Posted on 02/29/2008 6:33:47 AM PST by raybbr
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) will cut the price of some versions of Windows Vista, the software maker said late Thursday.
The move came a day after court filings revealed internal dissent over which Windows XP computers would be considered capable of running the new operating system - and a feeling on at least one executive's part that the company had "botched" the marketing of computers as "Vista Capable."
Only copies of the year-old operating system that are sold in boxes directly to consumers are affected by the price cuts - not the versions pre-loaded on personal computers. The cuts will range from 20 percent to 48 percent.
The reductions are to coincide with the late March release of Vista Service Pack 1, a collection of security fixes and other improvements.
Microsoft said the new prices will apply to the Home Premium and Ultimate versions of Vista, in both their full editions and the editions that upgrade an older or more basic operating system.
Both versions serve the tiny percentage of users who install an operating system on their own; most people get the latest version of Windows only when they buy a new PC.
Windows Vista's January 2007 launch was plagued by delays. To keep consumers buying PCs in the holiday season of 2006, Microsoft and PC makers promised free Vista upgrades later to shoppers who bought Windows XP computers.
At the launch, Microsoft was widely criticized for offering too many versions of the operating system - including Home Basic, which didn't have the snazzy new signature look called "Aero" - and for setting the price too high for the high-end versions.
Brad Brooks, a corporate vice president for Windows marketing at Microsoft, said in an interview that the company has since tested lower prices and found "product was moving much, much faster."
Brooks said he expects so many customers to buy Vista at the new prices that the price cuts will increase Microsoft's revenue, not subtract from it.
A federal judge recently said consumers could pursue a class action suit against Microsoft for labeling PCs as "Vista Capable," even though many were not powerful enough to run all of Vista's features, including the Aero interface.
Company e-mails produced in court chronicle Microsoft settling on a plan to market a wide range of XP-based PCs as "Vista Capable" after company officials realized in early 2006 that 30 percent or fewer of computers on the market could run the full-fledged version of Vista with Aero.
That realization apparently caused computer makers like Dell Inc. (DELL) to worry that people would stop buying PCs for almost a year - until Vista launched.
The e-mails also showed Microsoft lowering the bar for "Vista Capable" to protect Intel Corp. (INTC)'s sales of some widely used chips that weren't powerful enough for the full Vista experience.
Microsoft employee Anantha Kancherla was particularly blunt in his March 2006 response to a question about whether a certain PC configuration would be considered "Vista Capable."
"Based on objective criteria that exist today for "capable," even a piece of junk will qualify," he wrote. "For the sake of Vista customers, it will be a complete tragedy if we allowed it."
According to the e-mails, Jim Allchin, the executive in charge of Windows at the time, wasn't involved in the decision to brand a wide swath of XP computers as "Vista Capable."
Upon learning the details, Allchin wrote, "We really botched this."
Every new(ish) OS MS has released has been bigger and more RAM hoggy while requiring larger and larger processors, thus creating the need for bigger and bigger power supplies and ENLARGING THE AVERAGE USER’S CARBON FOOTPRINT!!! BILL GATES AND MICROSOFT ARE DESTROYING THE WORLD!!!!
Vista has some features that I do like. I will probably go to it in a couple years once the bugs get worked out, and the hardware needed to run it well is relatively cheap.
However, it doesn't bother me that Microsoft is selling vista. I just feel no need to buy it at this point.
Ubuntu is a good OS as well. I run it on an older computer I have. However, I find that I run into a number of web sites that won't display properly with Firefox under Ubuntu. I also find that while some things are easy to set up on Ubuntu, others tend to be frustrating and time consuming.
Ubuntu is a step in the right direction for Linux desktop use, but it can't replace having XP for me.
Good idea. In preparation for buying a new system this year, I bought XP SP2. Now I can get a no OS system, thus getting what Vista is really worth. Without the hassle of reformatting.
Kind of a “Back to the Future” move for you, eh?
I'll buy Vista.
When NOTHING ELSE is available.
Just rebuilt 3 old home machines to upgrade them for the future, they all have XP Pro. VISTA is a dog on performance, especially file performance. It will be interesting if the VISTA SP1 will fix that issue. MS discontinues XP in June of 2008, so get it while it lasts or you will be stuck with VISTA.
HAHAHA! Oh, I had my C=64 stuffed full, with the ML Monitor and the extra RAM expansion, two floppy drives, and the (ugh) Thermal Ribbon color printer. Oh yeah, the Turbo ROM upgrade, too, and the (gasp) 300 bps modem.
