{"id":133420,"date":"2015-07-28T12:43:01","date_gmt":"2015-07-28T10:43:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/?p=133420"},"modified":"2015-07-28T12:45:10","modified_gmt":"2015-07-28T10:45:10","slug":"windows-10-should-you-upgrade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/software\/133420-windows-10-should-you-upgrade.html","title":{"rendered":"Windows 10: should you upgrade?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Windows 10 launches on\u00a029 July, with\u00a0Microsoft offering Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users the ability to upgrade for free in the first year after its launch.<\/p>\n<p>The upgrade download will be about 3GB, and will take between 20 minutes and an hour to install &#8211; depending on the device.<\/p>\n<p>Those who don\u2019t qualify for the free upgrade &#8211; people using Windows Vista or older versions of Windows &#8211; will be able to buy Windows 10 for the same price as Windows 8.<\/p>\n<p>In the US, this is $119.99 for Windows 10 Home, and $199 for Windows 10 Pro. Windows 10 Pro Pack lets you upgrade from the Home edition to Pro for $99.<\/p>\n<p>In South Africa, Windows is priced as follows:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Windows 8.1:<\/strong> R1,540<\/li>\n<li><strong>Windows 8.1 Pro:<\/strong> R2,630<\/li>\n<li><strong>Windows 8.1 Pro Student Offer:<\/strong> R480<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>While Microsoft has answered most of the questions regarding Windows 10 in the <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-us\/windows\/windows-10-faq\" target=\"_blank\">FAQ pages<\/a><\/strong> on its website, there is one that users must answer themselves: Should you upgrade to Windows 10?<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"my-4\">General concerns<\/h3>\n<p>If you are unsure about whether any specialised software will\u00a0work on the new version of Windows, you should not upgrade until its\u00a0developer has confirmed support for the OS.<\/p>\n<p>Users may also want to wait\u00a0until the first big patch for Windows 10 is pushed out before upgrading.<\/p>\n<p>For the remaining Windows users, read below to see if you should upgrade to Windows 10.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"my-4\">\u00a0Windows XP\u00a0no longer receives support. It&#8217;s time to upgrade.<\/h3>\n<p><a  data-lightbox=\"post-image\" href=\"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Windows-XP-loading-screen.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-133426\" src=\"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Windows-XP-loading-screen.jpg\" alt=\"Windows XP loading screen\" width=\"630\" height=\"420\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Windows-XP-loading-screen.jpg 630w, https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Windows-XP-loading-screen-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Windows-XP-loading-screen-250x166.jpg 250w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>If you are still on Windows XP (or older), that means Microsoft no longer offers <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/windows.microsoft.com\/en-us\/windows\/lifecycle\" target=\"_blank\">support<\/a><\/strong> for your operating system.<\/p>\n<p>While you can\u2019t get the upgrade to Windows 10 for free, it is definitely time to upgrade.<\/p>\n<p>You can either buy a new PC that ships with Windows 8.1 Pro or Windows 10, or pay for a new version of Windows.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re not keen on Windows 10, you should investigate switching to a modern operating system. Free Linux distributions are available for those who do not want to pay for an OS.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"my-4\">Windows Vista is\u00a0heading for end-of-life in two years, but does not offer\u00a0free upgrade.<\/h3>\n<p><a  data-lightbox=\"post-image\" href=\"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Windows-Vista.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-133424\" src=\"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Windows-Vista.jpg\" alt=\"Windows Vista\" width=\"630\" height=\"430\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Windows-Vista.jpg 630w, https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Windows-Vista-586x400.jpg 586w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Mainstream support for Windows Vista ended on 10 April 2012, but Microsoft has said it will still provide\u00a0security fixes for the operating system until 11 April 2017.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re happy with Vista then you don\u2019t have to upgrade, and you certainly aren\u2019t incentivised to do so since Windows 10 won\u2019t be free for you.<\/p>\n<p>However, if you meet the <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-us\/windows\/windows-10-specifications\" target=\"_blank\">minimum hardware requirements for Windows 10<\/a><\/strong>, it is worth considering the upgrade.<\/p>\n<p>Alternatively, you could look at buying a new PC that includes a more recent edition of\u00a0Windows.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"my-4\">Windows 7 has Windows Media Centre and still receives security updates. The\u00a0free upgrade offer is compelling.<\/h3>\n<p><a  data-lightbox=\"post-image\" href=\"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Windows-7-Home-Premium.