Windows 10 free upgrade reservation

sk282

I am on Windows 8.1 and got this notification today, more info on the link below. Computers with Windows 7 and upwards are eligible for a free upgrade for a year long...

Windows 10 FAQ & Tips Microsoft

acquiescefc

July 29th

mass_debater

Not a bargain, it's free for a year to all Windows 7 and 8 users. We still don't know what happens after that.....

Captain Chaos

I'd love to know how much is it after a year. I can see this being subscription based OS like Office 365.

sk282

mass_debater wrote: »

Not a bargain, it's free for a year to all Windows 7 and 8 users. We still don't know what happens after that.....

I think it is free to keep indefinitely if you upgrade within 1 year. You can always cancel your reservation if otherwise so no harm in reserving it...

Yes, you can cancel your reservation at any time prior to installing Windows 10. Here’s how:

• Right-click on the Get Windows 10 App or Windows icon located at the right end of the taskbar.
• Select “Check your upgrade status”.
• Select "Cancel reservation"

blindsider

Just reserved the upgrade. No mention of it being for 1 yr only.

Is W10 more resource-hungry? My laptop is beginning to show signs of age, but I don't want to upgrade now. If W10 is going to push the system harder, I'll cope with W7 Home.

mass_debater

sk282 wrote: »

I think it is free to keep indefinitely if you upgrade within 1 year. You can always cancel your reservation if otherwise so no harm in reserving it...

Yes, you can cancel your reservation at any time prior to installing Windows 10. Here’s how:

• Right-click on the Get Windows 10 App or Windows icon located at the right end of the taskbar.
• Select “Check your upgrade status”.
• Select "Cancel reservation"

Free to keep yes, but you'll be paying for ongoing support and updates, Microsoft are moving to a subscription model

sk282

mass_debater wrote: »

Free to keep yes, but you'll be paying for ongoing support and updates, Microsoft are moving to a subscription model

I had a quick look and there seems to be a confusion alright but I couldn't find an official link or an explanation. This site says "Once you’ve updated your device, Microsoft says it will keep the software current for its “supported lifetime.” "

Reati

mass_debater wrote: »

Not a bargain, it's free for a year to all Windows 7 and 8 users. We still don't know what happens after that.....

Captain Chaos wrote: »

I'd love to know how much is it after a year. I can see this being subscription based OS like Office 365.

mass_debater wrote: »

Free to keep yes, but you'll be paying for ongoing support and updates, Microsoft are moving to a subscription model

You have no proof of this whatsoever for Windows 10, unless you work there?

It's been stated more times that' I can count that it's free for a year as an upgrade. If you upgrade within the year, that's it. You're on Windows 10 and you're done. If you don't upgrade within the year, I'd assume you'd have to pay if you try after that.

mass_debater

sk282 wrote: »

I had a quick look and there seems to be a confusion alright but I couldn't find an official link or an explanation. This site says "Once you’ve updated your device, Microsoft says it will keep the software current for its “supported lifetime.” "

That could mean anything. You are as clueless as the rest of us. I advise that it would be unwise to upgrade without knowing more. Definitely not a bargain alert.

Reati

mass_debater wrote: »

That could mean anything. You are as clueless as the rest of us. I advise that it would be unwise to upgrade without knowing more. Definitely not a bargain alert.

So your advise is to not upgrade for free "because..."

What do you think is going to happen. Windows 10 is suddenly going to stop working after a year?

civitano

sk282 wrote: »

I think it is free to keep indefinitely if you upgrade within 1 year. You can always cancel your reservation if otherwise so no harm in reserving it...

Yes, you can cancel your reservation at any time prior to installing Windows 10. Here’s how:

• Right-click on the Get Windows 10 App or Windows icon located at the right end of the taskbar.
• Select “Check your upgrade status”.
• Select "Cancel reservation"

That is correct.

mass_debater

Reati wrote: »

So your advise is to not upgrade for free "because..."

What do you think is going to happen. Windows 10 is suddenly going to stop working after a year?

It will stop getting updates

pleasant Co.

mass_debater wrote: »

It will stop getting updates

You've a link to this info?

mass_debater

pleasant Co. wrote: »

You've a link to this info?

I was asked what I thought would happen after a year.

That's the thing, nobody knows yet because they've kept all info on what happens under wraps. They're moving to a subscription model but haven't fully announced how they will be limiting the free versions or how they plan on monetising it. Off you go and upgrade if you think it's wise.

civitano

I think it would be a good idea to read the information made available, especially the FAQ's. The information is there, all you have to do is read it.

