Microsoft had set the target of rolling out the OS to 1 billion devices by mid-2018, just before launching the latest version of its Windows operating system.
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Microsoft revealed on March that Windows 10 is the version that has the fastest start, with over 270 million active devices within few months.
The company is still committed to the 1 billion goal, but it will take longer to achieve, Yusuf Mehdi, Windows marketing chief, said in a statement.
Upgrading before the deadline will also entitle users to the Windows 10 Anniversary Update, which launches on August 2 2016 and includes features such as Windows Ink, enhancements to Cortana and Edge, and an advanced security update. These were an important part of the 1 billion devices, because one of the key selling points of Microsoft’s Universal Windows Platform is the way it enables developers to easily adapt their software for the many different form factors that Windows supports.
If you are now using Windows 7 or 8.1 you have until 29 July to upgrade to Windows 10 for free – after that it will be around THB5,000.
Although this is a bit unexpected, having Windows RT on a Windows phone doesn’t bring any real advantages, as the lack of apps is actually bigger on the tablet-oriented operating system than on Windows 10 Mobile. It comes at a time when the company is up in arms with aggressive moves to get its users onto Windows 10. While Windows 10 Mobile’s poor performance has definitely hit Microsoft’s aspirations hard, new PC sales have been in free-fall for quite some time, and new tablet sales aren’t the savior either.
But Windows Phones running Windows 10 Mobile also were expected to help Microsoft reach that total by mid-2018. At first, the pace at which users switched to the new OS was really slow, as people did not trust it after being disappointed by Windows 8.
Until now, users have been able to upgrade to Windows 10 at no cost.
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Despite being well-reviewed by a host of critics since its inception in July 2015, some argue the free installations are a step too far, after many reports of the software being installed without consent.
