Windows 7 pre-order pricing (Full versions: Premium £/?49.99, Pro £/?99.99)

[ozone13]

Hmm.....from this source:

We do have a bit of good news today in the form of confirmation from Microsoft that it will be offering a Windows 7 upgrade package for those of us still running XP, though the news is somewhat sullied by the fact that an upgrade will require a complete wipe.

 

[yuchai]

I was planning on a clean install anyway. My question was more around whether an OEM Vista disk can be used for validation with the upgrade version or if you needed a retail disk.

 

[jjmIII]

I have no basis to say this, but I think if you have vista installed (oem or otherwise), you'll be just fine.

Microsoft I'm sure wants to roll this out heavy, and they are going to hopefully make things as easy as possible.

 

[nanobreath]

If microsoft only allowed this with retail upgrades they would be blocking out nearly 90% of their market. The upgrade disc isn't going to care whether you are upgrading form oem or retail, just that you have the original disc in the first place.

 

[Doomer]

Originally posted by: herkulease

Originally posted by: teddyv
Can you upgrade to (retail) Windows 7 from an OEM XP disk?

I don't see why not. It would be dump of microsoft to block oem user from buying retail upgrade discs.

Microsoft has been known to do dump things in the past.

 

[redgtxdi]

XP 'til she dies............


/thread

 

[Athena]

Originally posted by: teddyv
Can you upgrade to (retail) Windows 7 from an OEM XP disk?

You can upgrade from any "genuine" XP or Vista License . In-place upgrades from Vista are supported; for XP you must do a clean install -- which means you must have a disk. It doesn't matter whether it's an OEM or Vista but a disk will be required.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Originally posted by: Athena

Originally posted by: teddyv
Can you upgrade to (retail) Windows 7 from an OEM XP disk?

You can upgrade from any "genuine" XP or Vista License . In-place upgrades from Vista are supported; for XP you must do a clean install -- which means you must have a disk. It doesn't matter whether it's an OEM or Vista but a disk will be required.

I wonder if it will work with "OS Restore discs", that the user has to burn when they first get their PC. Too many mfgers are shipping PCs without actual OS or restore discs. I take it, they will be screwed when it comes to Windows 7 upgrades?

 

[ozone13]

Originally posted by: VirtualLarry

Originally posted by: Athena

Originally posted by: teddyv
Can you upgrade to (retail) Windows 7 from an OEM XP disk?

You can upgrade from any "genuine" XP or Vista License . In-place upgrades from Vista are supported; for XP you must do a clean install -- which means you must have a disk. It doesn't matter whether it's an OEM or Vista but a disk will be required.

I wonder if it will work with "OS Restore discs", that the user has to burn when they first get their PC. Too many mfgers are shipping PCs without actual OS or restore discs. I take it, they will be screwed when it comes to Windows 7 upgrades?

As far as I'm aware (and I could be totally wrong), a restore disk is just an image of the OS, which does NOT qualify as an original OS disk, so the upgrade would not work as the requirements have not been met in having an original disk.

 

[coolVariable]

I am 100% certain that it will not be possible to do an upgrade by "verifying" the disk for the previous OS.
It will be the same as Vista.

 

[catnap1972]

Originally posted by: ayabe
Sucks there's no preorder deal for ultimate. I think if you're going from ultimate vista to win7 pro you have to do a fresh install.

But you can do it (regardless of the PITA it may be)? Others are saying if you've got Vista Ultimate, you have to fork out the $200+ for 7 Ultimate, no downgrades allowed (unless of course you buy the 7 full version)

 

[rivethead]

Possibly dumb questions:

1) Can I upgrade from XP Home to Windows 7 Professional ($99) or do I have to upgrade to Windows 7 Home? Since you have to do a clean install, I wouldn't think it matters.

2) If I later update my hardware (which I'm planning on doing this fall), I would be able to run the 64bit version of W7 (I'm currently running 32bit XP) using the same upgrade disc?


This sounds like a good deal, even though we'll have to wait until October 22 for shipment of the actual product......

 

[CMC79]

Vista licenses didn't allow you to move 32bit to 64; I have 32bit Vista Ultimate and to move to 64 bit would require me to buy a completely new license. It would be nice if the upgrade discs allowed a completely clean install without upgrading from an existing install the way Vista upgrade discs do.

 

[mshan]

Does Microsoft typically invalidate XP license when upgrading to Windows 7?

Or does all it require is to put in genuine XP install cd, even if XP isn't currently installed on that particular computer?

 

[vi edit]

Originally posted by: ozone13

Originally posted by: VirtualLarry

Originally posted by: Athena

Originally posted by: teddyv
Can you upgrade to (retail) Windows 7 from an OEM XP disk?

