Windows 10 Arrives Tomorrow; Here's What to Expect

[bp9801]

Microsoft's new operating system, Windows 10, arrives tomorrow, and if you're curious about what to expect, when to expect it, and nearly everything else the OS has to offer, you're in luck. This post will try to detail everything we know about Windows 10's launch tomorrow, and while Microsoft hasn't revealed all the information, we do have plenty to share. For starters, Windows 10 will begin rolling out at 10am EST tomorrow by way of a pop-up on your desktop saying it has downloaded, with members of Windows Insiders receiving it first. Anyone who has reserved their copy will then receive it in waves, but Microsoft has yet to say how long these waves will take. Millions of people are lined up for Windows 10, and while not everyone will get it on July 29, Microsoft does not plan for it to take weeks to provide everyone with their copy.

Windows 10 is going to be a free upgrade for the first year, which is a major step for Microsoft, and before you think there's a limit, well, there isn't. Anyone with a copy of Windows 7 or later, including those on Windows Phone 8.1, can get a copy of Windows 10 for free through a prompt on your computer/phone/tablet. However, the mobile version won't be quite ready yet, but you can still get it reserved for when it is. The OS will be free for 10 years (read, no surprises at any point), with mainstream support ending in 2020 and extended support in 2025. If you're on an older version of Windows or on a different OS, you'll need to buy Windows 10 for either $119.99 ($99.99 OEM) for the Home edition or $199.99 ($139.99 OEM) for the Pro edition. You can also become a member of Windows Insider and get it for free, but you'll be a beta tester for any new updates rolling out to Windows 10. Some may not be stable right away, like some recently seen ones with NVIDIA drivers on build 10240 (which isn't the final RTM build), so if you want to be a guinea pig, you have that option.

In order to run Windows 10, you need at least a 1GHz processor, 1GB of RAM for 32-bit or 2GB for 64-bit, 16GB of hard drive space for 32-bit and 20GB of space for 64-bit, at least a DirectX 9 video card, and a monitor capable of displaying 1024x600 and above. Pretty standard fare, so if you've bought or built a PC at any point in the last five years or so, you'll be fine. The install for Windows 10 should take about 30-45 minutes, depending on how much time you spend customizing it. Backing up your files before the upgrade is recommended, but everything should be right where you left it on Windows 7 or 8.1.

There are some things that will be included in Windows 10, like OneDrive and the new Edge browser, but with some caveats. In the case of OneDrive, individual files won't be automatically synced; you have to choose which folders get uploaded online. For Edge, extension support is missing right now (Flash is built in, like with Google Chrome), as is pinning websites to the taskbar, favorites importing (requires exporting from another browser and then importing), and dragging a file into the browser to upload to OneDrive or the like. Other things missing include Cortana support in all available countries and languages, and Windows 10 for Xbox One. Those and others will arrive in the fall update, which is hopefully out in October or thereabout. The Windows 10 we're getting tomorrow is still going to have a ton of features in it, just some are arriving a little later as they're still being finished up.

Windows 10 will be here in a little over 16 hours, where we'll get things like DirectX 12, the Edge browser, an actual Start menu, a vastly improved Activity Center that does away with Windows 8's annoying Charm Bar, windowed apps, virtual desktops, and so many other items. There will be plenty more coming in the next months and years, with Windows 10 set to be the definitive version of Microsoft's long-running OS. We'd love to hear from you how you're finding Windows 10 once you get it, so feel free to share your story!

Sources: Microsoft and TechRadar

Back to original news post