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Microsoft announces plans to stop selling Windows 10 soon

Microsoft announces plans to stop selling Windows 10 soon
Leri Koen

Leri Koen

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Microsoft announced that they will stop selling Windows 10 Home and Pro licenses at the end of January. This will also include any license keys for Windows 10. Microsoft will still continue to provide support and security updates for Windows 10 until October 14th, 2025.

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Windows 10 was released in 2015, so considering support for the platform will only end in 2025, that’s almost 10 years of using the OS. The only other version of the operating system that lasted longer was Windows XP, which ran supported for almost 14 years. Throughout the history of these various OS, we’ve learned that stopping sales is Microsoft’s way of preparing users for the end of its lifespan. 

Once sales are halted on January 31st, more focus will go into Windows 11 and making the improvements needed on the new OS. However, security patches and bug fixes will still come to Windows 10 until it reaches the end of its support date in 2025. At the moment, it’s not clear whether sales of Windows 10 will also be halted with other retailers and OEMs, or if it’s just from the Microsoft site directly.

Microsoft to Stop Selling Windows 10 on January 31st

This announcement effectively means that Windows users have two options, buy Windows 10 within the next few days before sales stop, or upgrade to Windows 11. There are a few challenges with each of these options for users to consider.

While Windows 10 is a decent operating system where most of the bugs have already been sorted, if you were to buy it now, you’ll have less than three years that you can use the OS before having to upgrade. There also won’t be any new features added during this time, as only security updates and bug fixes will be released.

Upgrading to Windows 11 seems like the logical choice as it means you’ll be able to use the OS for a longer period of time. However, upgrading to Windows 11 is turning out to be quite a challenge. The system requirements for Windows 11 are quite demanding, meaning that many users’ current systems can’t support the new OS unless they own a top-of-the-range device. Windows 11 does include some exciting features which might motivate users to upgrade.

Windows 10 received a generally good response from users when it was first released. However, some of the criticisms that the OS received were related to the number of advertising facilities on the OS. Some outlets even consider these advertisements as a ‘hidden cost’ of upgrading to the system for free.

However, once users got over the advertisements, the OS worked very well.
Microsoft is pushing users to upgrade to Windows 11 by stopping sales of Windows 10 and ending support for Windows 7. Some users will continue working on the older version, especially considering the upgrade requirements.

Leri Koen

Leri Koen

Born and raised in South Africa I am the mother of two busy kids and one loving husband. Since leaving school I immediately started working and have been involved in many different industries where I learned a wide range of skills. Some of my skills range from marketing to management and even teaching special needs children, particularly those with severe developmental delays. I am a self-proclaimed holiday nut, taking any chance I can get to decorate and celebrate major holidays such as Easter, Halloween and Christmas, often planning these months in advance! I have a wide range of passions that I persue (as often as I can) such as reading, writing, bonsai, crafting, creating natural beauty products, listening to music and playing games (prefered platforms being PC and Xbox).

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