Skip to main content PC Gamer THE GLOBAL AUTHORITY ON PC GAMES Search PC Gamer View Profile Movies & TV Gaming Industry PC Gaming Show Newsletter Signup Community Guidelines Affiliate Links Meet the team About PC Gamer PC Gamer Magazine Subscription Why subscribe? Subscribe to the world's #1 PC gaming mag Try a single issue or save on a subscription Issues delivered straight to your door or device From£35.99Subscribe now Essential Hardware Battlefield 6 PC Gamer quizzes! Recommended reading Operating Systems Windows 10 version of Microsoft 365 apps will be supported until 2028—but this isn't the Microsoft u-turn you may think it is Gaming Industry Don't want to switch to Windows 11? There is one last way to stick with Windows 10 a little longer Windows 10 diehards who want security updates for free get a stay of execution, but there's a convoluted catch Final Fantasy Final Fantasy 14 warns players that it's time for an upgrade as Microsoft gears up to end support for Windows 10: 'Support for this operating system is a difficult proposition' After nearly 4 years, Windows 11 is finally more popular than Windows 10 Happy birthday, Windows 10—one of Microsoft's most popular operating systems ever reaches its 10-year milestone, just three months before it gets hoofed off to OS heaven Microsoft yanks the plug on Windows 11 SE, giving school and college IT techs a little over a year to find a suitable replacement Gaming Industry A guy in California is suing Microsoft for discontinuing Windows 10, demanding free extended support Stevie Bonifield 10 August 2025 One San Diego man is taking on Microsoft in a bid to save Windows 10. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. (Image credit: Microsoft) If you're dreading the end of Windows 10 in October, you're not alone. One man from San Diego is taking Microsoft to court over its choice to discontinue Windows 10, claiming that Microsoft is forcing people to buy new devices and attempting to "monopolize the generative AI market." The plaintiff, Lawrence Klein, argues that Microsoft should continue supporting Windows 10, free of charge, until Windows 10 users make up 10% or less of all Windows users. Klein's complaint, filed in San Diego, states, "Microsoft’s stratagem was to use its dominant position in the OS market to achieve a dominant position in the market for generative AI. It did this by forcing customers to purchase new devices (or face financial repercussions if they did not) and running Windows 11, thereby ensuring a large user base that would access this product by default." The complaint goes on to highlight the risks of discontinuing Windows 10: "With only three months until support ends for Windows 10, it is likely that many millions of users will not buy new devices or pay for extended support. These users—some of whom are businesses storing sensitive consumer data—will be at a heightened risk of a cyberattack or other data security incident, a reality of which Microsoft is well aware." Related Articles Windows 10 version of Microsoft 365 apps will be supported until 2028—but this isn't the Microsoft u-turn you may think it is Don't want to switch to Windows 11? There is one last way to stick with Windows 10 a little longer Windows 10 diehards who want security updates for free get a stay of execution, but there's a convoluted catch According to Klein's complaint, as of April 2025 Windows 10 users account for approximately 52.94% of all Windows users. While Windows 11 adoption is on the rise, it was only over the past year or so that it started to really gain ground, most likely because of Microsoft's push to remind everyone that it's discontinuing Windows 10 in October. While Microsoft is technically offering "free" upgrades to Windows 11 for current Windows 10 users, accessibility is dependent on your hardware. Klein's complaint estimates that some 240 million or more devices will become obsolete in October simply because they don't meet the hardware requirements to upgrade to Windows 11. Forcing people to throw away those devices just to buy new ones capable of running Windows 11 would result in a massive amount of e-waste that could be reduced if people could continue safely using Windows 10. Klein describes Microsoft's push to force Windows 11 adoption as "a campaign to get consumers to ditch their older but perfectly functional Windows 10 devices and purchase Copilot+ PCs capable of running Microsoft’s AI software." His complaint points out how unusual this strategy is even by Microsoft's own standards. Historically, Microsoft has allowed 7 to 8 years for people to transition from one version of Windows to the next, but in this case is forcing that switch to happen only 4 years after releasing Windows 11. The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. Klein