Is Windows 10 essentially free?

Since the launch of Windows 10 back in 2015, the operating system has received monumental feature set upgrades for free.

Much like the craze for Apple iPhones, the launch of Windows 95 in 1995 was one of the most hyped events with potential customers lining up outside tech stores to get a hand on Microsoft’s new Windows operating system. A similar customer response was triggered during the launch of Windows XP but as physical sales declined due to advancements in internet technology, these lines quickly turned into a thing of the past. Windows now come pre-installed with laptops and pre-built desktops; home users can also easily download Windows 7 from the internet with only a license key required to fully activate the operating system. Gone were the days of multiple floppy disk installations, DVD installation disks and even service pack updates that came in physical media storage (remember Windows XP SP3 update disks).