Not able to post links as for being a "new user" so here is the quote from the Microsoft website, Windows 10 section:

---BEGIN QUOTE
Is it really free to upgrade?




Yes. Windows 10 is a free upgrade for qualified Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1 Update and Windows Phone 8.1 devices. This free upgrade is offered for one year after Windows 10 is available. After you upgrade, Windows 10 is yours to enjoy.
---END QUOTE

py2006

I got this too this morning. I am currently on Win 7 but not sure I wanna upgrade Win 10.

Sarn

Those of us eligible have over a year to decide. There's no rush to install once it's available. I'm going to see what compatibility issues pop up first.

Brian CivilEng

The "free for a year" thing is to encourage people to upgrade. Supporting multiple versions of Windows is costing Microsoft more than the money they would earn by charging people to upgrade but having most remain on their existing copy. There will be no ongoing charges, once you upgrade you have Windows 10 on your device.

Here's Paul Thurrott explaining it:
https://www.thurrott.com/windows/windows-10/3426/tip-understand-the-free-upgrade-to-windows-10

This is a good bargain alert. I have been using the consumer preview on my desktop and shall upgrade my laptop as soon as it is available. I will hold off on my tablet for a while though, Windows 8.1 works well on that and I am not yet convinced of the merits of 10 for touchscreen devices.

Bayberry

blindsider wrote: »

Just reserved the upgrade. No mention of it being for 1 yr only.

That's because it's not for 1 year only. Once you update, you get to keep the update "for the life of the device" without charge. If you don't update within the first 12 months, the offer of a free upgrade lapses, and you'd have to pay to do the upgrade.

Reati

mass_debater wrote: »

I was asked what I thought would happen after a year.

That's the thing, nobody knows yet because they've kept all info on what happens under wraps. They're moving to a subscription model but haven't fully announced how they will be limiting the free versions or how they plan on monetising it. Off you go and upgrade if you think it's wise.

So you get all the futures of Windows 10 that are in there now, plus anything they add in during the first 12 months. But because you're worried they might then charge for new features after that, you're telling people not to upgrade... "because..." As with every other version of Windows, I bet there will be security fixes for like 10 years which will always be free. Those things called Service Packs There is nothing to lose by upgrading once compatibility issues are sorted out.

I've yet to see anything saying Windows will become a subscription outside of the usual fear mongering of the Anti-MS tech sites. Do you have links to anything from Microsoft.



TL;DR - You get the latest version of Windows for free and if they suddenly start to charge for updates after that year, you don't have to pay you know.

Kristopherus

There's loads of info re Windows 10 here http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057300527

killbillvol2

mass_debater wrote: »

Not a bargain, it's free for a year to all Windows 7 and 8 users. We still don't know what happens after that.....

mass_debater wrote: »

Free to keep yes, but you'll be paying for ongoing support and updates, Microsoft are moving to a subscription model

mass_debater wrote: »

That could mean anything. You are as clueless as the rest of us. I advise that it would be unwise to upgrade without knowing more. Definitely not a bargain alert.

mass_debater wrote: »

It will stop getting updates

All completely wrong. In fact total and utter BS.

Bayberry wrote: »

That's because it's not for 1 year only. Once you update, you get to keep the update "for the life of the device" without charge. If you don't update within the first 12 months, the offer of a free upgrade lapses, and you'd have to pay to do the upgrade.

This.

Bayberry

mass_debater wrote: »

I was asked what I thought would happen after a year.

That's the thing, nobody knows yet because they've kept all info on what happens under wraps.

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.*

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.

That was posted on the Windows blog on January 21st!!!

It has been utterly clear from the announcement of the free upgrade exactly what it entailed - no cost to upgrade, and once you're upgraded, there won't be any further charge for ongoing upgrades. Some people are quibbling about the "supported life" qualification, but nobody complains that you can't install Windows 8.1 on an old motherboard from 1995 that only has 2 memory slots that support a max of 256MB of RAM, or that you can't install IOS8 on a 5 year old iPhone - at some point in the future, Win10 will evolve to a point where it won't work on some hardware that exists today.

_Whimsical_

Seems like you can sign up, download and install it whenever you want as well, and presumably not install it if you prefer. Is that everyone elses reading of it too?

Adamocovic

Bayberry wrote: »

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.*

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.

That was posted on the Windows blog on January 21st!!!

