Posted on 04/12/2007 8:20:09 AM PDT by ShadowAce
Computer makers have been told they'll no longer be able to get Windows XP OEM by the end of this year, despite consumer resistance to Vista and its compatibility problems.
By early 2008, Microsoft's contracts with computer makers will require companies to only sell Vista-loaded machines. "The OEM version of XP Professional goes next January," said Frank Luburic, senior ThinkPad product manager for Lenovo. "At that point, they'll have no choice."
Despite Microsoft's relentless promotion of Vista, manufacturers are still seeing plenty of demand from customers for systems preloaded with XP, especially in the finicky SOHO market.
In a recent post on its Direct2Dell blog, Dell reaffirmed to concerned customers that it wasn't about to force small business users -- who typically purchase PCs piecemeal, rather than in large enterprise-style orders -- to shift to Vista, which has experienced a less-than-stellar reaction from many buyers because of driver issues and moderately beefy hardware requirements.
"Dell recognizes the needs of small business customers and understands that more time is needed to transition to a new operating system," the post read in part. "The plan is to continue offering Windows XP on select Dimension and Inspiron systems until later this [northern] summer."
"From a local perspective, the post was a reminder more than an announcement," Dell ANZ corporate communications manager Paul McKeon told APC.
"This was something we'd always planned during the transition phase since businesses will have different time frames to adopt the new OS. If you're a consumer, you're unlikely to be managing more than say 2.4 OS images at home, so it's less of an issue"
There's general agreement amongst PC resellers that Vista has provided a minor boost to PC sales, but hasn't produced blockbuster numbers. A similar story applies in the retail space. Figures from marketing consultancy GfK suggest that after an initial sales surge, around 1500 copies of Vista are now being sold through Australian retailers each week, according to a recent report in the AFR.
While Dell's post suggested it wouldn't be promoting Vista systems to the home market, manufacturers still have the option of selling XP-based systems for consumers this year.
My wife wants a new notebook for her birthday. I think I am finally tired enough of Microsoft that I will buy her a MacBook Pro.
this ought to cost the big M some business. I see a great market in XP bootlegs on Ebay in the near future :-)
Were it not for the fact that I tend to use my machine a lot for gaming, and those games don’t have Mac versions (Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004 and a few online games), I would switch to a Mac at this point. I have no need for a bloated, intrusive OS like Vista, and I’m pretty pissed that Microsloth is now going to ram it down our throats.
}:-)4
It seems that many IT companies are in the mode of, “how can we drive away our customers as quickly as possible.”
I’m not sure of linux can fill the gap for most users, although I like the product, but this could be a big boost for Apple.
Vista, the best thing that’s ever happened to Linux.
That’s great. Now we get to rewrite our operating system AGAIN!
It is going to be a tough transition for business and schools.
Lots of security features but will be difficult to learn IMHO.
It makes my W2KSP4 look like DOS.
Good decision. I bought my first Mac in 1991 and have never had a PC. Virus? What's that? Never had one on any of my Macs in 16 years.
BUMP!
I don’t see a problem. Vista SP1 will be out by then, making it usable under the normal Microsoft rule, and the cost of memory and processor power will be down so that even cheap computers will be able to run Vista well. Microsoft does have to stop selling XP at some point to get on with Vista.
I got a new computer recently when my old one died suddenly and unexpectedly. I liked the hardware stats and the price so I snapped it up without a second thought.
Then I got home and realized I had bought a Vista. TERRIBLE TERRIBLE operating system. I spent over two hours trying to apply a self-downloading update patch for some software I wanted to run. The video drivers don’t work right, and I had to install some new audio drivers against Vista’s protests just to get the sound right.
Out of the box, I’ve never seen a more poorly operating computer. With 2 gigs of RAM, 256 megs of video memory, and dual-core processors, only Microsoft could turn that much hardware power into useless junk.
I almost nuked the harddrive and installed my old XP, but then again, I think XP had something to do with my last computer’s early demise. Anyone know a good Linux build they can recommend to a Linux newbie?
Are you familiar with EVE Online? If so, do you have an opinion on the sort of specs you’d like to see in a laptop that plays it? (Not interested in other games).
mabeeee, XP is running well enough that it doesn’t need no stinkin’ no micro no soft no support no more?
Try Ubuntu.
And Apple
We should put up a T-Shirt
I waited more than 7 years for Microsofts Great OS and All I got was an Apple Knock-Off and this T-Shirt..
There's a lot of good ones. I've been happy with the successive improvements to Fedora Core. My kid likes the KDE version of Ubuntu. I'm sure you'll hear some other favorites, too.
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