Could be as many as 10 different versions of Windows7 and possibly as few as 3

Gawd. I hope it comes in 3. Five max.

There can be only one!

Or rather, there should be only one. M$ has turned into such a greedy money factory.

While it would be great to only offer one version of Vista... there are numerous benefits for having multiple versions as both a business model and for consumers.


Vista really had the same amount of versions as XP, unless you count 64 bit versions (which lets be fair, there should not have been a 32bit version of Vista...)

XP-n = Vista Starter (only reason for either of these is because of the EU Court)
XP Home = Home Basic
XP Pro = Vista Business
XP MCE = Home Premium
WinFLP = Only available to XP PRo VLK and MSDN subscribers = Vista business, but trimmed to run better on older hardware... call it windows 7 lite???

Then you also have XP Plus! add on pack (there were 2 versions of this IIRC)

So while there was no XP ultimate edition (unless you torrent ) One could argue that XP MCE + both addon packs would = V.U in price at least.

While it would be great to have only 2 versions. Simple and advanced. From a consumer stand point variety = the oppurtunity to save money.

From a business model, not including every bell and whistle in every version of Vista, allows for fewer 3rd party conflicts to occur. Also it allowed people with less powerful computers to run the less feature rich versions of Vista.

I would rather have 3 or 4 versions (not counting 64bit) to give me the oppurtunity to get the OS that I need.

The other option is to sell one single OS, and also sell "add on packs" like XP did to a limited degree. OR like Apple does. (Or like linux does, although give away not sell)

All I have to say is Home basic vs Home premium vs 'starter' is an absolute joke.

Ultimate and Business are valid sku's imo.

Neur0mancer said:

Vista really had the same amount of versions as XP

Click to expand...

Uh, not really. XP had 3 real retail versions for most markets - Home, Pro and MCE. Vista has 4 - Home Basic, Business, Home Premium and Ultimate.

Neur0mancer said:

While it would be great to have only 2 versions. Simple and advanced. From a consumer stand point variety = the oppurtunity to save money.

Click to expand...

That's an illusion. If you think you're saving money by buying a lesser version, then you fell for the trap. The truth is, Home Basic contains 99% of the development costs of Ultimate, but is not 99% of the final product. It's crippleware.

Instead of getting a discount, what happens is that people pay a premium to get features the Home Basic crowd has essentially paid the development costs for. It's extortion and is done just to increase profit.

Neur0mancer said:

From a business model, not including every bell and whistle in every version of Vista, allows for fewer 3rd party conflicts to occur. Also it allowed people with less powerful computers to run the less feature rich versions of Vista.

I would rather have 3 or 4 versions (not counting 64bit) to give me the oppurtunity to get the OS that I need.

The other option is to sell one single OS, and also sell "add on packs" like XP did to a limited degree. OR like Apple does. (Or like linux does, although give away not sell)

Click to expand...

Is there something wrong with making features optional at install? Or being able to add/remove them later?

That's how Windows should be sold. One product that contains all possible features, and you choose to install and use them or not to install and use them.

The business model has nothing to do with flexibility, and everything to do with profitability.

doublejack said:

The business model has nothing to do with flexibility, and everything to do with profitability.

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That applies to everything you buy from the grocery store, to the car lot. I don't know why people expect MS to be any different. They aren't a philanthropic organization. Their job is to make as much money as possible for shareholders. Just like every other company in the world....

johnz said:

I don't know why people expect MS to be any different. They aren't a philanthropic organization. Their job is to make as much money as possible for shareholders.

Click to expand...

True, but consumers pay the purchase price thus allowing them to make that money. We can buy it, not buy it, ***** about it or a combination thereof.

All I got to say is if they try and keep the 'full featured' version like Vista Ultimate to just corporate people, I'm going to have a hay day with them -_-. I know they didn't do that with Vista Ultimate, but just saying if they try to, they can pretty much expect me not to pay for any more of their products.

Two versions, one for business and one for home. They are going to charge more for a business version, nothing is going to change that. There should only be one version for home. During installation it could give the option to install different "versions" i.e. a striped version for netbooks, a tablet version, a lite version for older computers, and then the full boat. Also a custom install would be nice as well. For instance I like the Home Premium of Vista, but I don't need media center, but its cheaper than business.

It would also be nice to adapt Apples pricing strategy. I haven't looked lately but isn't around $130 and can be installed on 3 machines?

ou_phidelt said:

It would also be nice to adapt Apples pricing strategy. I haven't looked lately but isn't around $130 and can be installed on 3 machines?

Click to expand...

I wonder how many people would have three macs to use it on? Probably not that many.

i liked Windows 2000 really, Pro and Server variations and WinME was 2k home edition bhut sucked.


i can see the need for various ones

a trimmed down light one for laptop and netbooks
a normal version for home users
a buisness version with support for buisness thing, domain controllers
a server version (which would then also branch off)

orion456 said:

I wonder how many people would have three macs to use it on? Probably not that many.

Click to expand...

I bet more than you would think. Most Mac users likely have all Mac's. Most likely like Windows users they have several PC's. I have three, mine, my wifes, and my step-son's. I know we are not an anomaly and don't see why a Mac based household would be any different.

Thought I'd add this linky here as it is in another Windows 7 thread:

http://www.engadget.com/2009/02/03/windows-7-skus-announced-yes-your-worst-nightmare-has-come-to/

Beta Build 7025 already showes us how many versions there will be. It is the same amount that the vista was offered in

According to Engadget there is going to be 7 different versions. The Starter is going to be a nightmare and is a horrible idea. I mean seriously, they are going to limit the number of applications? My other beef is they are requiring Professional for the Mobility Center. With the popularity of smartphones they are not considering that a home environment? Please, lets just milk some more money. They are taking away a free download and requiring another step-up in OS level, ridiculous.


edit
I was beaten to the punch. That is what happens when I open a window and then get busy at work.

There is some good news in this article. There will be upgrade pricing for Windows XP users.

http://www.computerworld.com/action...wArticleBasic&articleId=9127259&source=NLT_PM

mbigna said:

There is some good news in this article. There will be upgrade pricing for Windows XP users.

http://www.computerworld.com/action...wArticleBasic&articleId=9127259&source=NLT_PM

Click to expand...

Smart move. I bet in the end they will likely end up with more revenue this way. Most joe six-packs that are still running XP can get a new system for not much more than a full retail copy(assuming similiar to Vista pricing). So I'd say more than a few will go ahead and upgrade at the cheaper price and try to stretch out their current PC in this economy.

Posted in another thread below:

Looks like the SKUs are out- Versions of Windows 7:

Windows 7 Starter: Up to 3 concurrent applications, ability to join a Home Group, improved taskbar and JumpLists.

Windows 7 Home Basic: Unlimited applications, live thumbnail previews & enhanced visual experience, advanced networking support (ad-hoc wireless networks and internet connection sharing), and Mobility Center.

Windows 7 Home Premium: Aero Glass & advanced windows navigation, improved media format support, enhancements to Windows Media Center and media streaming, including Play To, and multi-touch and improved handwriting recognition.

Windows 7 Professional: Ability to join a managed network with Domain Join, data protection with advanced network backup and Encrypting File System, and print to the right printer at home or work with Location Aware Printing.

Windows 7 Enterprise and Windows 7 Ultimate: BitLocker data protection on internal and external drives, DirectAccess for seamless connectivity to corporate networks based on Windows Server 2008 R2, BranchCache support when on networks based on Windows Server 2008 R2, and lock unauthorized software from running with AppLocker.

Is mobility center going to be Basic or Professional? That's my biggest peeve so far.