Well, I just bought a Windows 10 "S Mode" laptop. I sort of actually overlooked it, thinking that it wasn't a big deal, I could always bust out a USB stick (Win10 MCT), and re-format. Boy, was I wrong.
It's a 2019-release HP, with a Ryzen 3 3200U, a 2C/4T 2.6Ghz base CPU. Not too shabby. $269 at Wally-world.
Anyways, plugged in (battery internal), powered on, attempted to go through setup, shut off stupid cortana voice... and then connect to my Wifi LAN. That was my first mistake. "S Mode" laptops, WILL NOT ALLOW THE USE OF A LOCAL ACCOUNT SETUP, if you connect the internet. And they don't offer a "Not now" option for networking, only "I Don't Have Internet".
Select that, and you can create a local account.
However, I only found that out, after two attempts at booting a Win10 1903 (Aug. update) USB stick. First, I chose to format the "main" Win10 partition, and left the recovery partition. When I got the same behavior during setup, I blew away all of the partitions, and started fresh.
However, I used this very same USB stick to re-format a Desktop Ryzen PC, and didn't get this behavior, so this is specific to "S Mode" laptops tagged in the BIOS.
Getting rid of S Mode - not as easy as MS makes it sound.
They say "Go to the Windows Store, and 'GET' out of S Mode".
Easy enough, right? Go to Settings, Activation, helpful link "Go to store and get out of S Mode".
So you click it, and there's a big shiny button on that page, that says "Get". Click it and...
MS wants an MS account credentials. No exceptions. So I supplied my Skype id, after futilely clicking "Next", "Cancel", "Forgot my username", etc. Then then wanted an e-mail to associate WITH that Skype ID. Then they wanted to actually VERIFY it, by requiring you to log into it, and give them a response code.
So, basically, "Windows 10 S Mode" laptops, are a HUGE privacy hole, and, at least acccording to their FAQ, YOU CANNOT USE FIREFOX OR CHROME ON WINDOWS S MODE - UNLESS YOU GIVE THEM BOTH AN MS ACCOUNT AND AN E-MAIL IN ORDER TO 'ESCAPE' FROM S MODE.
So convenient. Before, MS was accused of anti-trust (and essentially found guilty), when they simply bundled their own web browser, for free. On the basis that the unassuming masses would think that that shiny blue 'E' on the desktop, WAS "the internet", and wouldn't search for other browsers.
Well, these days, MS simply LOCKS OUT ALL COMPETING BROWSERS, unless you are savvy enough to NEGOTIATE THE HASSLE TO DISABLE S MODE, AND WILLING TO GIVE UP SOME OF YOUR PRIVACY TO DO SO.
This is really heading towards a nightmare-ish scenario, and it's nothing like the Windows that I knew and "loved" growing up in the 90s/2000s. This is MS heading towards DOMINATION END-GAME. And I don't like it.
Worst yet, EVEN ARMED WITH A USB STICK TO INSTALL FRESH CLEAN WINDOWS 10, YOU CAN'T GET AWAY FROM THE PROCESS NEEDED TO 'ESCAPE' S MODE!
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