Microsoft charging "way too much" for Windows 7

 

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By Barry Collins

Posted on 26 Jun 2009 at 17:42

The price of Windows 7 is too high to tempt most people to upgrade, according to industry analysts.

Microsoft unveiled its Windows 7 prices yesterday, with Windows 7 Home Premium costing £50 on pre-order, and £80 after that.

However, those prices are single-licence only, and analysts claim Microsoft has missed a trick by failing to give families a cheaper way to upgrade all their home PCs.

"It is in Microsoft's best interests to erase all vestiges of Vista from consumers' homes, and by making the upgrade expensive Microsoft is creating a large disincentive for consumers to move to a far superior platform with a better user experience," claims Stephen Baker, vice president of analyst firm NPD.

"Doubling down on the disappointment is the fact that this is only a one user license. In a world where most homes are moving into a multiple PC environment it would enhance the consumer home experience if they could upgrade all their home PCs at a single low price with a single boxed purchase."

That view is shared by Ovum analyst, Mike Davis, who told PC Pro that the prices weren't low enough to drive mass adoption.

"You might get some movement from people who are unhappy with Vista," he says. "But people have got to be pretty unhappy with what they've got to pay £80 for Windows 7."

However, if the experts think the Windows 7 prices are bad, they should check out what Microsoft's charging for Vista Home Basic.