News written by James Delahunty (January, 2015)

Walk on Mars? Microsoft showed off some promising and intriguing technology today in the form of Windows Holographic, and the HoloLens visor.

Microsoft wants to blend your digital world with the real world, using a visor called HoloLens with its new Windows Holographic technology. It promises to be able to give you access to your digital world in extremely useful ways without requiring a screen.

With Windows 10, Universal Apps can be used and interacted with as Holograms using the new system, making it possible to place 3D holograms in the world around you. Microsoft is providing a set of APIs for developers to take their apps into the "real world" too.

Microsoft HoloLens is the world's first "untethered holographic computer", according to the Redmond giant, requiring no wires, no phone to enable it and not even a connection to a PC. Using HoloLens, you can look at Holograms in the real world around you in 3D and even hear them in surround sound.

It is already being put to good use by NASA, which has revealed a collaboration with Microsoft on the development of software called OnSight. Working with HoloLens, NASA scientists can use data from the Curiosity Rover to virtually "walk" on Mars in the area surrounding the rover.

Microsoft is moving away from its traditional view of Windows as its flagship OS product overwhelmingly focused on Desktop, and toward that of a service across devices.

Windows 10 is expected to be released later this year (sometime around the fall) and will be available as a free upgrade for devices running Windows 7 and Windows 8.1, with the goal of getting as many Windows users as possible to the latest Windows experience.

It runs across PCs, smartphones and tablets and utilizes Universal Apps to synchronize content, notifications and more. The Windows Phone era seems to be coming to an end.

Microsoft's demonstrations today showcased how much Microsoft is focused on enhancing the user interface too. We saw a more modern looking Start Menu for example and over all, the visuals on display were quite a step up from where they were just back in September with the launch of the Windows Insider program.

For 2in1 devices (laptop/tablet), we also saw a "continuum mode" that changes Windows Apps to full screen display and optimizes for touch-screen when the keyboard is disconnected, while a new Task View really eases multitasking. The Windows automatically revert to their original size when the keyboard is re-attached.

Microsoft announced today that Windows 10 will be available as a free upgrade for users of devices running Window 7, Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 for a time.

The announcement was made by Terry Myerson at an event showcasing Windows 10's consumer experience features to date. The next iteration of Microsoft's most popular product will be released later this year, projected for the fall, and will let Microsoft close the door on the Windows 8 era.

It's not clear how exactly the free upgrade will work for users running Windows 7, Windows 8 and Windows 8.1, but it will be limited to its first year of availability.

No doubt an upgrade will depend on hardware, and limited to verified genuine copies of Windows.