The WP 8.1 option has emerged in the developer portal

Mar 12, 2014 20:26 GMT  ·  By

Redmond-based software giant Microsoft is gearing up for the release of a new flavor of its mobile operating system, one that will supposedly arrive on devices as Windows Phone 8.1, and it seems that devs can already submit apps compatible with it to the Store.

According to a recent article on WPCentral, developers heading to their accounts on the portal will see that an option to add apps that support the platform has been included there.

In the Supported OS section of the portal, both the Windows Phone 8 and the WP 8.1 platform versions are listed, and they can check whichever fits their software.

One thing that should be noted here, however, is the fact that current applications for the mobile platform are expected to run on Windows Phone 8.1 right from the start.

However, with Microsoft already releasing a beta SDK for the new OS version, it remains to be seen whether software specifically designed for Windows Phone 8.1 will also be compatible with Windows Phone 8.0.

What remains to be seen is whether the platform refresh will indeed be called Windows Phone 8.1 when released, as this is actually the first time that Microsoft refers to it using this name.

The company should provide full details on the upcoming update in early April, during its BUILD conference, so keep an eye on this space for additional details on the matter.