Windows 10 free for all Windows 8.1 and 7 users for first year after release

[postmortemIA]

What they plan to do with what? If you currently own 7 through 8.1 you get an upgrade, and everyone on Win10 gets new features for the life the device.

I don't get the constant posts about "after year one" - they're trying to drive adoption. After year one, they'll charge some amount for a Win10 license probably...but they made it clear this isn't some subscription model.

So apple does forced obsoletion of old devices. If they don't meet system requirements, you can't upgrade. Wouldn't Microsoft have same incentive?

 

[RampantAndroid]

So apple does forced obsoletion of old devices. If they don't meet system requirements, you can't upgrade. Wouldn't Microsoft have same incentive?

I'm sure it's possible...but I don't see how they'd do it, given how many custom PC systems exist. That's a problem Apple doesn't have, given Hackintosh machines aren't condoned.

 

[Ketchup]

What they plan to do with what? If you currently own 7 through 8.1 you get an upgrade, and everyone on Win10 gets new features for the life the device.

I don't get the constant posts about "after year one" - they're trying to drive adoption. After year one, they'll charge some amount for a Win10 license probably...but they made it clear this isn't some subscription model.

May I ask how you know this? The word "probably" doesn't give me a lot of confidence. Muadib has a valid point. If I can, I would like to put the gifted version of 10 on my Win 7 laptop. If nothing else, I can just image it back to 7 when the year is up, or Microsoft makes it more clear that they will continue some sort of support (I really would only care about the security update aspect of it anyway).

 

[quikah]

So apple does forced obsoletion of old devices. If they don't meet system requirements, you can't upgrade. Wouldn't Microsoft have same incentive?

I can't imagine anything that is running Windows 7 now would not meet system requirements for 10. It is supposed to be able to run on a phone.

 

[RampantAndroid]

May I ask how you know this? The word "probably" doesn't give me a lot of confidence. Muadib has a valid point. If I can, I would like to put the gifted version of 10 on my Win 7 laptop. If nothing else, I can just image it back to 7 when the year is up, or Microsoft makes it more clear that they will continue some sort of support (I really would only care about the security update aspect of it anyway).

The language in the Windows posts that are out there. They make two things clear (that are separate):
1. The upgrades are limited to being free for a year, and after the year is still an open question they have no answer to
2. Separate of the upgrades, people on Win10 get new features (with no year limit mentioned - they specifically say for "the life of the device")

I don't "know" this; I read it from Windows.com. That's straight from the horse's mouth. http://blogs.windows.com/bloggingwindows/2015/01/21/the-next-generation-of-windows-windows-10/

 

[Ketchup]

OK, I think I got it. The upgrade is available for up to one year after launch, then "we will continue to keep it current for the supported lifetime of the device – at no cost."

Very cool. Hopefully.

There is always the asterisk to consider "Hardware and software requirements apply. No additional charge. Feature availability may vary by device. Some editions excluded. More details at http://www.windows.com."

Not sure if that is just for the initial upgrade, or refers to hardware that will be phased out with future updates, as Apple does.

 

[TourGuide]

I'm thinking that I don't like the idea of trading a retail license of 7 - where I can install it on any hardware configuration I want - for a 10 license that is tied to a single hardware setup. More reasons NOT to update.

 

[RampantAndroid]

OK, I think I got it. The upgrade is available for up to one year after launch, then "we will continue to keep it current for the supported lifetime of the device – at no cost."

Very cool. Hopefully.

There is always the asterisk to consider "Hardware and software requirements apply. No additional charge. Feature availability may vary by device. Some editions excluded. More details at http://www.windows.com."

Not sure if that is just for the initial upgrade, or refers to hardware that will be phased out with future updates, as Apple does.

I think a real question is going to have to be, will MS eventually say "Your i7 920 isn't capable of running this feature" - or will they just let updates roll out to all machines regardless of whether all machines are capable of running it. Will updates have a minimum system requirements list on them?

I'm thinking that I don't like the idea of trading a retail license of 7 - where I can install it on any hardware configuration I want - for a 10 license that is tied to a single hardware setup. More reasons NOT to update.