My memory of it is fading, but I remember having a lot of fun with it. When a friend found a PC in the trash and I "upgraded" it to an XT, I tried to give the C=64 away, but by then, it was a fossil, and no one wanted it. I was unaware of the online Commodore Museum at the time, so it is in a landfill somewhere.
Actually, I kind of miss it. Paperclip III was quite a good WP Program.
It doesn’t help me. I am pricing a system now for the kids and getting the System Builder version of 64bit Vista Home Premium for $109.
No!!!!!!!!!!!!
Vista, Office 2007 and IE7 all combined aren't worth half any one of the boxes they came in.
And Yeah, yeah, yeah Mr. Microsoft salesman, I know even though I've been working on/using Microsoft products since DOS 2.0 I don't know what I'm doing and even though I have a brand spanking new computer it's all my fault for not wanting to shell out several more $100s of dollars to replace my other hardware & software that's older then 2 years with microsoft products. Vista is really great, I'm just bashing it because I'm lonely and just trying to fit in with all the strangers on the Internet I will never meet who claim they hate it. Just keep on telling yourself that...
Inflicted, Infected, Cursed (po-TA-to, po-ta-to)
Not to worry. They'll fix those on SP2...
Well, most of the judges that refuse to throw out such cases were once trial lawyers themselves.
I do blame the Judges. I also blame the bar associations that aren't doing their job. I blame congress for protecting such greedy trial lawyers and even making what they do easier in return for large campaign contributions.
I blame politicians that appoint and confirm these judges.
I blame the voters that elect those judges that support and allow this in the cases where those judges are elected.
I blame the people that sign up on these class action suits out of pure greed.
There's lots of blame to go around, and it's going to take a broad effort to reverse the moral decay that is the root of the problem that allows this to continue.
I’d say YES.
I have it on my laptop and I love it. It still has issues, but, they aren’t serious ones. When a problem does arrise, it is a whole lot easier to fix than on previous versions of windows (my opionion only).
I am running a 1.8 gig duel processor laptop with 2 gig of memory. I have Vista on full power and it runs smooth.
I do have some older software that I run on my XP machines, and my old laptop still runs ME for the really old software.
But, life goes on, you can’t go on using the same equipment forever. eventually you will have to upgrade, you might as well do it now.
You’ve got it. Most bad Vista experiences seem to come down to inadequate hardware. Give it 2GB RAM, a processor with a decent L2 cache and a good graphics card (less than $100 gets you enough bang for the buck) and it runs just fine.
Also, a lot of the gripes I’ve seen come down to, “It’s different.”
I’ve been running my office on Vista Ultimate and Office 2007 for a while now. Works just fine.
I couldn't agree with you more in that regard.
I'm sick of rewriting installation manuals and getting all new screen captures because Microsoft, once again, decided to move some features from one place to another or rename them for absolutely no good reason.
I can deal with my device drivers not working with the new version and having to figure out what changed. It happens far less with Windows than with Linux.
What drives me crazy is that Microsoft wastes so much of people's time figuring out where they hid some feature that was in a perfectly reasonable place before. That happens with Linux too, but I guess I expect a more stable interface from a commercial company than from a bunch of hackers.
I will never purchase another HP product. I have a HP LaserJet 1000 sitting here for 10 months now that I can't use as HP still hasn't come out with a driver after promising to have one last summer.
Ever try to run Vista through a Linksys Router?
The son’s XP box works fine, but his Vista box refuses to even see the Linksys. It tells me to plug the network cable it. I can see it in the DHCP tables, but it still doesn’t work. I flashed the firmware a still it refuses. Real quailty software.
My Linux boxes have never had nay problem with the Linksys.
We’re happy fore you Bill, but the fact remains that vast numbers of people see no advantage over XP. Throw in the fact that it is infected with DRM and there’s just no reason to use it.”
People saw no advantage from 2000 to XP. It was just the “in” thing to act like you didn’t want the new OS. If you want to stay with XP then fine, but don’t act like your need to stay with XP constitutes a universally lousy OS experience for everyone else.
And the DRM in Vista seems to have been left out of my computer as it seems to be non existent.
“I hope they lose a ton of money and continue suffer humiliation as people refuse to “upgrade” and get it right next time, minus the DRM.”
I have no idea what that means.
“Speaking of indescribably bad software, has anyone else had a look at the software for Zune. No words in the language are adequate. You have to see it for youself.”
Have seen it. In fact I just used it a hour ago. Again I had zero problems.
Same here. Vista works just fine. No problems here with software, printer, or other peripherals that everyone says everyone has. It's just not true.
Absolutely. More so, their utter refusal to change the thing in a positive direction- Offering a unified and easy means to shovel "userland" OFF the system partition as a perfect example (a pet peeve of mine).
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