Microsoft will pay you $100 to upgrade from Windows XP

By David Nield March 22, 2014

hackers already targeting vulnerable xp users windows

If you’re still contentedly plugging away with Microsoft’s 13 year-old Windows XP operating system, the executives at Redmond have an offer for you: Upgrade to a brand new Windows 8 machine, and they’ll put $100 in your back pocket. Head to the online Microsoft Store if you’re tempted.

You also get 90 days of free support and a free data transfer service thrown in, though the deal benefits Microsoft as well as users — with official support for Windows XP ending next month, computers that are still running the operating system will no longer receive the security updates and patches required to keep online dangers at bay.

Related Videos

To qualify for the discount, you’ll need to fork out for a shiny new Windows 8 machine costing $599 or more, and there are a variety of all-in-ones, laptops and tablet/laptop hybrids to pick from (including Microsoft’s own Surface Pro 2). Check the FAQ pages on the Microsoft Store website for more information — you’ve got until June 15 to get your order in.

The fact that so many people are clinging on to Windows XP is getting to be something of a headache for Microsoft. The figures suggest that around 10 percent of U.S. government computers are still running the aging operating system — that’s hundreds of thousands of PCs at risk once the automatic patches stop coming. One of the executives at security firm Avast has urged Microsoft to reconsider.

In terms of overall usage, XP still accounts for nearly 30 percent of the Windows share of the market. According to a reader poll we ran earlier this month, more than half of you are going to stick with Windows XP once the support window has passed — if you fall into that category, check out our essential survival guide.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Microsoft

Computing

Flash sale drops the price of this starter HP gaming laptop to just $550

HP Victus placed outside while displaying an attractive background.

Gamers who are searching for a dependable gaming laptop that can be purchased on a tight budget should look no further than the HP Victus. It's even more affordable right now due to a flash sale from HP that drops its price all the way down to $550, for $250 in savings from its original price of $800. We're not sure how long the offer will last, but since a lot of gamers are looking for cheap gaming laptop deals, there's a chance that it gets sold out within the day.

Why you should buy the HP Victus gaming laptop
The HP Victus is in our roundup of the best gaming laptops as a great budget option, as it provides solid gaming performance for its price. It's equipped with the AMD Ryzen 5 5600H processor, the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 graphics card, and 8GB of RAM -- with these specifications, you'll be able to run the best PC games, though you may have to sacrifice graphics quality for some of the more demanding titles. That's an acceptable trade-off, especially since you'll be playing on a 15.6-inch display with Full HD resolution that won't make you think that you need to invest in monitor deals to use while you're at home.

Computing

Meet LOQ, Lenovo’s new, aggressively priced PC gaming brand

The new Lenovo LOQ 15 and 16-inch gaming laptops from the top down.

LOQ, pronounced "lock," is a weird name, yes, but it's the name of a new brand in the world of PC gaming from Lenovo. You might wonder -- don't we already have Legion? Lenovo's Legion brand has made a name for itself over a number of years, especially in the world of gaming laptops.

And that's where LOQ is looking to make an impact as well. Lenovo is announcing a number of new gaming laptops -- the LOQ 15, 15i, 16, and 16i -- and the prices are aimed at a much more affordable demographic. These start at just $900, which puts them in competition with just a handful of new gaming laptops from budget brands like Asus' TUF, Acer's Nitro, Dell's G-series, HP's Victus, and MSI's new Cyborg brand.

Computing

This Alienware gaming laptop with 32GB RAM, RTX 3080 Ti is $1,050 off

God of War running on the Alienware x17 R2 laptop.

If you love the portability of gaming laptops, but get frustrated by how they usually have less power than their desktop counterparts, the Alien x17 line is the answer. Of course they're not cheap. Thankfully, Dell is having a limited time deal on the Alienware x17 R2. Right now you can get it for $3,000 after a $1,050 discount. It won't be around forever, so grab one soon.

Why you should buy the Alienware x17 R2 gaming laptop
Our laptop buying guide says gaming laptops should be built to keep up with the requirements of today's video games. The Alienware x17 R2 takes things further, as it's also prepared to run titles that are still on their way with its 12th-generation Intel Core i9 processor and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti graphics card. It's even got 32GB of RAM, exactly how much our guide on how much RAM you need recommends if you're planning to run multiple apps in the background while you're playing. With the Alienware x17 R2, not only will you be able to select the highest settings of the best PC games, but you also won't have to worry about making upgrades for years to come.