Sony Vaio owners have a few weeks or longer to wait for their Windows 10 upgrade

13.08.2015
Every time Sony thinks it’s out! Microsoft pulls it back in. The storied electronics maker got out of the PC business in 2014, but it will still support some of its more recent Vaio models in making the move to Windows 10. Eventually.

Recently, the company posted some information about the fate of Vaio PCs running Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1. In short, Vaio owners will be waiting a while.

Sony is warning anyone who has a Vaio PC with Windows 8.1 pre-installed that a Windows 10 upgrade won’t be ready until October 2015. If you had Windows 8 pre-installed you’re waiting until November 2015. At the appointed month, Sony says it will release upgrade instructions, as well as the appropriate hardware drivers and upgraded applications.

As for VAIOs that came with Windows 7 Service Pack 1 pre-installed, it’s not clear what’s going on. Sony says it will not be providing support for “all models that qualify for this upgrade.” It appears at least some Vaio owners with Windows 7 SP1 will be part of that upgrade fail.

For Windows 7 SP1 pre-installers, Sony will have “information regarding limitation and issues” later in August. That doesn’t sound promising.

The company asks all Vaio owners to bookmark this page to keep tabs on what’s going on.

For tinkerers, this may offer a chance to try and get things working on your own.The Notebook Review forum has a few active threads with people discussing how to upgrade various Vaio PCs to Windows 10.

The approach isn’t pretty, as there’s talk of BIOS hacks and disabling driver signing. Some people also appear to be getting Windows 10 in working condition without tweaks, but some hardware components fail to work. Nevertheless, this is an alternative. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.

The impact on you at home: For Vaio owners on Windows 8 or 8.1, it’s well worth waiting until Sony gets its act together, as it’s only a few weeks away. As for Windows 7 SP1 folks, you should wait and see what information Sony rolls out later this month. If nothing shows up by August 31, you’re probably still better off holding onto Windows 7 or getting a new PC. Besides, if you ask me, the upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10 isn’t as compelling as it is for Windows 8 and 8.1 users.

(www.pcworld.com)

Ian Paul

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