Windows 10 release date: Microsoft offers free upgrade from July 29

Microsoft's latest operating system Windows 10 will be available to download from July 29, the company has confirmed

Windows 10 sees the return of the Start Menu, which was ditched in Windows 8 in favour of "tiles", in the hope that it would encourage wider adoption on touchscreen devices.

Microsoft's much-anticipated Windows 10 operating system will be available from July 29, the company has stated.

Microsoft customers running Windows 7 or 8.1 can upgrade to the new system from free from the end of July, across 190 countries.

Users have one year to take advantage of the free upgrade, and once upgraded to Windows 10 Microsoft will continue to update it throughout the lifetime of the device.

Keen fans can reserve an upgrade through clicking an icon in their system tray in the bottom right hand corner of the screen.

Joe Belfiore, Microsoft's head of Mobile, took to Twitter to express his excitement at the announcement.

The news ends months of speculation as to the availability of the system, which will be welcomed as a replacement to the much-maligned Windows 8.

Microsoft has said that this will be the last-ever version of the Windows operating system in its known form, with future upgrades being rolled out like OS X for Mac.

Unlike with previous versions, there will not be a separate Windows Phone 10 operating system. Instead, Windows 10 will be used across all Microsoft devices, including desktops, laptops, tablets, smartphones – as well as the Xbox games console and HoloLens, Microsoft's new wireless holographic headset. Windows 10 could also enable users to manage devices and appliances across their home.

^{The Start menu has made a triumphant return}

However, Microsoft revealed at their recent Build developer conference thatrelease of Windows 10 would be staggered across other devices, following the PC launch.

There will be a single store to buy software from, with developers only needing to write it once for all devices.

A new feature called Continuum means people using Windows 10 with a mouse and keyboard will see the new system in a classic desktop mode, but switching to a tablet or smartphone will see it transform into touchscreen mode.

However, the resizable tiles still feature in Windows 10, appearing when users open the Start Menu and signalling new emails and social media messages as well as weather information.

Rather than Internet Explorer, Windows 10 will come with a new web browser called Microsoft Edge, which allows users to annotate webpages or save them to read later.

It will also include Microsoft’s personal assistant tool Cortana – already on Windows Phone – which will pop-up with notifications and act as a search tool.