It has been utterly clear from the announcement of the free upgrade exactly what it entailed - no cost to upgrade, and once you're upgraded, there won't be any further charge for ongoing upgrades. Some people are quibbling about the "supported life" qualification, but nobody complains that you can't install Windows 8.1 on an old motherboard from 1995 that only has 2 memory slots that support a max of 256MB of RAM, or that you can't install IOS8 on a 5 year old iPhone - at some point in the future, Win10 will evolve to a point where it won't work on some hardware that exists today.

Yeah I think the confusion on subscription was mostly around December before it was cleared up. Myerson himself said no subscription.

http://www.pcgamer.com/microsoft-windows-10-will-not-be-sold-as-a-subscription/

I like others think the free upgrade is so people move away from 7 so they can eventually stop supporting it. Win7 is still being used by so many that if they stopped supporting it people would be up in arms complaining. I think theyre hoping a free upgrade but only for a certain time will force people into upgraded as fear they will have to pay for it later down the line if it is good.

From what I have seen Windows 10 looks very good, even in just the technical preview. I'll be updated as soon as possible anyway.

guil

I've been using the technical preview for a few weeks on a dell laptop that came with windows 7. It's nearly 6 years old and the tech preview runs much better on it.

jimmycrackcorm

py2006 wrote:

I got this too this morning. I am currently on Win 7 but not sure I wanna upgrade Win 10.

I have the RC version of Windows 10 installed. Apart from an odd expected glitch it's a world apart from Windows 8.

I'd definitely upgrade for free from Windows 7.

Bayberry

Adamocovic wrote: »

I like others think the free upgrade is so people move away from 7 so they can eventually stop supporting it. Win7 is still being used by so many that if they stopped supporting it people would be up in arms complaining. I think theyre hoping a free upgrade but only for a certain time will force people into upgraded as fear they will have to pay for it later down the line if it is good.

Microsoft is already committed to the support life-cycle for Windows 7 - that won't change, because even if every last consumer in the whole world ugraded to Windows 10, huge numbers of business customers would still needed to be supported on Windows 7, and Microsoft makes a lot more money from those customers than it does from consumers.

But Microsoft needs Windows 10 to take off quickly, much more quickly than Windows 8 did, because some of the features of Windows 10 only really become a benefit when Windows 10 usage is widespread - the whole app-store is in a chicken and egg cycle more users will mean more apps, and more apps will mean more users (and paid apps will mean a revenue stream for MS), and Cortana gets better by having more inputs to learn from. So MS wants/needs Win10 to grow quickly, but it won't generate any savings on Win7 support - it's already committed on that front.

NotMyUsualName

Sarn wrote: »

Those of us eligible have over a year to decide. There's no rush to install once it's available. I'm going to see what compatibility issues pop up first.

I think this is good advice. At the moment the "Check your PC" feature is telling me that while Windows 10 will work on my machine that my Broadcom Virtual Wireless Adapter is incompatible and that I'll experience problems with my network

Niemoj

Windows 10 is shaping up to being a very good Operating System.

RainyDay

blindsider wrote: »

Just reserved the upgrade. No mention of it being for 1 yr only.

Is W10 more resource-hungry? My laptop is beginning to show signs of age, but I don't want to upgrade now. If W10 is going to push the system harder, I'll cope with W7 Home.

Same question for me.

guil wrote: »

I've been using the technical preview for a few weeks on a dell laptop that came with windows 7. It's nearly 6 years old and the tech preview runs much better on it.

Thanks - very helpful. Any other opinions on this? I have 4 GB RAM and 250 GB disk, with about half of the disk free atm.

yannakis

Niemoj wrote: »

Windows 10 is shaping up to being a very good Operating System.

This is MS is trying to become 21st century compliant

delahuntv

mass_debater wrote: »

I was asked what I thought would happen after a year.

That's the thing, nobody knows yet because they've kept all info on what happens under wraps. They're moving to a subscription model but haven't fully announced how they will be limiting the free versions or how they plan on monetising it. Off you go and upgrade if you think it's wise.

They are NOT moving an operating system to a subscription model - the operating system and "office software" are 2 utterly different things - just created by the same company.

"Office" will soon only be available on subscription, but the advantages are amazing.

Windows Operating system is exactly that - an operating system which allows for software to run. It would be akin to a shopping centre charging you to enter the shopping centre in order to buy goods in the shops there.

