The company will launch several SKUs of the new OS

May 14, 2015 04:16 GMT  ·  By

Today Microsoft has unveiled the SKUs that will go live when Windows 10 reaches RTM later this summer, confirming the renaming of Windows Phone to Windows 10 Mobile and an education version of the upcoming operating system that will be specifically aimed at schools, teachers, and students.

The Redmond-based software giant has already expressed its intention to bring Windows 10 on all devices out there, including not only PCs, tablets, and smartphones but also those related to the Internet of Things, such as elevators, wearables, heart rate monitors, ATMs, and pretty much every single thing around us, so these SKU are playing a key role for this strategy.

Needless to say, these SKUs are only the main ones, but each can be further tweaked to better address a specific device category, depending on the feature lineup and the functionality that device has.

Microsoft will launch Windows 10 with 7 different SKUs:

Windows 10 Home Windows 10 Mobile Windows 10 Pro Windows 10 Enterprise Windows 10 Education Windows 10 Mobile Enterprise Windows 10 IoT

Home, Mobile, and Pro will be free

Windows 10 Home edition is the one specifically aimed at consumers and comes with the things we’ve seen in the last few months, including Cortana, Edge, Continuum, Windows Hello, and the revamped apps.

Windows 10 Mobile is the rebranded Windows Phone and includes all the goodies that are available on PCs, plus Continuum for Phones, which would basically allow you to turn any phone into a fully working PC with just a USB cable.

Windows 10 Pro is the desktop version that Microsoft developed for PCs, tablets, and 2-in-1s, and in addition to features available in Home, it also brings Windows Update for Business, as well as tools to manage devices and apps, protect data, and access cloud services.

Windows 10 Enterprise will probably be the most expensive SKU, and in addition to Pro, it comes with software specifically designed for enterprises. It will be available to Volume Licensing customers and will also include Windows Update for Business. Microsoft says that enterprises will also have access to the Long Term Servicing Branch.

Windows 10 Education is built for schools, teachers, and students and will be available through the academic Volume Licensing program. This edition can be upgraded to Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 Pro at a later time, Microsoft explains.

Windows 10 Mobile Enterprise is the smartphone platform aimed at enterprises and comes with “productivity, security, and mobile device management capabilities,” while also adding tools to manage updates and bundle security and innovation features as soon as they are available.

Windows 10 IoT is the SKU designed for the Internet of Things, so it’s hard to tell where it’ll be used, but Microsoft says that ATMs, POS devices, handheld terminals, and any other device out there should be able to run this particular version.

Windows 10 is likely to launch in July or August, and it will be offered as a free upgrade within the first year after launch for users running Windows 7 or 8.1.