New
#30
How is this going to apply to our Wphones?. Mine came with 8, it upgraded to 8.1, hoping to do an easy upgrade to 10?
I was wondering that as well. Going by this Ars Technica article, it's because Microsoft want a unified Windows ecosystem and a high adoption rate of that ecosystem.
I'm guessing in the grand scheme of things (and going by that article) a lot of people don't actually bother upgrading their OS to a newer version of Windows, they just stick with what was on their PC when they bought it. Therefore, the only time they upgrade is when they buy a new PC and as PC's are being replaced at a much slower rate than in the past, that would mean a lot of people stuck on Windows 7 for a while.Releasing the Windows 10 upgrade for free is still a great move to make. It will be good for adoption rates. It functions as an "apology" for Windows 8 if you feel like Windows 8 was something that Microsoft needed to apologize for. And if Microsoft can get to OS X-like adoption levels in the next few years, that's still pretty good! It will certainly prevent a particular OS version from becoming as entrenched and difficult to dislodge as Windows XP was (and is).
By making it free, it helps to overcome the adoption rate problem and presumably Microsoft wants all those Windows 7 users to have the ability to access Windows Store, so that they have the option to use it if they so choose. So although the OS is free, they're hedging their bets on that being offset by people using the store for digital content such as games, music, apps, video on-demand, etc., which you'll be able to use across all your devices whether it be desktop, laptop, tablet, phone, TV, Xbox, etc. That's my guess anyway (and it is purely a guess).
Another possibility is that it will only be the very basic version that'll be free and the 'Pro' version will cost, however I can't see Microsoft doing that as a lot of people will feel deceived after todays announcement. So I'm going with them hoping that people buy stuff from their store that over the years will be equal to or greater than the amount they'd spend on a Windows licence.
Don't forget, Microsoft will still be getting their licencing fee when people buy new machines (and enterprise licencing, etc.), it's just the upgrade that's free.
Yep it does as the way I understand it the free upgrades also get the new stuff for free. M$ need to get legacy users on W10 fast in order to have a large user base. The way I see it now the only way that XP users will switch is when there hardware fails. New keys will not be free I think.
Well, if they want me to upgrade (even if it is free) I want some method to re-install in the future, either an ISO or a key or something.
And we still don't know what the end product will actually be, or if it will destroy OEM factory restore options, etc.. I was a little surprised at how little they talked about Windows 10 itself, and so much about Spartan, Office, X-Box, Hologram, etc.. I still feel in the dark about Windows 10 at it's core, there was really no talk about Windows actual functions, metro (or the app store), interface options, things like this.
Guess we will find out.
I'm pretty much in agreement that only when their hardware fails will XP users give up. And by that time, Windows will have changed so drastically that they'll be totally lost. Kinda like I was when that blasted ribbon came out. It took a lot of willpower to keep from chunking my computer into the dirt! I did learn, and I can use it to do what I need to do, but Office 2003 was way easier to use.
On one paw, I feel sorry that XP users won't get the upgrade free, but on the other paw, they've been given the same opportunities we had to upgrade. Having said that, I do realize that some folks really don't have the financial means to upgrade. Especially senior citizens. I know because I support them when they need help. Invariably I'm told they can't afford it.
Y'know, Trust, I think that's the whole point. The operating system is invisible and just works for those who want it like that. My daughter is a prime suspect, "Mom, I don't want to know about that; just fix it for me."
I'm with you, though, there are too many questions that don't have answers.
I have enough full versions of Windows 7 to put on all my machines and that's probably what I'll do so that my Windows 8.1 keys will be safe if Windows 10 turns out to be a disappointment. So far, I'm not thinking it will be, though.
These folks know what they're doing.
Offer the upgrade free: people think about it
they just got a Win8 machine
or
they just bought Win7 (XP users)
Business are conservative when it comes to upgrades.
let's say that 20% take advantage of the offer, and that's probably being generous.
The year length is interesting - they must have some analysis.
It might all be to overcome the stigma of Win8 - some people might take a wait and see approach or MS figured out that is the optimal purchasing period (not all people are early adopters)
That leaves them 80% of their market who will pay for the upgrade after the year offer expires.
Other revenue streams
Sell branded services: OneDrive cloud storage, Skype credits/plans,
Ad revenue: Bing (~96% of Google revenue is ad based)
Hardware: Surface, Phone, HoloLens ....
Store Revenue: % of app$
MS knows what is at stake and they're going all in.