With the Windows 10, Microsoft has made another big splash on July 2015. It is a much improved operating system and switching to it from an older Windows version is a no brainer. However, it is important for users to know whether Windows 10 is really faster, stronger and better.
- Cost: It is interesting to know that users can upgrade to Windows 10 for free, if they are using Windows 7 and Windows 8. This offers is available until July 2016. Windows 10 is free for the duration of the official support. However, users of the previous Windows XP and Windows XP are excluded from this free offer. The Home version is available for $119 and the Pro version at $199.
- Support: Windows 7 and Windows 8 are approaching the end of their support duration. They can upgrade to Windows 10 for free and get an extended and mainstream support. Mainstream support for Windows 7 ended at January 2015, Windows 8 at January 2018 and Windows 10 at October 2020. By upgrading to Windows 10, current Windows 7 users could resume their mainstream support. This will ensure improved reliability and security.
- Performance: One big question among computer users is whether Windows 10 faster compared to earlier version. Various tests show that Windows 10 are only a few seconds faster in all performance areas compared to Windows 7 and Windows 8.1. However, when accumulated, we could save plenty of time in a year. On average, Windows 7 is loaded completely in 27 seconds, Windows 8 in 23 seconds and Windows 10 in 21 seconds. Improved performance could also be detected in gaming, storage and productivity tasks.
- Features: Microsoft adds various futuristic features in Windows 10. In this case, users could expect to get ease of use, improved mobility and enhanced collaboration.
- Mobility: Windows 10 is able to run all across devices, such as desktops, laptops, hybrids, tablets and smartphones. It is essentially a single software platform for all endpoints.
- Cortana: Cortana is a helpful voice assistant that answers our questions instantly. Like Apple’s Siri, we could also tell Cortana to perform various computing tasks, such as setting reminders, creating new emails, configuring calendar appointments, opening a browser and searching an information through Bing search engine.
- Windows Hello: Many laptops already incorporate biometric buttons that work smoothly like on Apple iPhone 5. This makes authentication more secure and remove the need for hard-to-remember passwords.
- Edge: With Edge, users are able to search for information much faster. They can write notes quickly on webpages and they can be shared to others.
- Battery saving: This feature conserves battery life and we can limit background activity. When activated, hardware settings could also be adjusted.
- Improved updates: Windows 10 is now able to accept security patches outside regular Windows updates. It means that new threats can be handled much more quickly.
It is clear that Windows 10 could provide plenty of new benefits for professionals and home users, although visually it doesn’t look much different than Windows 8.1.
