MSFT Microsoft Corporation

By Nathan Olivarez-Giles 

If you have a computer running Windows 7 or 8, mark July 30 on your calendar. That's the day that upgrading your PC to Windows 10 will no longer be free. Once the operating system passes its one-year anniversary, Microsoft Corp. will start charging $120 to move over to Windows 10.

When Microsoft first released Windows 10 a year ago, it said the free upgrade for Windows 7 and Windows 8 users would last a year. ( Windows XP users already pay at least $120 to upgrade.) The limited time offer was a bid to get as many people on to Windows 10, as quickly as possible. So far, Microsoft's ploy appears to be working: 300 million active devices, old and new PCs, are now running on Windows 10, Microsoft said Thursday in a blog post.

Not only does Windows 10 have the fastest adoption rate of any version of Windows, but WSJ Personal Tech columnist Geoffrey A. Fowler found Windows 10 to be a worthwhile upgrade for the majority of people currently using an older version of Windows.

But with PC sales continuing to hit new lows, the pressure is on Microsoft to start charging for Windows 10 from a PC industry that has so far missed out on any PC sales bump it's seen in the past when new versions of Windows arrive.

So what does all this mean for you, as a Windows user?

You can still save some money

If you think you might upgrade but have put it off because you didn't want to be an early adopter, it's time to go for it. Waiting -- and then paying for Windows 10 Home ($120) -- isn't worth it. Start by visiting the Windows Update website and check to see if your PC is compatible with Windows 10. If it is, Microsoft will walk you through the upgrade.

Before you upgrade, make sure you back up your important files, photos and other media on an external hard drive and, if possible, in a cloud service too. Also check out our guide to the risks and concerns of upgrading to Windows 10 if you have lingering questions.

Your old apps will stick with you, mostly

Most of your Windows 7 and 8 apps should run on Windows 10, and your media should be in place after you upgrade. Some, like Windows Media Center (an older Windows app for watching movies and listening to music on your TV), won't make the transition.

Windows 10 is safer

If you have an older model with Windows 7 or 8, you really should upgrade. Not keeping up with software updates can make any devices more vulnerable to hackers. If you don't want to upgrade, be mindful of how much longer Microsoft will offer security updates for your operating system of choice.

Microsoft stopped issuing security updates for Windows XP in 2014, and it will abandon Windows Vista in 2017. It is going to end all support for Windows 7 in 2020, and Windows 8 in 2023. As of now, Microsoft said it plans to support Windows 10 through 2025.

Don't forget to dust off your old PC, too

If you have a mothballed PC that you were planning to one day hand down or sell, get it out and upgrade it before July 30. Your old PC with Windows 10 will be more useful and valuable to whomever gets it next.

Make sure your next PC runs Windows 10

If you're thinking of buying a PC, be sure it comes with Windows 10. Dell, Lenovo, HP, Acer and others all still sell new PCs running Windows 7 and Windows 8 -- often with a "free Windows 10 upgrade" marketing pitch -- so if you do buy one of those, hurry up and do the upgrade.

Consider dumping Windows

If you don't want to pay for future operating system updates, you have two choices: move your old PC over to Windows 10 in the next few weeks, or move away from Windows altogether. Apple Inc. hasn't charged its users for an update to its OS X operating system since charging $20 for OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion more than three years ago. Alphabet Inc.'s Chromebooks (which with only the ability to access web apps and web pages are admittedly less capable than a PC and Mac) don't make you pay for software updates either.

Don't buy a Windows 10 phone, for now

Windows 10 is the first Microsoft operating system built to run on laptops, desktops, tablets, the Xbox gaming console and smartphones. But right now Windows 10 phones don't live up to their own potential -- and can't keep up with the competition, either.

While Windows 10 has been a PC success, it has been a dud on phones to date. Microsoft's share of the mobile operating system market was down to 1.1% by the end of last year, according to the Gartner research firm. These days, even Microsoft is making cool new apps and mobile features for the iPhone instead of its own Windows 10 mobile phones.

Microsoft needs to win over developers who can build software titles that will help the company compete both in the smartphone-dominant era and to gear up for the augmented- or virtual-reality worlds that could be next. The company wants to leverage its hundreds of millions of Windows 10 PC users to convince key developers to make killer apps -- such as Snapchat -- that can run on smartphones running Windows 10, as well as desktops. It's an uphill battle.

Write to Nathan Olivarez-Giles at Nathan.Olivarez-giles@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 05, 2016 18:07 ET (22:07 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.