19 February 2007
Express Update Option Delayed
Most computers bought after October 26 are eligible for a free or discounted upgrade to Vista as part of an 'Express Upgrade' plan. With the release of Vista at the end of January, one would think that these customer would have their upgraded copy by now, but many are facing 6 to 8 week waits.
Dell originally claimed to have problems shipping due to customer demand and server problems, but now is saying that it will start shipping at the end of the month on a first come first serve basis and that from that date it could take 6 - 8 weeks.
HP is also saying that the first upgrades will be sent later in the month and shipping notifications are telling customers to expect upgrades in April.
The questions is why the wait. Unofficially, the reason is compatibility. Manufacturers are testing which systems will support it and if there are stable drivers for the system. This seems logical as responsibility for supporting the systems lies in the manufacturer's hands and the amount of bad press that can come out about a company issuing upgrades that don't work on their systems is something these companies don't need.
From a Microsoft standpoint, this could be a good thing, impatient users may get tired of waiting and just buy the upgrade in stores canceling their discounted express upgrade. On the other hand, some users may become upset by this and with their computer's manufacturer causing them to choose a different manufacturer or even consider a completely different OS altogether.
Dell originally claimed to have problems shipping due to customer demand and server problems, but now is saying that it will start shipping at the end of the month on a first come first serve basis and that from that date it could take 6 - 8 weeks.
HP is also saying that the first upgrades will be sent later in the month and shipping notifications are telling customers to expect upgrades in April.
The questions is why the wait. Unofficially, the reason is compatibility. Manufacturers are testing which systems will support it and if there are stable drivers for the system. This seems logical as responsibility for supporting the systems lies in the manufacturer's hands and the amount of bad press that can come out about a company issuing upgrades that don't work on their systems is something these companies don't need.
From a Microsoft standpoint, this could be a good thing, impatient users may get tired of waiting and just buy the upgrade in stores canceling their discounted express upgrade. On the other hand, some users may become upset by this and with their computer's manufacturer causing them to choose a different manufacturer or even consider a completely different OS altogether.
Labels: microsoft, vista, windows
