
Recap: Windows 8.1 hit the scene in 2013, roughly a 12 months after the debut of its predecessor, and was meant to deal with among the shortcomings of Windows 8. While it was an enchancment, it nonetheless wasn’t all that nice and Microsoft was more than pleased to begin rolling out Windows 10 in the summertime of 2015.
Microsoft is reportedly prepping a marketing campaign to tell Windows 8.1 customers in regards to the working system’s pending end-of-life standing.
Redmond began winding down assist for Windows 8.1 on January 9, 2018, when the OS noticed mainstream assist come to an finish. On January 10, 2023, the prolonged assist interval will conclude, at which era technical help, updates and safety patches will now not be equipped.
According to StatCounter, Windows 8.1 is put in on simply 3.06 p.c of computer systems worldwide.
Microsoft concedes that the majority techniques working Windows 8.1 won’t meet the {hardware} necessities to improve to Windows 11, however Windows 10 would possibly nonetheless be an possibility for some. That stated, Windows 10 is scheduled to achieve its finish of assist date in simply over three years on October 14, 2025. All issues thought of, a brand new PC working Windows 11 is likely to be the most effective improve path for some.
According to ZDNet’s Mary Jo Foley, Microsoft will begin sending notifications in regards to the looming end-of-support date to Windows 8.1 customers in July.
Image credit score: Tadas Sar