Gaming

Windows 10 is a free upgrade for all Windows 7 and 8.1 users

Windows 10 will be free

Windows 10 is a free upgrade for all Windows 7 and 8.1 users.


Wondering how much Windows 10 will set you back? In most cases, more or less nothing. Microsoft has announced that the new operating system will be a free upgrade in the first year for everyone using Windows 7, Windows 8.1 or Windows Phone 8.1. The company sees Windows as a service rather than a product, Terry Myerson explains.

Microsoft is partly following in Apple’s footsteps (OS X upgrades have been free since Mavericks), but can you really complain about getting a big update for free?

Joe Belfiore demonstrated Cortana, which Microsoft announced it has added to the PC

Joe Belfiore demonstrated Cortana, which Microsoft announced it has added to the PC.


Windows 10 brings the same operating system to devices of all sizes, rather than having different ones for PCs/tablets, mobile phones and the firm’s Xbox games console.

One of the features highlighted at the presentation was how Cortana – the voice-controlled digital assistant previously limited to Windows Phone handsets – would now work on PCs.

Cross-device multiplayer gaming, Game DVR & more. The @Xbox experience is coming to #Windows10.

Cross-device multiplayer gaming, Game DVR & more. The @Xbox experience is coming to #Windows10.

Microsoft is currently live with Windows 10 Briefing: Watch the live event here.

Grand Theft Auto: V release date delayed until autumn

The latest GTA adventure was due in spring. Now virtual criminals will have to wait until 17 September

The latest Grand Theft Auto adventure was due in spring. Now virtual criminals will have to wait until 17 September. Rockstar Games has finally announced a release date for Grand Theft Auto V, the latest in the company’s hugely successful series of gangster adventures. The game will hit Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 consoles on 17 September. Originally, the publisher had mentioned the possibility of a spring release.

A message posted on the Rockstar Games website says:

We know this is about four months later than originally planned and we know that this short delay will come as a disappointment to many of you, but, trust us, it will be worth the extra time. GTAV is a massively ambitious and complex game and it simply needs a little more polish to be of the standard we and, more importantly, you require.

Set in the fictional city of Los Santos, a stylised version of Los Angeles, GTA V follows three lead characters as they carry out a series of increasingly audacious heists. The game is the most ambitious project in the long-running series, which has so far sold over 125 million units worldwide. The environment is larger than the previous two titles combined.

Alongside the inevitable next installment in the Call of Duty franchise, GTA V is expected to be the biggest video game release of 2013; it is an important title for the industry which has seen retail sales falling over the last year.

source Rockstar & Guardian