Details of the SKUs of Windows 7 are now public. Windows 7 will have 6 editions, which is stupid IMO. Initially Paul Thurrott reported 5 editions of which Enterprise was not different based on features but on availability & Home Basic supposedly died. Later, it seems that Home Basic still lives (in emerging markets), sucks & stupid. Without Aero Windows looks disgusting. No house should have a Windows PC without Aero. Period.
Making sense of the editions, Enterprise is only for Volume licensing. It’s not an edition of Windows per-say. Starter however IS an edition according to the same per-say & is for “Emerging markets, with new PCs only”, not available in retail. Putting in simple terms – it’s an edition for the $10 computers. Don’t confuse these cheaptops with netbooks. Home Baisc however seems to be more of a netbook edition with features minus Aero, saving battery perhaps; making it look ugly, definitely. Not to mention other features that will be missing. Not really sure though as to how MSFT promotes it considering it’s only for ’emerging markets’.
I would’ve found 3 retail versions to make sense but what doesn’t is why does Microsoft want to sell more of Home & Professional but not Ultimate. Why not promote Ultimate as the edition to buy, Home & Business as for those who are cost conscious? Home Basic for no one & thereby kill it.
5 categories of customers, 5 different versions targeting them, pretty simple. Home Basic version shouldn’t have existed in the first place.
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OLPC – Starter
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Casual home user – Home Premium
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Hardworking business types – Professional
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Being Manan – Ultimate
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Wanna buy in bulk? – Enterprise (it’s Ultimate for the corporates)
- Home Basic – Please don’t buy it.
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Basically, Home Basic versions are for the ones who are not computer savy, they just need a working computer with basic start menu and they carry their basic stuff.
May be people like, 50+ or housewives or the ones basically with limited knowledge of computer.
I know, in ultimate, you can set the theme to basic and all, but how many of them will know it? And apart from that, they won’t need all that jazz, so why to pay extra for the features which are not required.
Regards,
Deep
@Deep, IMHO Home Baisc & Starter should have been 1 & not 2 separate editions.
@Goobi: With Aero off, Windows looks like an OS tht has a gray plastic-ky look all over, what makes Windows better without Aero as compared to that OS is that you can still customize Windows with little hassle as opposed to that other OS.
Two versions. That’s all they need. A Home version (none of that basic/premium voodoo) and a professional version. Enterprise versions need not be mentioned anywhere, and Starter, well I don’t know why they’re hell bent on crippling software for poor economies.
One thing that surprises me is how crappy the non-aero theme looks… It’s worse than XP.