Windows 8 release date announced for October at Toronto conference

At a conference in downtown Toronto, the fog of rumours around the release of Windows 8 was finally lifted, and it looks like it will be coming in October.

According to CityTV, Microsoft's Windows group chief financial officer Tami Reller said that the company's latest operating system will be released to manufacturers in August, and will be made available to consumers at the end of October.

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The October ship date confirms what industry analysts have long predicted, Computerworld reports. The website pins October 25 as the most likely release date for the operating system.

For those looking to upgrade to Windows 8, it was announced last week that Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows XP users will be able to upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for $39.99.

Computers running Windows 8 will also go on sale, although there's still no firm release date for the recently announced Microsoft Surface tablet. Other companies like Nokia and Samsung are however planning to have Windows 8 tablets available before the end of the year.

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The announcement came as a part of Microsoft's Worldwide Partner Conference, which is being held in Toronto this week. An estimated 15,000 people are attending the conference, well-surpassing the 12,000 who went to the 2009 event in Washington, D.C.