
Windows 10 Insider Activation Update: Part 2
Just a couple of days ago, Microsoft put out a blog post outlining how Windows Insiders would be updated to the release version of Windows 10. Later, they updated their original post to change some of the wording, since it basically made it sound like anyone could use the Insider program to score themselves an activated license for Windows 10. The new verbiage was subtly different but the end result was even more confusion. Today, for the third time, the post has been updated to try and clarify again, and close the giant loophole.
Now, to clarify, all Windows 7 and 8.1 customers are eligible for a free upgrade to Windows 10. This free offer extends for one year from the launch of Windows 10 which will be July 29th. If you are running Windows 7 or 8.1, you are eligible. The end.
One common question though was what about the millions of people who joined the Windows Insider program and are running Windows 10 as pre-release software already? As of Friday, Microsoft’s Gabe Aul stated that they would also get an activated Windows 10 install as long as they were using the Microsoft Account that they joined the Insider’s program with. Apparently too good to be true often is, and the company has now completely changed the terms again.
There are now three scenarios (and once again this is ONLY for people running Windows 10 as an Insider) and each is handled slightly differently. Nothing can be easy it seems.
The first scenario is that you are a Windows Insider, and you want to stay in the program. After Windows 10 launches, the Insider program will continue, and there will be fast or slow rings for testers. The Insider builds are pre-release software and are activated with a pre-release software key. Eventually these builds will expire, however there will always be a new build with a new key before that happens. If you want to stay an insider after the launch, there is nothing to be done and you will continue to have an activated copy of Windows. However, from the post, there is one more point to add: “the Windows Insider Program is intended to be installed on Genuine Windows devices” so even though they are not checking, to be in full compliance, the device running the Insider preview of Windows 10 should be a licensed computer.
The second scenario is that you have upgraded your Windows 7 or 8.1 computer to the pre-release Windows 10 build, but when the final build comes around you want to exit the program. As long as you started with a licensed Windows 7 or 8.1 PC, your PC will remain activated.
The final scenario is if you want to exit the Insider program, but you are running Windows 10 from a clean install. In this scenario, you will be required to roll back to the original operating system, and then do the Windows 10 upgrade in order to get activated. Once activated, you can do another clean install if necessary.
There are of course more scenarios that have not been covered, and only time will tell what happens to those installs. For instance, on my desktop, I started from an upgraded 8.1 install, but due to some instability of apps, I wiped out my system and installed again from the Windows 10 ISO. Am I activated? I have no idea. I suppose I’ll find out on July 29th.
The Insider program has been pretty successful for Microsoft, however their communication is not always as successful. We can only hope that it improves over time.
I’ll sign this post off with a final quote from today’s post:
“This (The Windows Insider Program) is not a path to attain a license for Windows XP or Windows Vista systems.”
Source: Windows Blog
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Samsung Launches Two FreeSync Capable UltraHD Monitors
Today Samsung launched two new UltraHD monitors with support for AMD's Freesync technology. AMD actually announced these monitors at their Future of Compute event last year, but there wasn't much information about them beyond the fact that they would be UHD panels and ship with Freesync support. As you may know, Freesync is AMD's alternative to NVIDIA's G-Sync technology to enable variable refresh rates on displays. We've talked about how this works and the implications it has, but the most significant benefit is that it can reduce stuttering and tearing when a game's frame rate isn't synchronized with the native maximum refresh rate of the display.
As far as these two displays go, they're two different sizes of UHD panels. However, while the 23.6" model is a PLS panel, the 28" model is a TN panel like the existing U28D590D which does not have Freesync. I've organized the most relevant specifications of both new displays below.
| U24E590D | U28E590D | |
| Panel Size | 23.6" | 28" |
| Panel Type | PLS | TN |
| Resolution | 3840 x 2160 | |
| Refresh Rate | 60Hz | |
| Response Time (GtG) | 4ms | 1ms |
| Viewing Angle (H/V) | 178° / 178° | 170° / 160° |
| Inputs / Outputs | 1 x HDMI 2.0 1 x HDMI 1.4 1 x DisplayPort 1.2 |
|
| Number of colors | 16.7 million | 1.07 billion |
| Color Gamut | 100% sRGB | |
| Price | $399 | $599 |
Samsung's U28D590D was really the first affordable 60Hz UltraHD monitor, and aside from the addition of Freesync support the U28E590D is essentially unchanged. To me, the U24E590D is the more interesting display. At 23.6" it's a fairly high density UltraHD monitor, and it's a PLS panel which will definitely outperform the 28" display when it comes to viewing angles and color shift. Samsung advertises 16.7 million color support but it's not clear if that's achieved through temporal dithering or if the panel actually has an 8bit color depth for each color channel. At $399 it's also extremely affordable, and undercuts Dell's P2415Q which has been one of the most affordable non-TN 60Hz UltraHD dsplays up until this point.
The 28" U28E590D is available now for $599, and the smaller 23.6" U24E590D will be available for $399 on July 26th.
Source: Samsung via TechPowerUp
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The ASUS X99 Rampage V Extreme ROG Review
For a number of generations, each motherboard company has had its halo product that pushes boundaries and wallets. For ASUS, the Rampage IV Extreme, based on X79, was a resounding success for sales. We sourced the next chipset iteration, the X99 based Rampage V Extreme, for review to see if ASUS can follow the trend.
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Xbox Outsold 108-to-1 By PS4 in Japan, Weekly Sales Fall to 100 Units
Console continues to struggle worldwide, although sales woes in Japan are exceptionally bad
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