Microsoft is quite easy to predict when it comes to a new OS releases. The new Windows traditionally comes some three years after the previous version.

We keep hearing that both X86 and ARM version are scheduled for early Q4 2012 release, more precisely October, and this was the plan from day one of this beta project.

We spoke with some ARM players and we have learned that there are no delays with the ARM version of Windows 8. They will both come at the same time. Further confirmation comes from the house of Intel, where we have seen some document aligning the launch of Windows 8 for Q4 2012. The bottom line is that the schedule has been fixed for a while.

The first beta has been out for some 3 weeks now and the RTM, release to manufacturer version is scheduled to appear later this summer.

We suspect that Microsoft will offer a free upgrade path to a notebook customers that buy a Windows 7 based notebook in the transition period but we still don’t know if and when will this take place. Three years ago all manufacturers were really loud that if you get a Vista based notebook in summer of 2009, Microsoft would provide you with free Windows 7.