Microsoft is all geared up to launch its latest offering, the Windows 10. Windows 10 will be a significant Update to Windows 8.1, which was not widely appreciated due to its new design and variety of unproductive features. Windows 10 was officially unveiled in September 2014, where company explained reasons why they called this OS, the smoothest and the most unifying experience till date. A room for testing and debugging was required and hence the launch was scheduled to July 29, 2015, which is close now.
Company has focused all its attention on the things that made Windows 8.1 undesirable and has made improvements accordingly. Through its public testing ‘Insider Program’ Windows 10 has gained mass support over its unified ecosystem approach, and improvements over Windows 8.1.
Improvements over Windows 8.1
Windows 8 and 8.1 didn’t perform as they were expected, with wide criticism of the eradication of the very popular Windows Start Button, the not so glorious approach of Live Tiles. Live Tiles were rectangular icons that were capable of showing updates and important information, just like widgets on Android. Though in Windows 10, Start button is back but so are live tiles with some visual overhauls and improvements.
We all remember Internet Explorer, world’s best browser of time which then turned into a piece of garbage which attracted huge public outrage and jokes about is slow, outdated design, which soon turned it into an international trends memes, jokes, one-liners about the software soon started to make twitter trends and filled websites like 9Gag all over. Which deemed to be a great trouble for Microsoft, but they played cool and decided to abandon with what was not working for them, Goodbye Internet Explorer. That’s when Microsoft Edge Comes in, Edge is the new age browser developed by Microsoft which will be deployed in Windows 10.
Cortana, Microsoft in-house developed Virtual Assistant which is now fully geared to take on the competition with inclusion in Windows 10, is also a feature worth mentioning and with news that Cortana will also come to Android, iOS this summer tells us that Microsoft is ready to take on the competition. Cortana will face Google Now, and Siri when it finally lands on the rivals application stores.
One unifying platform, one unifying experience
Windows 10 will feature a unifying experience which means that the time has come for Windows to finally exercise its powers of desktop computing to rule the mobile equation in its favor. We already know that the tech-giant is the greatest of all when it comes to the personal computing front, more than 90% share in the industry is sure something they can use to empower their mobile devices through a better ecosystem and unification of services.
Microsoft’s CEO Satya Nadela, 47, has said at various events that Windows 10 will offer same framework and application compatibility for all devices connected- PCs, Laptops, Tablets and Mobiles. All of them running on a similar OS would mean humongous opportunities for porting existing applications to their mobile devices, which has been something that Windows Mobile always lacked.
While this might not mean that Android and iOS are in some great threat, this certainly gives Windows Phones something they have been craving for from their earlier days.
We can also see a great experience that we also saw on Apple’s Mac and iOS devices, where they had seamless integration and sync in with what’s happening on their devices. Like calling right from Mac, turning mobile hotspot on or off without even touching iPhone and so many things which will give a little advantages to its services and all of its ecosystem.
Also the new-gen OS will also get better Fingerprint and Biometric support with a new version of DirectX and WDDM which will enhance gaming support.
How to get Windows 10
You can get it now via Windows Insider Program, but to make you aware- the software is still in testing stage, it’s a beta but people have reported it to be the smoothest and least troublesome OS of all times. Head on here to know more.
Windows 10 will be made available free of charge to users of genuine copies of Windows 7 & Windows 8.1, and mobile version of the OS would come to devices running Windows Phone 8.1. With all that said, genuine windows owners will get free upgrade to Windows 10 for only a period of 1 year and after that you’ll have to ay for a copy even if you already have a genuine 7 or 8.1 copy.
To people like me using Mac OS, We will have to buy a copy online for $119 for Windows 10 Home, $199 for Windows 10 Professional, and $99 for a Windows 10 Pro Pack to jump from a licensed copy of Windows 10 Home to the Professional version.
With all being said, Microsoft attempt of Windows 10 seems a very solid one with focus on what’s been lacking from the days of Windows 7. With feedbacks of Windows 10 insider Program, people already love the OS and starting from 29 July, we will witness Microsoft’s best bet which displays its ambitions on both- PC as well as Mobile computing.