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-133422\" src=\"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Windows-7-Home-Premium.jpg\" alt=\"Windows 7 Home Premium\" width=\"630\" height=\"420\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Windows-7-Home-Premium.jpg 630w, https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Windows-7-Home-Premium-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Windows-7-Home-Premium-250x166.jpg 250w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re running Windows 7 and are happy with it, the choice to upgrade is not straightforward.<\/p>\n<p>Mainstream support for Windows 7 ended on 13 January 2015, but Microsoft will continue to provide security updates until 14 January 2020.<\/p>\n<p>One change in features to keep in mind before upgrading\u00a0is that Windows Media Centre (WMC) will not be available in Windows 10.<\/p>\n<p>If that\u2019s a concern, then stick with Windows 7 until 2020 while you hunt for a WMC replacement.<\/p>\n<p>Another aspect\u00a0to consider is the upgrade paths from Windows 7. Windows 7 Home Premium users will only get Windows 10 Home for free.<\/p>\n<p>There is an inexpensive way to go from <a title=\"How to upgrade from Windows 7 Home Premium to Windows 10 Pro\" href=\"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/software\/127952-how-to-upgrade-from-windows-7-home-premium-to-windows-10-pro.html\"><strong>Windows 7 Home Premium to Windows 8.1 Pro, and from there to Windows 10 Pro<\/strong><\/a>, but that requires users to get\u00a0a Windows 8 Pro upgrade kit which used to cost between R350 and R700.<\/p>\n<div class=\"mybb_table\">\n<div class=\"table-responsive\"><table class=\"table\" style=\"width: 100%;\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"7\">\n<thead>\n<tr style=\"background-color: #06518a; font-weight: bold; color: #fff;\">\n<td style=\"text-align: center;\" colspan=\"2\">Upgrading from Windows 7<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background-color: #e7e7e7; font-weight: bold; color: #333; border-bottom: solid 3px #ddd;\">\n<td>From Windows 7<\/td>\n<td>To Windows 10 edition<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Windows 7 Starter<\/td>\n<td rowspan=\"3\">Windows 10 Home<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Windows 7 Home Basic<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Windows 7 Home Premium<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Windows 7 Professional<\/td>\n<td rowspan=\"2\">Windows 10 Pro<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Windows 7 Ultimate<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background-color: #06518a; font-weight: bold; color: #fff;\">\n<td style=\"text-align: center;\" colspan=\"2\">Upgrading from Windows 8<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background-color: #e7e7e7; font-weight: bold; color: #333; border-bottom: solid 3px #ddd;\">\n<td>From Windows 8<\/td>\n<td>To Windows 10 edition<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Windows Phone 8.1<\/td>\n<td>Windows 10 Mobile<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Windows 8.1<\/td>\n<td>Windows 10 Home<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Windows 8.1 Pro<\/td>\n<td rowspan=\"2\">Windows 10 Pro<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Windows 8.1 Pro for Students<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<\/table><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"my-4\">Windows 8.1 users: Upgrade to Windows 10. Don&#8217;t even think about it, just do it.<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/nuHfVn_cfHU\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Just do it.<\/p>\n<p>The only reason not to is if you bought the Windows Media Centre add-on pack and can\u2019t live without WMC.<\/p>\n<p>My advice: find an alternative for WMC and grab the upgrade.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"related\">More Windows 10\u00a0news<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/software\/132655-windows-10-when-you-can-upgrade-how-long-it-will-take.html\"><strong>Windows 10 \u2013 when you can upgrade, how long it will take<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/software\/128248-windows-10-prices-revealed.html\"><strong>Windows 10 prices revealed<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/software\/132046-windows-10-free-upgrade-help-at-incredible-connection.html\"><strong>Windows 10 free upgrade help at Incredible Connection<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/software\/125340-microsoft-edge-the-new-web-browser-for-windows-10.html\"><strong>Microsoft Edge: the new web browser for Windows 10<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The latest version of Microsoft\u2019s operating system launches on 29 July, with some Windows users getting the upgrade for free.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":133428,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[35,123,26970,30378,31802],"class_list":["post-133420","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-software","tag-headline","tag-microsoft","tag-windows-10","tag-windows-10-pro","tag-windows-10-upgrade"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133420"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=133420"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133420\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":133436,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133420\/revisions\/133436"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/133428"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=133420"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=133420"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=133420"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}