Click to Skip Ad
Closing in...

Microsoft announces free Windows 10 Anniversary Update will roll out on August 2nd

Updated Jun 29th, 2016 9:03AM EDT

If you buy through a BGR link, we may earn an affiliate commission, helping support our expert product labs.

The first major content update for Windows 10 finally has a release date.

On Wednesday, Microsoft announced that Windows 10 Anniversary Edition — a free update for all Windows 10 users — is launching on August 2nd. The update was originally unveiled at Microsoft’s Build Developer Conference in March, but the company wasn’t ready to show off all of the new features and upgrades.

Now, with just a few weeks until launch, the curtain has been pulled back.

READ MORE: SanDisk’s giant 256GB microSD card is also the world’s fastest

Improved security is one of the prime focuses of the update, with both Windows Hello and Windows Defender receiving some noteworthy updates.

Windows Hello will allow users to log in to apps without a password and access websites with biometric authentication using Microsoft Edge. As for Windows Defender, the software will now let users schedule quick scans of their PCs to run automatically throughout the day and provide summaries once they’re done.

Microsoft is also making its new browser more capable and power efficient than before. When the Anniversary Update lands, Microsoft Edge will receive power-saving improvements to use fewer CPU cycles, consume less memory and minimize background activity. In addition, extensions will be available in the Windows Store and Edge will support modern web standards, like HTML5, CSS3 and ARIA.

For the gaming crowd, the Anniversary Update will also introduce Xbox Play Anywhere, which gives them the option to buy a game on either Xbox One or PC and immediately own it on both platforms. Cortana, Language Region Independence and support for background music will all be coming to Xbox One alongside the Anniversary Update as well.

Along with everything listed above, the update will include a new app to help schools set up their Windows 10 PCs, improvements to Cortana to help her save and recall data and a brand new experience called Windows Ink that “enables people to write on a device as they would on paper.”

You can download the free Anniversary Update on August 2nd.

Jacob Siegal
Jacob Siegal Associate Editor

Jacob Siegal is Associate Editor at BGR, having joined the news team in 2013. He has over a decade of professional writing and editing experience, and helps to lead our technology and entertainment product launch and movie release coverage.