Microsoft have announced that they are opening up Windows 8.1 for pre-orders before it is released on the 18th of October and the upgrade is free for those that already have Windows 8.
The update is said to make it easier for people to take in the massively updated interface of Windows 8. Microsoft will automatically update machines using Windows 8 on October the 17th, the day before the update is released, but Windows 7 users can now purchase the upgrade in DVD format or as a digital download for just under £95.
Microsoft have warned that Windows 8.1 is not designed for installation on machines running XP or Vista, but users of the two operating systems can buy Windows 8 and then get the free upgrade to 8.1.
Microsoft are also going to be selling Windows 8 Pro for just under £125. The prices listed are for the full versions of the OS.
Windows 8 wasn’t very popular when it was released, due to the fact that when booted, it displayed a start page with app rectangles, similar to the display used on the Nokia Lumia phones, rather than the original desktop that most people are used to. The update re-introduces the start button and gives the user the option to boot their machine in the old style interface used by every operating system up to 8.
8.1 is a big leap for Microsoft. Windows is still the most dominant operating system on PC’s, but iOS and Android have taken over the market for mobile devices and tablets. With Windows 8 and now the 8.1 update, Microsoft are hoping to move to a whole new interface designed to be a lot more secure and a lot easier to use on Tablets, including Microsoft’s very own Surface tablets.
Microsoft are set to launch their own tablet hardware for the second time, the Surface 2 and the Surface Pro 2. The first gen tablets didn’t do as well as Microsoft had hoped, but the two new ones use new processes, options for add-ons and the new Windows 8 OS.
