a couple of months back when it said there would be a Universal Windows Platform (UWP) Skype app on Windows 10. It was a reversal of an annoying decision where the company split up Skype services and buried them in individual apps. However, there has been no word on a UWP Skype app on Windows 10 Mobile until now.
Of course, as this is a Universal Windows application, we always expected (read knew) that the app would be making its way to mobile, but confirmation from Microsoft would be nice. Aside from official input, a solid leak is the next best thing that shows the company has indeed been developing Skype UWP on Windows 10 Mobile alongside Windows 10 for PCs.
At the moment, the regular Skype UWP app is in preview mode for Windows 10 users on the Insider Program, but the Windows 10 Mobile version has not even dropped on the Inside yet. That could mean it will also reach end users later than the PC app, but there is still a way for users on the latest Windows 10 Mobile insider builds to get a look at the app:
Download the .appxbundle for the app here
Copy the .appxbundle to your phone
Open the Settings app, go to Update & Security > For Developers and enable Developer Mode
After that, browse to the file using the File Explorer on your phone
Click on the file to install it
The app and indeed the install method was leaked by Jeremy Sinclair on XDA Forums, so there are a few things worth considering. Microsoft has not even officially announced Skype UWP for Windows 10 Mobile, so downloading it for your device is probably not going to give you a lot. Features will be limited and the overall experience will be choppy at best and unusable at worst.
Just wanted to point out they already confirmed a while back this was coming to Mobile…They even said the preview should be out to Insiders some time in June.
The FAQ for the Skype Preview on skype.com even mentions it is coming to Windows 10 Mobile in the future so it’s definitely been known for while and confirmed by Microsoft.