Katarzyna Petru
Microsoft is once again doing what it does best – pushing the boundaries of user patience. This time, it's about support for Windows 10, which officially ends on 14 October 2025. And since this has sparked a wave of criticism, particularly from people who simply cannot upgrade to Windows 11 – the company has decided to give the system one last chance. But on its own terms. And not for free.
Year of Grace… with a cloud login and microtransactions
Microsoft has announced that it will continue to release security updates for 'the ten' for another year — but you have to agree to a few things:
sync your computer settings with the cloud through a Microsoft account (i.e., more data in Azure),
pay $30 a year for ESU (Extended Security Updates),
or do “serfdom” with Microsoft Rewards points (i.e., click through their services, ads, quizzes, etc., until you accumulate 1000 points).
This is not real support. It's more of a symbolic nap – for those who haven't managed to handle the transition yet. Microsoft has given us a year to “clean up” our computers. The thing is, some of them are working perfectly well – they just don't meet the requirements for Windows 11.
Restart Project: “It’s the biggest wave of e-waste we’ve ever seen”
The whole situation hasn’t gone unnoticed. The Restart Project – an independent organisation dedicated to educating about electronics repair – warns: this move by Microsoft could generate millions of tonnes of e-waste, and not just any time – but precisely on International E-Waste Day, which falls on 14 October.
Alongside other groups, Restart Project has created the “End of 10 Toolkit”, a set of tools and guides for communities looking to extend the life of older computers by installing, for example, Linux on them. Yes, that’s right – Linux is back on the agenda, not out of a nerdy need to hack the BIOS, but out of a very real necessity… to stop the hardware from ending up in landfill.
“Microsoft is forcing millions of users to abandon functioning hardware simply because it doesn’t work with the new Windows” – we read in the official statement from Restart Project.
Obsolescence Programmed into Code
It’s usually said about planned obsolescence of hardware – here we have its digital version. Microsoft programmatically cuts support for Windows 10, even though half of the computers in the world still use it.
Problem? Even if they manage to delay the end by 12 months, it still changes nothing. In 2026, the 'ten' will be dead, and computers that would still work perfectly as machines for the internet, movies, Word or learning – will become “incompatible”.
The Restart Project does not hold back on Microsoft:
“This accelerates the disposal of fully functional devices”,
“It pushes people into unnecessary expenses on new hardware”,
“Without legal regulations, such practices will only intensify”.
In the background – Copilot+ promotion and AI narration
It's no coincidence that Microsoft is now ramping up sales of Copilot+ PCs – new computers with AI support and Windows 11. The company compares them to "outdated" machines running Windows 10 and uses phrases like "2.3x faster" – conveniently forgetting to mention that they're comparing to 8-year-old laptops with HDDs and 4 GB of RAM.
At the same time, Microsoft uses the end of support as a sales lever. If you don’t update – you’re on your own. And if you want the latest AI features – you need to buy new hardware. Simple? Brutal.