even takes aim at the reasons for slow adoption, stating, "Windows 11 is wildly unpopular, and absent the forced obsolescence, many Windows users simply would not upgrade to Windows 11. Windows 11 does not present many enticing features that warrant an upgrade, and consumers do not find the new interface appealing. Microsoft has been unwilling to take consumer preference into account when designing or updating Windows 11 because as the dominant firm in the OS market it does not have to." To address all of these issues, Klein is requesting that the court step in to ensure Microsoft ends misleading advertising around Windows 10, clearly discloses the consequences of discontinuing support for Windows 10, and communicates transparently about alternative security options for those who want to continue using Windows 10. Klein's team is also asking the court to require Microsoft to continue Windows 10 updates at no additional cost until usage drops below 10% of all Windows users. For his own part, Klein is only asking for attorney's fees. This case likely won't get resolved either way before October 14, when Windows 10 support officially ends. Microsoft isn't going to give up easily on this one, either, so Klein and his attorneys are likely in for a challenging legal battle. 2025 games: This year's upcoming releases Best PC games: Our all-time favorites Free PC games: Freebie fest Best FPS games: Finest gunplay Best RPGs: Grand adventures Best co-op games: Better together Stevie Bonifield Contributor Stevie Bonifield is a freelance tech journalist specializing in mobile tech, gaming gear, and accessories. Outside of writing, Stevie loves indie games, TTRPGs, and building way too many custom keyboards. You must confirm your public display name before commenting Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name. Windows 10 version of Microsoft 365 apps will be supported until 2028—but this isn't the Microsoft u-turn you may think it is Don't want to switch to Windows 11? There is one last way to stick with Windows 10 a little longer Windows 10 diehards who want security updates for free get a stay of execution, but there's a convoluted catch Final Fantasy 14 warns players that it's time for an upgrade as Microsoft gears up to end support for Windows 10: 'Support for this operating system is a difficult proposition' After nearly 4 years, Windows 11 is finally more popular than Windows 10 Happy birthday, Windows 10—one of Microsoft's most popular operating systems ever reaches its 10-year milestone, just three months before it gets hoofed off to OS heaven Latest in Gaming Industry AOL discontinues its dial-up internet, and we're just surprised they even offered it in 2025 New report lays out Israeli military use of Microsoft services that prompted employee protests and a boycott of Xbox and Game Pass Diablo boss Rod Fergusson is leaving Blizzard for a 'new adventure' Less than 2 months after releasing Tron: Catalyst, developer Bithell Games lays off the majority of full-time staff It looks like Microsoft's cuts got another one: Avalanche has stopped work on its 1970s smuggling sim Contraband to 'evaluate the project's future' I'm so tired of being advertised at, man Latest in News It almost feels like AMD hoped no one would notice the quiet launch of its ultra-budget RX 7400 GPU The US Air Force wants to test blowing up Cybertrucks because 'it is likely the type of vehicles used by the enemy may transition to Tesla Cyber trucks' The Battlefield 6 beta has broken Call of Duty's Steam player count record, surging past half a million concurrents 'Let's just kill everyone on the station:' The videogame audio log was apparently invented to avoid 'awkward' RPG dialogue trees Steam has a sale celebrating small developers, and you can get my favorite post-Balatro deckbuilder for just $2 AOL discontinues its dial-up internet, and we're just surprised they even offered it in 2025 HARDWARE BUYING GUIDES LATEST GAME REVIEWS Best PCIe 5.0 SSD for gaming in 2025: the only Gen 5 drives I will allow in my PC Best graphics cards in 2025: I've tested pretty much every AMD and Nvidia GPU of the past 20 years and these are today's top cards Best gaming laptop in 2025: I've put the best of this new generation head-to-head and we have a winner Best gaming chair in 2025: I've tested a ton of gaming chairs and these are the seats I'd suggest for any PC gamer Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads Wildgate review — A brilliant concept that's too clever for its own good Acer Predator GM9000 2 TB NVMe SSD review Biwin Black Opal NV7400 SSD review Fractal Design Scape review Framework Desktop PC review PC Gamer is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. 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