Ed Bott's Windows Expertise

Yesterday, Microsoft announced pricing information for Windows 7. (You can read all about it in my post at ZDNet: Microsoft unveils ’screaming deals’ for Windows 7.)

The big news for would-be upgraders in the United States is that you can pre-order Windows 7 Home Premium or Windows 7 Professional at a significant discount right now, and have the product shipped to you on October 22, when it’s officially released.

The discount is 50% or more over the normal estimated retail price (ERP) of the two mainstream consumer editions. In the United States, you’ll be able to buy a Windows 7 Home Premium upgrade for $50 or get the Windows 7 Professional upgrade for $100.

At Microsoft’s website, you can find links to 12 online dealers that are participating in this promotion. If you want to buy from Amazon.com, you can use one of the links below and order directly (full disclosure: I make a commission on each sale through these links):

Windows 7 Store

Here are the links to the software:

Windows7 Home Premium Upgrade

Windows7 Professional Upgrade

You’re eligible for this special upgrade pricing on any PC that currently has a licensed copy of any edition of Windows XP or Windows Vista.

Questions? Ask away in the comments below.

Microsoft has now opened beta testing for its new Microsoft Security Essentials Beta.

I wrote about it last week at ZDNet and continue to be favorably impressed. It works on Windows XP (SP2 or later), Windows Vista, and Windows 7. You must be in the United States, Israel, or Brazil to sign up.

If you try it, leave a comment and let me know what you like/don’t like.

Update: Well, that was fast. Roughly 24 hours later, all 75,000 slots in the beta group are filled. Of course, if you can get your hands on a copy of the software you can still install and use it.

Given all the advance notice (and even a four-month delay) you’d think that Microsoft would have been fully prepared for the transition to all-digital broadcasts in the U.S.

Wrong. I’m not the only Media Center user who suddenly lost several over-the-air HD channels last Friday. I’ve got details over at ZDNet. If you’re a Media Center user and you’ve been affected, please leave a comment there:

Microsoft fumbles the digital TV transition

I’ve got a little more technology than I need in the office right now, so I’m putting some PCs and monitors up for sale. Details here.

I’ll be updating this list regularly and will probably have several notebooks and desktop PCs plus some miscellaneous peripherals available over the next few days or weeks.

Microsoft sent me eight packages containing official DVD copies of the Windows 7 Release Candidate. It appears to be 32-bit (x86) only.

I don’t need them, but I figured some of my readers might, so I’m offering them up here. If you’ve got a low-bandwidth connection and you don’t want to go through the hassle of downloading and burning a DVD, this could be useful.

Conditions:

1. U.S. addresses only. These are U.S. English copies and I don’t want to mess with foreign postage. Sorry.

2. You have to go online and get your own product key. Instructions are in the package.

3. No tech support is included.

To qualify, leave a comment below. Use your real e-mail address when you comment (otherwise how can I contact you to get shipping details?). In the comment, include the Windows 7 feature that you are most interested in learning more about.

A leaked memo from Best Buy has revealed some details about Microsoft’s aggressive pricing strategies for Windows 7. ($50 upgrades to Windows 7 Home Premium? Yeah, that’s aggressive. I have more details over at ZDNet: Will the Windows 7 price be right?)

That fits nicely with another piece of evidence: Microsoft has turned on the lights at its new Windows 7 online store, but hasn’t yet unlocked the door.

Following a link and excellent write-up by the ever-vigilant Long Zheng, I visited the Microsoft Store a few minutes ago and ran across this page:

[Update: Emil Protalinski points out that he flagged this page at Ars Technica several weeks ago. Indeed he did.]

The front-page copy hasn’t changed since it went live, as far as I can tell. No prices, no feature tables to differentiate the different versions, nothing more than this “Coming soon” teaser.

The selling copy underneath is well written but not detailed and certainly no different from the messaging Microsoft has been using lately.

If the leaked Best Buy memo is legit and accurate, it suggests that Microsoft will have to unveil its price list and detailed information about each edition before then.

In the past, Microsoft has charged full list price for direct sales to customers, with only a few exceptions. For the most part, anyone with even rudimentary search skills can find a better price from a reseller than they’ll get at the Microsoft Store. In its current incarnation, for example, customers shopping for Windows Vista get a big Add To Cart button to buy directly from Microsoft. The list of retail partners is in a tiny link at the bottom of the page.

I wonder when they’ll start taking preorders from the Microsoft Store?