But some people will believe any crap they hear or see online - suppose Facebook will be charging too?

blindsider

delahuntv wrote: »

They are NOT moving an operating system to a subscription model - the operating system and "office software" are 2 utterly different things - just created by the same company.

"Office" will soon only be available on subscription, but the advantages are amazing.

Windows Operating system is exactly that - an operating system which allows for software to run. It would be akin to a shopping centre charging you to enter the shopping centre in order to buy goods in the shops there.

But some people will believe any crap they hear or see online - suppose Facebook will be charging too?

For the un-informed, could you elaborate on this? I'm inherently opposed to a subscription based system, but always open to correction/enlightenment....


Apols if I'm bringing this off-topic....

beauf

RainyDay wrote: »

Same question for me.

Thanks - very helpful. Any other opinions on this? I have 4 GB RAM and 250 GB disk, with about half of the disk free atm.

I find W8 runs better than W7 on older devices. I would assume W10 is quite similar to W8 in terms of performance. I run W8 on less than 4GB. But I do turn off Metro/Modern interface and run it with the older interface. But I think both interfaces run well on older hardware.

Older hardware gets a real boost from a SSD. Even using web apps etc. You'll see a big difference with a SSD. It will give your older hardware a longer life, and you can move it to a newer machine when you do move on.

Alanstrainor

Is anyone else having trouble getting to the page in the OP? Doesn't load for me, tried just googling it again and I get the same error, which is a "page not found...". I tried clear cache etc too....

huh, works in Chrome...nothing to see here...


As for those wondering about 2GB or RAM running Windows 8.1 and above, I have a Windows tablet with an Atom quad core and 2GB of RAM and it's buttery smooth. Never had issues, even running a lot of tabs and having the full metro experience.

Bayberry

blindsider wrote: »

For the un-informed, could you elaborate on this? I'm inherently opposed to a subscription based system, but always open to correction/enlightenment....

The obvious advantage of the subscription model for Office is that it can help (in theory at least) to do away with version hell, because everyone running Office will have the same version. (In practice, people running an old copy of Word 2000 aren't going to automatically upgrade, but that would be true whether there was a subscription model, or they continued with a new version every 3 years, but the current fluury of "can you resend that in Office X format" that happens for 12-18 months after every Office release will be a thing of the past).

The continuous update model also allows new functionality to be made available as the market changes. Office 2010 isn't "cloud aware", for example, because it simpley didn't make sense when Offcei 2010 was released (some would argue that it still doesn't, but that's another thread). The subscription model allows you to take advantage of new features when they will work for you, without having to make a big decision about a large upgrade. And the subscription model allows for a lower upfront price, though for some it will mean paying more in the long run.

Me, I've never used Office enough at home to justify paying full price for it. I don't think a subscription model will change that, unless the price comes down substantially. So right now, getting free access to the web versions of Word and Excel when I use the SkydriveOnedrive website more than meets my needs. But other people who use Office more than me might prefer to pay a smaller monthly fee rather than a more expensive one-off charge. But I'd want to know what would happen if my subscription lased for a month :-)

Snow Crash

Some questions...

1. What if I change my motherboard a year after I upgrade to Windows 10, won't it be seen as a new device?

2. Will Microsoft give me a full Windows 10 key after I upgrade so I don't have to reinstall from Windows 7 to 10 everytime I need to do a reformat?

3. Would it be a good idea to buy some cheap Windows 7/8 keys now to upgrade some of my other Linux based PCs to 10 or do you think Microsoft will price Windows 10 reasonably to gain OS market share quickly?

sk282

Snow Crash wrote: »

Some questions...

1. What if I change my motherboard a year after I upgrade to Windows 10, won't it be seen as a new device?

2. Will Microsoft give me a full Windows 10 key after I upgrade so I don't have to reinstall from Windows 7 to 10 everytime I need to do a reformat?

3. Would it be a good idea to buy some cheap Windows 7/8 keys now to upgrade some of my other Linux based PCs to 10 or do you think Microsoft will price Windows 10 reasonably to gain OS market share quickly?

There was another upgrade promotion for people who bought Windows 7 PCs just before the Windows 8 release. The keys that were given back then didn't let you install a fresh Windows 8 and were used only to upgrade from 7. I believe this will be same also, you would have to install your previous version of Windows first with its key and then use Windows 10 key to upgrade...

sk282

sk282 wrote: »

There was another upgrade promotion for people who bought Windows 7 PCs just before the Windows 8 release. The keys that were given back then didn't let you install a fresh Windows 8 and were used only to upgrade from 7. I believe this will be same also, you would have to install your previous version of Windows first with its key and then use Windows 10 key to upgrade...

