Microsoft knows what’s up with Windows 10, as it might be the last big opportunity to make up the ground lost in recent years with their push to get users onto original copies of its operating system by updating to the latest version. Although we already knew it would be free for the first year of use, it’s just been announced that updating to Windows 10 will be completely free even for users who have pirated copies of Windows 7 or 8.
This move aims to reduce the level of piracy in Asian countries, with China at the top of the list, where three of every four copies of Windows are pirated (although we’d like to see these same data for Europe and Latin America for computers without a preinstalled OEM license). The info has been confirmed at Reuters by Microsoft Windows division chief Terry Myerson. The official launch date has yet to be revealed but is likely to come this summer.
As of last October it’s now possible to download and install a free, fully functional Preview of Windows 10, which with its latest patches can almost be considered a stable option to start using on your computer right now. Nevertheless, the best way to check it out without making the proper leap is to virtualize it with VirtualBox, which we explain how to do in the link above in this paragraph.
