Five more editions are coming to Windows 10

by Hilbert Hagedoorn on: 02/06/2018 08:26 PM | source: | 103 comment(s)

Microsoft is at it again, they will be expanding the number of existing Windows 10 editions, Microsoft is going to bring five more variants for home users. Here are the key changes and how they will be licensed and priced.

The Redmond software giant is currently working on no less than five new editions which extend the Windows 10 Home family and seems to be tied to hardware specifications. The new (and now totally confusing) editions you can see listed below. It is totally unclear how Windows itself differs from the new versions, other than is being compatible with a certain hardware level:

Entry
Value
Core
Core+
Advanced

I mentioned hardware requirement, as Microsoft is preparing different system requirements for each edition. Entry and Value SKUs will be targeted for Atom and Celeron-based devices with a maximum of 4 GB of RAM, while the new Advanced edition would require Intel Core i9 and Core i7 CPUs reports website winaero. Below you can see an overview of the versions versus hardware specs:

Entry: Intel Atom/Celeron/Pentium ≤ 4 GB RAM & ≤ 32 GB SSD AND ≤ 14.1" screen size (NB), ≤ 11.6" (2in1, Tablet), ≥ 17" AiO
Value: Intel Atom/Celeron/Pentium ≤ 4 GB RAM & ≤ 64GB SSD & ≤ 14.1" screen size (EM ≤ 4 GB RAM & ≤ 64GB SSD or ≤ 500 GB HDD)
Core: Cannot be used on devices that meet the Core+ and Advanced SKU Hardware Specifications
Core +: High end CPU and >4 GB RAM (All Form Factors) ≥8 GB RAM & ≥1080p screen resolution (NB, 2in1, AiO) >8 GB RAM & ≥2 TB HDD or SSD storage (Desktop)
Advanced: Intel Core i9 (any configuration) OR Core i7 ≥ 6 Cores (any RAM) OR AMD Threadripper(any configuration) OR Intel Core i7 >16 GB (any Cores) or AMD FX/ Ryzen7 >16 GB (any Cores) OR ≥ 4K screen resolution (any processor, includes 4K UHD-3840 resolution

Pricing for the SKUs is as follows: Advanced ($101), Core + ($86.66), Core ($65.45), Value ($45), and Entry ($25). In other news, Microsoft is canceling Windows 10 S as a separate edition. Instead, there will be 'S mode', which can be enabled for any edition. When in S mode, Windows 10 will be restricted to running apps downloaded from the Store only. The new Windows 10 SKUs will be available to partners starting in April 2018.

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schmidtbag
Senior Member

Posts: 4867
Joined: 2012-11-10

#5519219 Posted on: 02/12/2018 03:46 PM

Check earlier in the thread... It's been mentioned. Also, in every article I've read concerning these editions have stated they would be sold to OEMs and not consumers. If you want sources, though, stop being lazy and find them. This whole idea of something being fiction because others are too lazy to spend 30 seconds on google is ridiculous and childish.

Guru3D is a good source, and main article page to this doesn't mention that OEMs are exclusive. I am not going to waste my time sifting through 100 posts to prove myself wrong about a point that I honestly don't really care about; this problem doesn't affect me personally.

The whole idea of something being fiction because of "being too lazy to google it" is entirely the fault of the person who instigated the disagreement. If you're going to disagree with someone in the hopes they change their perspective, it is your responsibility to ensure you succeed in that. I have no obligation to do the research, and if that means I end up being wrong, well, that's my problem. If you don't care about changing my mind, you wouldn't be griping about "childish" behavior.

TL;DR
If you can't prove your own point as easily as you suggest I should be able to, why should I do it for you, and why should I take it seriously?

Yes. It's called "volume licensing" or "bulk purchasing". ... Selling to other manufacturers guarantees a sale, unlike putting a product on a store shelf. Manufacturers offer lower prices to other manufacturers that buy in large quantities because of the transferred risk of financial loss.

I'm aware... That doesn't disagree with my point though.

nosirrahx
Senior Member

Posts: 214
Joined: 2013-04-05

#5520221 Posted on: 02/15/2018 03:30 PM

Most OEM systems are non-upgradable to start with. Lenovo uses power supplies in a lot of their systems that already operate near full load requiring replacement of the PSU to simply add a graphics card. Lenovo also has a bad habit of implementing hardware whitelists to restrict component upgrades. I actually sold a Lenovo laptop due to the hardware whitelist. Both HP and Dell have also used hardware whitelists in the past, but I'm unaware of whether or not either still do. I'll probably find out about Dell later today when I try to change the wifi card in my Dell laptop.

So, I can't upgrade from HDD -> SSD or Increase RAM to max or add/update a graphics card? Hell, even CPUs are usually upgradable as long as the CPUID matches up, I have done this many times.

Even pretending that OEM systems cannot be upgraded, you still cannot escape the changing definitions of "mid range".

I am also not sure why you are talking about laptops when this new license system does not specify laptops or desktops. Its PCs in general so a laptop that locks out certain things is not going to be the issue here, that is a small fraction of total upgrades performed on PCs in totality.

Embra
Senior Member

Posts: 991
Joined: 2014-11-19

#5520257 Posted on: 02/15/2018 05:34 PM

I do not mind the five version of Windows (though I think 3 is plenty) considering how they are priced. I would be spending the same amount for the version I presently use. I think where there may be confusion is when one not sure which version to buy gets a lesser version than they need.

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