Link or anything? I haven't been able to find any info on this at all.

sk282

Brentley Gifted Body wrote: »

Link or anything? I haven't been able to find any info on this at all.

Like I said that is what happened from 7 -> 8 so this is just a guess based on that.

unkel

Alanstrainor wrote: »

As for those wondering about 2GB or RAM running Windows 8.1 and above, I have a Windows tablet with an Atom quad core and 2GB of RAM and it's buttery smooth.

I've Windows 10 installed on a €45 1GB RAM tablet and it's fine for basic use. I've also had it installed on 7-8 year old PCs and laptops (one with just 1.5GB of RAM and an SSD) and they run very smoothly indeed

foggy_lad

Snow Crash wrote: »

Some questions...

1. What if I change my motherboard a year after I upgrade to Windows 10, won't it be seen as a new device?

2. Will Microsoft give me a full Windows 10 key after I upgrade so I don't have to reinstall from Windows 7 to 10 everytime I need to do a reformat?

3. Would it be a good idea to buy some cheap Windows 7/8 keys now to upgrade some of my other Linux based PCs to 10 or do you think Microsoft will price Windows 10 reasonably to gain OS market share quickly?

Your windows 10 product key is saved/embedded on the motherboard in the same way the windows 8 keys are, if you change the motherboard you lose your subscription afaik but there may be a way around this.

Windows will not issue you a full licence key but you will be able to produce recovery media on a usb stick or on DVDs in the same way you can now do for windows 7 and 8.1, this recovery media might allow you to do an install on a machine with a new motherboard as long as the other components were unchanged?

coldfire1x

Worth a read:

http://www.theverge.com/2015/6/1/8696949/windows-10-feature-loss

Bayberry

coldfire1x wrote: »

Worth a read:

http://www.theverge.com/2015/6/1/8696949/windows-10-feature-loss

I'll save you the bother of clicking on the links - this is the full list of "lost features" in that article:

upgrading will mean saying goodbye to Windows Media Center, the card game Hearts, and Windows 7's desktop gadgets. Anyone in the habit of using floppy disks on Windows will also have to install new drivers, and Microsoft warns that watching DVDs will also require "separate playback software."

The DVD issue is the only one that will be a stumbling block for any significant number of people (and I say that as a WMC user - my HTPC won't be upgraded to Win10, for exactly the same reason that it wasn't upgraded to Win8) and there is no shortage of alternatives available for that (VLC being the most obvious choice).

The other major change listed in that article is that users of Windows 10 Home won't have the opion of deferring Updates. They'll be downloaded and installed when they become available. I really don't have a problem with that, except for people who don't have broadband - there are still some of them out there!

corkie

Bayberry wrote: »

The other major change listed in that article is that users of Windows 10 Home won't have the opion of deferring Updates. They'll be downloaded and installed when they become available. I really don't have a problem with that, except for people who don't have broadband - there are still some of them out there!

I'm on limited 15gb O2 (now three) broadband and prefer to choose when I get updates!

moodrater

corkie wrote: »

I'm on limited 15gb O2 (now three) broadband and prefer to choose when I get updates!

You can still disable updates as always with group policy or via registry / reg file.

madmaggie

For the likes of me, who took ages adapting to Windows 7, is Windows 10 easy to navigate and what does it do that Windows 7 does not currently do? As you can guess by my question, I am not a techie person.:D

biebiebie

Reservation def:
1. The action of reserving something.
2. An expression of doubt qualifying overall approval of a plan or statement.

Two sides of the fence

AntiVirus

mass_debater wrote: »

I was asked what I thought would happen after a year.

That's the thing, nobody knows yet because they've kept all info on what happens under wraps. They're moving to a subscription model but haven't fully announced how they will be limiting the free versions or how they plan on monetising it. Off you go and upgrade if you think it's wise.

What a load of bollock!

They haven't kept anything under wraps. In fact pretty much anyone could have signed up to their windows insider program and have been running the latest build of Windows 10 on their pc's as the full os or on a virtual PC to test. They've been very open about Windows 10 and where it is going

The fact that you've posted complete rubbish show's you've no idea about what's being going on. They've explain what free for a year means from the very start.

Can you post up any link where Microsoft have even hinted that Windows 10 will be a subscription based OS? No you can't, so quit with the bull****.