Windows 8 coming late October
Microsoft's new OS should have its Release-to-Manufacturing build in August
At Microsoft's Worldwide Partner Conference in Canada, Windows chief financial officer Tami Reller confirmed that Windows 8 would see a retail release in late October. The operating system is also "on track" to have its release-to-manufacturing (RTM) build in the first week of August.
This means we'll be seeing Windows 8 hardware, like Microsoft's Surface tablet in October, just prior to the holiday shopping season. Microsoft's partners will be getting an early release of the OS so it can be installed on supported devices.
Reller also confirmed that Microsoft will turn out the commerce platform for the Windows with the launch of the RTM build. Windows 8 is currently on the Release Preview, where all apps on the Windows Store are free.
Reller said that Microsoft has sold 630 million Windows 7 licenses to date, up from 600 million in the first weeks of June.