0 Windows 8 landing on systems on October 26th

Microsoft’s latest, most ambitious and highly revamped desktop cum tablet OS - Windows 8 will hit store shelves just in time for the holiday season on October 26th 2012.

The announcement was made on Microsoft’s Blog by Steven Sinofsky, President of Microsoft’s Windows division.

If you are one who owns an Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7, a downloadable upgrade toWindows 8 Pro will cost $39.99 where as purchasing the OS from a retail outlet will cost you $69.99. These prices are promotional prices and valid till January 31st 2013.

No specific launch dates were mentioned but we expect that Microsoft Surface Tablets with Windows RT will be made available around the same time.

It looks like Microsoft is not the only company that is banking on the success of its new hybrid OS. We are calling Windows 8 a hybrid OS because it is compatible not only with desktop computers but tablets as well. According to Intel, 20 Windows 8 tablets and 140 Ultrabooks arein the works.

If you can't wait to get your hands on the final build of Windows 8, you can download the Windows 8 release preview. 

Source: Windows Team Blog