I think for most people this isn't an issue. We're the minority. My bigger concern is whether I'll need a new license when I eventually upgrade my Ivy Bridge CPU to Skylake or something...and how does a fresh install work.

 

[Ketchup]

...My bigger concern is whether I'll need a new license when I eventually upgrade my Ivy Bridge CPU to Skylake or something...and how does a fresh install work.

That will be interesting. 7 let me enter validation numbers when I upgraded from Sandy Bridge to Haswell, and that wasn't a big deal at all.

 

[ArisVer]

Posted by Andre De Costa on the Windows insider program forums. Similar thread.

http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/...l/d70fda43-a79d-40d4-9370-01fe909aa094?page=3

This is more than a one-time upgrade: once a Windows device is upgraded to Windows 10, we will continue to keep it current for the supported lifetime of the device – at no additional charge. With Windows 10, the experience will evolve and get even better over time. We’ll deliver new features when they’re ready, not waiting for the next major release. We think of Windows as a Service – in fact, one could reasonably think of Windows in the next couple of years as one of the largest Internet services on the planet.

And just like any Internet service, the idea of asking “What version are you on?” will cease to make sense – which is great news for our Windows developers. With universal Windows apps that work across the entire device family, developers can build one app that targets the broadest range of devices – including the PC, tablet, phone, Xbox, the Internet of Things, and more.

Source:
http://blogs.windows.com/bloggingwindows/2015/01/21/the-next-generation-of-windows-windows-10/

Edit. And a quote from the blog link above.

Delivering Windows as a Service and a Free Upgrade to Windows 10 Today was a monumental day for us on the Windows team because we shared our desire to redefine the relationship we have with you – our customers. We announced that a free upgrade for Windows 10 will be made available to customers running Windows 7, Windows 8.1, and Windows Phone 8.1 who upgrade in the first year after launch.* {*Hardware and software requirements apply. No additional charge. Feature availability may vary by device. Some editions excluded.}
This is more than a one-time upgrade: once a Windows device is upgraded to Windows 10, we will continue to keep it current for the supported lifetime of the device – at no cost. With Windows 10, the experience will evolve and get even better over time. We’ll deliver new features when they’re ready, not waiting for the next major release. We think of Windows as a Service – in fact, one could reasonably think of Windows in the next couple of years as one of the largest Internet services on the planet.

 

[GrumpyMan]

So if all above is true I would imagine Windows 10 will be the last version naming convention ever for their OS. That would make version numbers be a thing of the past since it's going to be like "one of the largest internet services on the planet in the next couple of years."?

 

[ninaholic37]

"supported lifetime of the device"

I wonder if that means 14 days.

I tried to bring a $600 keyboard back the music store after 3 weeks because it wouldn't turn on, and they said "can't do that, you had it for more than 14 days ner ner ner". Didn't buy the 3 year warranty for $200 extra? Not our fault your OS fell apart and set your computer on fire after 3 weeks hahahah :sneaky:

 

[ViRGE]

I think a real question is going to have to be, will MS eventually say "Your i7 920 isn't capable of running this feature" - or will they just let updates roll out to all machines regardless of whether all machines are capable of running it. Will updates have a minimum system requirements list on them?

Considering Microsoft's bread & butter is supporting systems for 10+ years, I have to assume they have a plan for that, even if they aren't willing to share it. Something will be done to keep old systems in the game (i.e. security updates), even if they may not be able to use new features.

 

[denis280]

I think a real question is going to have to be, will MS eventually say "Your i7 920 isn't capable of running this feature" - or will they just let updates roll out to all machines regardless of whether all machines are capable of running it. Will updates have a minimum system requirements list on them?

Yeah! will they??

Considering Microsoft's bread & butter is supporting systems for 10+ years, I have to assume they have a plan for that, even if they aren't willing to share it. Something will be done to keep old systems in the game (i.e. security updates), even if they may not be able to use new features.

Hope so cause if they don't this will be a very:sneaky:Gift

 

[therealnickdanger]

I did some Googling around and it seems Office 2007 does install and run on Windows 10.

