Now playing: Watch this: Windows 10 is a free upgrade for existing Windows customers 0:48 Microsoft will offer free upgrades to Windows 10 — the next version of its operating system — first for Windows 8.1 users and then for Windows 7 users, the company announced Wednesday. In the first year the software is available, …

Now playing: Watch this: Windows 10 will feature Cortana 1:13 Microsoft’s personal digital assistant, Cortana, has officially made the jump from the smartphone to the Windows PC. During the Windows 10 launch event in Redmond, Wash., Joe Belfiore, vice president of Microsoft’s operating group, demoed Cortana running on a Windows 10 laptop and tablet. Cortana has taken on some new …

Enlarge ImageMicrosoft’s Windows 10 event featured a surprise appearance — holograms. Screenshot by David Katzmaier/CNET Microsoft on Wednesday unveiled a device called HoloLens, marking its entry into the increasingly popular field of augmented reality. Similar to virtual reality, AR technology incorporates apps and services into the real world. The best-known devices in those areas are Google Glass, which lets people …

Windows 10: Microsoft’s next OS Windows 10: Complete coverage Windows 10: Hands-on with Microsoft’s new OS Here’s what we want to see from Windows 10 on Wednesday Microsoft’s Windows 10 event gave us a deeper look at the company’s new operating system, including hot new features like Cortana on the desktop and Project Spartan. The event ran hours long, but …

Now playing: Watch this: Microsoft announces Surface Hub 1:10 Microsoft is hoping it can make droning business meetings a little more productive. The company on Wednesday introduced the new Surface Hub, an 84-inch touchscreen 4K display equipped with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and built-in microphones and cameras. “The best work we do is when we come together,” a Microsoft employee said when …

Now playing: Watch this: Microsoft unveils new browser Project Spartan 1:07 Never mind that Microsoft’s Internet Explorer has far more consumers using it than Google’s Chrome. Microsoft’s got a new browser, and it’s gunning for Google. Microsoft officially introduced its next-generation browser, code-named Project Spartan , at its coming-out party for Windows 10 in Redmond, Wash., on Wednesday. The software …

Technically Incorrect offers a slightly twisted take on the tech that’s taken over our lives. Are you prepared to look slightly silly to stay awake at the wheel? U-Wake screenshot by Chris Matyszczyk/CNET What are we prepared to sacrifice in order to be a “good” person? How many precautions are we happy to take to feel safe? Isn’t life just …

The Web version will work with Windows Phone, Blackberry, Android, but not iPhones. CNET WhatsApp isn’t just for smartphones anymore. The chat application, which Facebook bought for more than $19 billion in October, will now extend its service so that it can be used on desktop and laptop computers. The app now lets people send and receive messages using a …

Windows 8 was so bad, Microsoft gave us holograms to make up for it. Microsoft ended its Windows 10 presentation with a surprise: It created a new device called the HoloLens — a holographic headset that puts Google Glass to shame. Watch today’s CNET Update for a quick summary how the HoloLens works and all the big Windows 10 news …

The Apple iPhone 6 (left) and iPhone 6 Plus have won Apple more sales across Asia. Apple Apple has set sales records for itself in Japan, Korea and China courtesy of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, according to Counterpoint Research. In Japan, Apple won 51 percent of all smartphone sales in November, Counterpoint said in a blog post …

FreedomPop is offering $5-a-month Wi-Fi access via hotspots in the US. Screenshot by Lance Whitney/CNET FreedomPop is launching a service for people always hunting for Wi-Fi on the go. Available as of Wednesday, FreedomPop’s new unlimited Wi-Fi plan gives smartphone and tablet users unlimited talk, text and data for $5 per month, the company announced. The service is accessible through …

Screenshot by CNET “This is your world with holograms.” That’s how Microsoft’s Alex Kipman pitched the Microsoft HoloLens Wednesday during the company’s Windows 10 event: an event that ended up being about a lot more than PC operating systems. The HoloLens is a pair of goggles, but they create immersive, three-dimensional virtual worlds that blend with your own world. The …

iOS 8 adoption has slown down this month. Apple The uptake of iOS 8 appears to have stalled. Updating its App Store Distribution page on Tuesday, Apple pegged iOS 8’s share at 69 percent, just one point higher than the 68 percent recorded around two weeks ago on January 6. The number doesn’t reveal the full scope of iOS 8 …

Microsoft’s Surface tablet that runs Windows RT hasn’t sold well. Josh Miller/CNET Looks like Microsoft’s long-suffering Windows RT software isn’t dead quite yet. Windows RT, which hit the market in late 2012 alongside the heavily redesigned Windows 8, was the version of Microsoft’s operating system that ran on the ARM chips typically used in cell phones. The software struggled immediately …

Shazam Entertainment-discovery app Shazam is worth a serious sum of cash, the company revealed on Tuesday. Shazam raised $30 million on a $1 billion valuation in its latest funding round, the company announced in a blog post Tuesday. While Shazam has not revealed who provided the funding, the company’s chairman, Andrew Fisher, told Bloomberg Television in an interview on Tuesday …