Windows 8.1 

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At its, Microsoft lifted the lid on Windows 8.1, and we spent some quality time with it to bring your our 

The update "blends the desktop and the modern experience," Ballmer said, and includes the return of the start button (though not the Windows 7-style Start button that some people wanted), a boot-to-desktop option, and more.

In our hands on review, we found that while the interface tweaks may not appeal to everyone, the performance improvements should do, as Windows 8.1 feels feels generally snappier, even for simple tasks like compressing files.

But why take our word for it when you can download the Preview edition of the Windows 8.1 update free today? Here's how...

Head over to the  and click 'Get it now' and you'll download a Windows patch which, when installed, gives you an option to go to the Windows Store to download Windows 8.1. You can then download and install the update in the background.

Note that you can't currently download ISO files (they'll be available within the next few days).

Supported languages

Not every language is supported. The Windows 8.1 Preview is available in Arabic, English (US), Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), French, German, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil), Russian, Spanish, Swedish, and Turkish. If your PC is set to a different language, you won't be able to install the Windows 8.1 Preview unless you switch the base language to one that is supported.

Microsoft points out that  "Please do not change your base language just to install the Preview. If you do this and then update to the preview version, you will permanently change your base language on these devices. This happens because we create a new restore image based on your selected 8.1 base language during install."

In order to install Windows 8.1 Preview you will need to sign in to your PC with a Microsoft account. Microsoft says that the option to create a local account will be made available when Windows 8.1 goes on final release.

Before installing the update, we recommend reading which explains more about the Preview, the system requirements, the risks involved and more.

Microsoft has revealed full details about the comprehensive update to  now known as Windows 8.1 and formerly known as Windows Blue.

The Windows 8.1 release date is October 17 - it will be available to existing Windows 8 users for free on Windows Update. It will be available to buy in retail from October 18 and has already been (this stage is known as RTM). Volume licencees will be able to get their hands on it ahead of the update, too.

The official confirmation from Microsoft came back in the Summer: "Today we are excited to share that starting at 12am on October 18 in New Zealand (that's 12:00pm in the UK and 4:00am in Redmond - October 17th). Windows 8.1 will begin rolling out worldwide as a free update for consumers on Windows 8 through the Windows Store. Windows 8.1 will also be available at retail and on new devices starting on October 18 by market."

October will mark a year since Windows 8 was released.

• The big headline news is that the Start button has returned to Windows 8 with Windows 8.1, although it still goes to the Start screen rather than the Start menu. There is also more integration between the desktop and Start screen to stop the jarring of the two interfaces.

On stage at the Microsoft Build developer conference in San Francisco, Steve Ballmer said that in coffee terms, Microsoft was "refining the blend" between the desktop and Modern UI interfaces and a lot of Windows 8.1 enhancements have been designed to make the change between the two interfaces far less jarring.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD   LINK 1