Microsoft working on a ROM to 'transform Android phones to Windows 10 phones'

Microsoft is said to be working on a custom ROM to emulate Windows 10 for Phones on compatible Android smartphones.  The report from Phandroid says, "this won’t be some simple Metro-styled launcher, either — this is apparently going to operate as a full-blown operating system as if you had originally bought a Windows 10 phone with access to Microsoft’s wealth of apps and services."

Specs of Android handsets and Windows Phones have been quite similar if not parallel. Manufacturers like Samsung and HTC even have Windows Phone variants of their popular Android handsets showing that the hardware should function similarly independent of the hardware that it is running on. 

As part of its focus on China as a market, Microsoft has partnered with Xiaomi to spearhead the project. See the announcement below.

As part of the Windows Insider Program, Microsoft will partner with Xiaomi to offer Windows 10 free downloads to a select group of Xiaomi Mi4 users. Xiaomi Mi4 users will get the ability to flash their phones with the new Windows 10 OS and provide feedback to Xiaomi and Microsoft on their experience. This partnership will allow Xiaomi and Microsoft to get direct user feedback and continue to improve the experience for China. Microsoft is thrilled to see Xiaomi embracing Windows 10 and offering this great value to their customers. We’re excited to see the feedback we receive from this audience.

Xiaomi is a leading phone manufacturer in China undergoing significant global expansion. We are excited to partner with them in China and jointly gather feedback from Chinese users on their experience with Windows 10 to jointly collaborate on product and services development for the platform.

Availability will be announced in the months to come.

Source: Phandroid