When Microsoft introduced Windows 10 S, along with the first hardware to include the new OS, the company promised that users would have the ability to upgrade to Windows 10 Pro until the end of the year. After that, it would cost $49 "or less".
Today, the firm announced that the Core i7 Surface Laptop is now available in additional colors in 20 countries, and in doing so, also confirmed that it"s extending the free upgrade offer until March 31, 2018.
If you"re not familiar with Windows 10 S, it"s a version of the OS that only allows users to install apps that come from the Windows Store. Geared toward the educational market, the Surface Laptop is really the only consumer product that offers the SKU. Obviously, an upgrade path was necessary, and even at the normal price, it costs half of an upgrade from Windows 10 Home to Pro, which is $99.
But extending the offer is something that benefits everyone, as the option is always there. If you upgrade your Windows 10 S machine to Pro now, you"ll always be able to roll back to 10 S by using a recovery image, and your PC will still be licensed for Pro.
Conversely, if you"re already running Windows 10 Pro (or any SKU of Windows 10 besides Home), you can try out Windows 10 S on your machine right now.