3 Reasons to Get Windows 9 on Release Date: Free Upgrade Option, Start Menu & Cortana

Microsoft's release date plans for the Windows 9, codenamed Threshold, could happen earlier than expected as new reports have indicated that the Technological Preview for the Windows 8 replacement is slated on September 30.

While the actual rollout date is far from being determined, though it is likely set in the first half of 2015, jumping to the next Windows version seems easier the moment it becomes available and users have three compelling reasons to readily embrace the upcoming operating season.

It is a free upgrade

Tech blog site Myce has reported last week that Windows 9 will be offered for free to existing Windows 8 users and with this approach Microsoft is hoping that users, mostly in the desktop and notebook realms, will opt for an immediate upgrade.

The same report pointed to Microsoft's country chief in Indonesia as the credible source of its confirmed information.

And to ensure that indeed the mass migration from Windows 8 to 9 will take place as quick and easy as possible, Microsoft has dispatched a helpful tool that would users during the update process. The same 'app', according to BGR, will simplify the task, which is patterned after Apple's OS X update procedure.

It's possible too that PCs on older Windows system - from XP to 7 - would benefit from a similar promo though details on this matter remain debatable.

The Start Menu is back

This beloved Windows tool has long been rumoured to make an anticipated comeback via the Windows 8's monthly Tuesday Patch but it turned out that Microsoft has decided to pack the features instead with Windows 9.

Backed by numerous leaked reports and screen shots, the Start Menu, Myce said on its report, will return in a redesigned package, likely re-coded to function with Metro Live tiles.

The move is seen as Microsoft's way of erasing the polarizing image of Windows 8, mainly due its maker's decision to strip the software of the features. Experts have been blaming the absence of Start Menu as one of key reasons millions of users shied away from Windows 8.

Cortana digital assistant

As expected, Microsoft is making its critically acclaimed digital assistant, Cortana, as one of the core features and attraction for Windows 9. Reviewers have been raving over the application with many even concluding that any given day Cortana easily trounces its chief rivals - Apple's Siri and Google's Google Now.

It will be recalled that Cortana had famously predicted the winners during the FIFA 2014 matches.

The exact Windows 9 release date is far from firming up but April 2015 is seen as the earliest target date for Microsoft to issue the OS.