Microsoft's Windows 10 is perhaps the most eagerly anticipated non-gaming software release for years, and you can hardly swing a digital cat online without conjecture over the release date. Earlier this year it was revealed that the team were targeting a summer release, and since then Microsoft have been remarkably open with both technical preview builds and the development process. However there has been not a peep from Redmond over firmer release dates since then. At least not publicly.
Earlier still, the Inquirer reported that June 2015 was the target date for RTM - Release To Manufacture, jargon for a stable release version that manufacturers can use for testing and day one system installs - an important milestone but not a firm indicator that a launch is imminent.
AMD's Earnings Call last week may have shed the clearest light yet on Windows 10's release date, and at least narrows the release window somewhat. AMD CEO Lisa Su, when asked a question about inventories, responded as follows:
"With the Windows 10 launch at the end of July, we are watching sort of the impact of that on the back-to-school season, and expect that it might have a bit of a delay to the normal back-to-school season inventory build-up."
Ms Su's comment naturally focuses on demand for AMD hardware and why it could be slack in the next quarter, but a fairly firm 'end of July' anticipated release for Windows 10 is new information to the public. Furthermore, the use of the term 'launch' has precise connotations of retail availability rather than simply a RTM build. As one of Microsoft's major hardware partners AMD is privy to insider information for prompt software (especially driver) delivery, which is why the statements are being treated as more than simply an 'educated guess'.
The current state of Windows 10's public preview build has immediately caused pundits to pour cold water over any suggestion that 'early Summer' is a likely launch date, and that's probably fair. Without knowing the state of internal builds inferring from the best available information seems reasonable, which in part is why reaction to the above statements has been polarised; given the press attention it seems likely that followup statements will be issued soon.
In October AMD were pressured to clarify that comments made by AMD Gaming Scientist Richard Huddy, who stated that DirectX 12 would be not be rolled into Windows 7, were speculation on his part. Later it was revealed that Windows 10 would be a free upgrade for all current Windows 7 owners, making the issue of backwards compatibility somewhat moot.