You can upgrade from any "genuine" XP or Vista License . In-place upgrades from Vista are supported; for XP you must do a clean install -- which means you must have a disk. It doesn't matter whether it's an OEM or Vista but a disk will be required.

I wonder if it will work with "OS Restore discs", that the user has to burn when they first get their PC. Too many mfgers are shipping PCs without actual OS or restore discs. I take it, they will be screwed when it comes to Windows 7 upgrades?

As far as I'm aware (and I could be totally wrong), a restore disk is just an image of the OS, which does NOT qualify as an original OS disk, so the upgrade would not work as the requirements have not been met in having an original disk.

So as somebody else posted, does this mean the upgrade disks are basically useless to 90% of the PC market since Dell doesn't ship original OEM disks?

🙁

 

[VirtualLarry]

Originally posted by: CMC79
Vista licenses didn't allow you to move 32bit to 64; I have 32bit Vista Ultimate and to move to 64 bit would require me to buy a completely new license.

Completely untrue. Get a hold of a 64-bit install disc and use your existing 32-bit key. It works.

Edit: WTF are you spreading FUD for. Vista Ultimate includes both 32-bit and 64-bit install DVDs, they use the same key.

 

[Elixer]

Leave it to MS to screw everything up, yet again.

First off, they should offer people with vista, a *very* steep discount for being guinea pigs. It should be the cost of the media, and that is it.
Then they should offer everyone with a older version of windows, (XP+) a good discount. As it is now, they force you to wipe your drive, and reinstall everything, so unless you upgrade XP to vista to win7, then good luck finding all your old keys to reinstall everthing...which isn't much of a "upgrade" considering all the time you must spend to get your new machine to behave like your old machine.
Not to mention, all the 3rd party apps that you have on your current install, all of the sudden, they require a 'update' themselves. (Think AV/firewall/whatever programs...)
In the end, you will most likely be spending another $50-100 (or more) on those.
They should also offer both 32 & 64 bit versions of the OS on the same DVD(s).

Heck, I also bet that most places will offer better deals than what MS offers. Nobody pays MSRP for anything, these days, unless it is a spur of the moment purchase.

/end rant 🙂

 

[herkulease]

Originally posted by: Doomer

Originally posted by: herkulease

Originally posted by: teddyv
Can you upgrade to (retail) Windows 7 from an OEM XP disk?

I don't see why not. It would be dump of microsoft to block oem user from buying retail upgrade discs.

Microsoft has been known to do dump things in the past.

haha thanks. i didn't notice the misspelling. I'll leave it. Kinda makes you read that OT thread of whether people proofread posts or not.

 

[Cabages]

From this:

The installer will verify that XP is genuine and Windows 7 will have to be installed on the same partition as the XP installation. The good news is that Microsoft is allowing XP users to buy the cheaper upgrade version if they want to (Microsoft typically lets owners of the two previous releases of Windows to do this, in this case XP and Vista).

It sounds like it looks at your install of XP, checks to see if its validated, then forces you to install on the same partition.

No mention of discs.

 

[arkcom]

Will these work on older OSes? I have a copy of Windows Server 2003 and wonder if that would work.

 

[Athena]

Originally posted by: vi edit
So as somebody else posted, does this mean the upgrade disks are basically useless to 90% of the PC market since Dell doesn't ship original OEM disks?🙂(

I don't know about other manufacturers, but Dell does ship actual OS disks -- which are different from restore disks. When you order a system, you have the choice of including the OS media. I have at least 5 such disks sitting in my software cabinet right now. If you choose that option, you get a separate OS OEM disk.

If you've lost the disks that came with your machine, you can order a replacement set (one time per system).

In any case, the discs are more or less irrelevant to the upgrade process since the installer looks for a valid installation ... then wipes it.

 

[bznotins]

Originally posted by: Elixer
Leave it to MS to screw everything up, yet again.

First off, they should offer people with vista, a *very* steep discount for being guinea pigs. It should be the cost of the media, and that is it.
Then they should offer everyone with a older version of windows, (XP+) a good discount. As it is now, they force you to wipe your drive, and reinstall everything, so unless you upgrade XP to vista to win7, then good luck finding all your old keys to reinstall everthing...which isn't much of a "upgrade" considering all the time you must spend to get your new machine to behave like your old machine.
Not to mention, all the 3rd party apps that you have on your current install, all of the sudden, they require a 'update' themselves. (Think AV/firewall/whatever programs...)
In the end, you will most likely be spending another $50-100 (or more) on those.
They should also offer both 32 & 64 bit versions of the OS on the same DVD(s).