There are a few bugs reported, but that seems like precisely that - bugs - not Windows 10 dropping compatibility for Office 2007. Or at least I hope my supposition is true.

I'm running W10 on a POS (not point of sale) laptop and I loaded Office 2007 and 2010 on it with no issues. The version of the preview I'm running has a lot of DX bugs and missing DLLs, so getting games/3D stuff to run takes some tweaking. TIE Fighter works fine, that's all that matters.

 

[JimKiler]

I can't get excited until I know what they plan to do after year one....

I don't think there is a big unknown, MS just wants to push as many people to Win10 as possible so they are using a threat to get people to do it in year 1. This makes sense because they want you to buy from their in OS store so the more people who upgrade the more money they stand to make.

They will probably charge $20 or $30 for an upgrade after year one, but still cheap enough that people will still buy it.

 

[PingSpike]

I did some Googling around and it seems Office 2007 does install and run on Windows 10.

There are a few bugs reported, but that seems like precisely that - bugs - not Windows 10 dropping compatibility for Office 2007. Or at least I hope my supposition is true.

I run Office 2000 on Windows 7 and never noticed any problems.

 

[Eug]

I run Office 2000 on Windows 7 and never noticed any problems.

Office 2000 is not supported at all on Windows 7, but it installs and runs mostly fine. However, there are bugs according to internetland, which will never be fixed. Office 2003 is supported though.

On Windows 8, Office 2003 is not supported, but Office 2007 is supported.

On Windows 10, I can't find any info on this in terms of official support. Furthermore, while some support in general is available for Office 2007 until 2017, mainstream support was discontinued 2012. This is why I was asking about Office 2007 on Windows 10.

 

[Mem]

I'm running W10 on a POS (not point of sale) laptop and I loaded Office 2007 and 2010 on it with no issues. The version of the preview I'm running has a lot of DX bugs and missing DLLs, so getting games/3D stuff to run takes some tweaking. TIE Fighter works fine, that's all that matters.

Previews are like alpha/very early beta so that is to be expected as you probably know.

I'm actually more interested in the pricing of Win10 after the first year,is it going to be cheap or expensive,also how many versions of Win10 will there be, life span,what is next after Win10 ,yes probably Win11 but when,got a lot of little things whizzing around in my head.


Regardless I upgrade to Win10 like I always do since Win95 days.

 

[Ketchup]

"supported lifetime of the device"

I wonder if that means 14 days....

See, this could either be very good or very bad. I don't want to believe that Microsoft will make people pay for this OS on a PC at the end of a year after saying "lifetime", but I can see that clever wording leaves them open for a later revelation that this is the case. It is also possible they also have not decided, waiting on after-release reception in order to make the call.

On a phone or tablet, this won't really matter. After a year (in addition to however long they had it), folks will be ready for a new device anyway.

 

[Eno Safirey]

I'm wondering if there will be something buried in the EULA that would somehow void out your activation code for the operating system you are upgrading from. It would be really awful to image your Windows 7 install and try to reactivate a year later and be shut out. I also would hate to upgrade from Windows 7 Pro or Ultimate and discover that my free OS is a basic or starter edition that can be enhanced with add-ons from the store.

 

[ArisVer]

I'm actually more interested in the pricing of Win10 after the first year,is it going to be cheap or expensive,also how many versions of Win10 will there be, life span,what is next after Win10 ,yes probably Win11 but when,got a lot of little things whizzing around in my head.

I have read there will be both a Pro and Enterprise edition.

 

[bbhaag]

I have read there will be both a Pro and Enterprise edition.

That's kind of interesting to. Quite the deviation from 7. How many versions were there? Starter, basic, premium, pro, ultimate and enterprise was that all of them? Then Win8 went to just basic, pro, and enterprise. Now 10 will be just pro and enterprise? If they make it one platform for all users I guess that makes sense.

 

[SimMike2]

Any idea if Windows Media Center will be in Windows 10?

 

[Eug]

IMO Windows 7 Starter and Windows 7 Basic shouldn't exist, esp. Windows 7 Starter. Stupidest OS version ever.