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Why you should upgrade to Windows 10

Since the release of Windows 10 in July 2015, there are still a lot of people running Windows 7 and 8, and even lower, despite Windows 10 getting better and better with every update.

Since it’s now been nearly 2 years since Windows 10 was released and there are still a lot of unknowns and queries floating around, we wanted to clear up some of these unknowns and give you a bit more of an insight into Windows 10.

When Windows 8 was released, a lot of people found this version difficult to use as Microsoft had opted for a tablet-oriented look and feel, which was vastly different to what people were used to with Windows 7 and lower. The traditional Windows Start Menu was removed, making it difficult for users to locate certain things. Then a little later, Windows 8.1 was released with a Windows Start Menu, which was much different to the menu people were used to using with Windows 7 and lower.

With the huge difference between Windows 7 and Windows 8, it’s no wonder why a lot of people are still using Windows 7 and lower, since they would have heard a lot about the difference.

So, why upgrade to Windows 10?

#1 – The Start Menu Has Returned:

Yes, the Windows Start Menu has returned and it is probably better than ever!

While it’s a little different to Windows 7, it’s certainly an improvement from the Windows 8.1 Start Menu. Upon opening the Windows Start Menu, you will see on the far left side icons for the following: “User”, which allows you to log out, switch account, etc, “File Explorer”, which opens your frequently opened folders on your computer, “Settings”, which gives you quick access to your computer settings, a more updated version of “Control Panel” (though “Control Panel” can still be accessed by searching) and “Power”, which allows you to put your computer into sleep, restart and shut it down.

Your most used apps/ programs and all your other apps/ programs will show in alphabetical order in the middle of the menu. The right side of the menu can be customised by you by pinning programs to the menu, making them accessible to you.

#2 – Searching On Windows 10:

After running Windows 10 for quite sometime, people don’t often know that to search on Windows 10, you can just click the Windows Start Menu and start typing in what you’re looking for. You don’t even need to go into a search bar. Programs, apps and utilities will automatically show once you’ve typed in your search keyword and will refresh very easily.

#3 – Updates & Security:

Microsoft are continually releasing updates to boost security on Windows computers.

As most know, Microsoft stopped releasing security patches for Windows XP a couple of years ago, which means that anyone using Windows XP haven’t received any updates for it for years. The same goes for Windows Vista, which was stopped this year in April. At this stage, other versions of Windows, prior to Windows 10 are still receiving updates, but they do now have limited support. You can see the Windows Lifecycle Fact Sheet here on the Microsoft website.

In the last month, Windows 10 users have been bombarded with updates to keep their devices safe against the recent ransomware cyber-attack named “WanaCry” and other cyber-attacks.

So, after mentioning this, if you’re running older versions of Windows, like XP and Vista, you’re leaving your computers in a vulnerable state as you won’t receive any more updates to safeguard your computer.

You can read tips from Microsoft Support on keeping your PC safe from ransomware here.

#4 – Cortana Voice; Activated Personal Assistant:

For those using an iPhone who enjoy Siri, Windows 10 now has its own personal voice assistant created by Microsoft. Cortana can be setup easily to set reminders, send emails, locate files and even search the internet! So, if you love Siri, you are guaranteed to love Cortana.

#5 – Less Storage Used for the Operating System:

According to Microsoft, they revealed that they have compressed Windows 10 system files which will give back around 1.5GB of storage for Windows 10 32-bit and 2.6GB of storage for Windows 10 64-bit! This is really impressive compared to the older versions of Windows. If you want to read more about Windows 10 storage space, head over to their blog post about this here.

All in all, if you don’t operate Windows 10 and are on an older version of Windows, we can’t recommend an upgrade enough!