Heck, I also bet that most places will offer better deals than what MS offers. Nobody pays MSRP for anything, these days, unless it is a spur of the moment purchase.

/end rant 🙂

I think MS should just give everybody the software for free and offer to come over and cook you breakfast every morning, too.

1. MS is providing a discount for people to be "guinea pigs". It's called FREE. I'm using the Win7 RC right now at no cost. Hard to beat FREE.

2. When it finally is released, they already offer a nice discount for people with older versions of Windows: It's called upgrade pricing. Oh, and BTW, they're only charging you FIFTY BUCKS for said upgrade if you pre-buy tomorrow. If that's too expensive for you, then don't upgrade. MS owes you nothing, they're a business. Honda doesn't owe you a new cheap Civic to replace your old one every time a new version comes out, do they?

3. Don't lose your keys for your installed software. You should be wiping your PC every year or two anyway. Losing keys is your fault, not MS'. I still have keys I purchased 10 years ago and I have been through at least 8 formats/reinstalls since then.

4. MS is doing the right thing by forcing XP users to wipe and reinstall. If they had to create code to do the transition smoothly, they will surely have compatibility problems galore. Trying to be backwards-compatible is one of the reasons Windows is so bloated. I'm all for leaving the past behind and reducing the bloat. I imagine you were on the "Vista is too Bloated" bandwagon and now you're criticizing them for trying to reduce that bloat.

5. MS is offering this special upgrade pricing direct and through certain retailers online (e.g. Amazon). I really don't think Amazon will be charging less than MS here.

You complain that MS is "screwing everything up, yet again".

I contend they're getting a ton of things right:

A. Windows 7 is a great OS. I've been using the RC for a month or two and it's bug-free and FAST. It has great support for my SSD.

B. They're giving plenty of notice to people buying today that the new OS is due out in October. Many companies (cough - Apple - cough) suppress news of their new products and let people buy the old version even up to the day before the new product is announced.

C. Upgrade from XP. Previously, MS wouldn't let people upgrade across gerations of OSes (e.g. from Win95 to Vista). Here they're letting you skip Vista. Yay for progress.

D. Pricing. The upgrades are cheaper than they've been for other MS OSes, and btw, the special pricing they're offering is ridiculously good.

End rant.

 

[jlee]

Originally posted by: Elixer
Leave it to MS to screw everything up, yet again.

First off, they should offer people with vista, a *very* steep discount for being guinea pigs. It should be the cost of the media, and that is it.
Then they should offer everyone with a older version of windows, (XP+) a good discount. As it is now, they force you to wipe your drive, and reinstall everything, so unless you upgrade XP to vista to win7, then good luck finding all your old keys to reinstall everthing...which isn't much of a "upgrade" considering all the time you must spend to get your new machine to behave like your old machine.
Not to mention, all the 3rd party apps that you have on your current install, all of the sudden, they require a 'update' themselves. (Think AV/firewall/whatever programs...)
In the end, you will most likely be spending another $50-100 (or more) on those.
They should also offer both 32 & 64 bit versions of the OS on the same DVD(s).

Heck, I also bet that most places will offer better deals than what MS offers. Nobody pays MSRP for anything, these days, unless it is a spur of the moment purchase.

/end rant 🙂

They're offering it for 50 bucks and you're whining about pricing...?

 

[coloumb]

Originally posted by: bznotins


1. MS is providing a discount for people to be "guinea pigs". It's called FREE. I'm using the Win7 RC right now at no cost. Hard to beat FREE.

2. When it finally is released, they already offer a nice discount for people with older versions of Windows: It's called upgrade pricing. Oh, and BTW, they're only charging you FIFTY BUCKS for said upgrade if you pre-buy tomorrow. If that's too expensive for you, then don't upgrade. MS owes you nothing, they're a business. Honda doesn't owe you a new cheap Civic to replace your old one every time a new version comes out, do they?

1. - it's not completely FREE - the FREEdom ends and you have to eventually pay the piper to upgrade/wipe or go back to vista/xp/whateverthehellyouwereusingbefore. 🙂

2. $50 is for the low end version. $100 is for the version most people want [for XP mode]

I've been getting free MS Os's since WinME [either through beta testing or local MS events] and it'll be no different for Windows7. I'm running Vista 64 without any problems and really don't see a need to upgrade right now.

But..good deal for those who are planning to upgrade. 🙂

 

[coolVariable]

With all the issues in Win7 and MS' attitude of "it's all fixed shut up" there is no way I am going to pay for this.
And I am one of those people that went out and bought Vista Ultimate and Home upgrades retail.

TV Pack introduced serious DRM issues into Vista Media Center and they still have not fixed them with Win7. No $ from me as long as they don't address that.