Windows 7 Windows 7 Ultimate?

[kojo87]

Is there such a thing as Windows 7 Ultimate? first i heard there was and then i heard there wasn't. build 7100 claims to be Ultimate on startup and shutdown (but its just an RC). i've heard Microsoft was going back to only Home and Pro, trying to keep it simple like XP and unlike Vista. i've seen "official" box art pictures of a black Ultimate edition retail box but i haven't been able to find that for sale/preorder anywhere. does it really exist?

i already preordered a copy of Windows 7 Professional Upgrade. I am running Vista Ultimate x64 right now. that should upgrade to 7 Pro x64 fine right? i've seen charts where Vista Basic = 7 Home, Vista Home Premium = 7 Professional and Vista Ultimate = 7 Ultimate. now i think that was all BS.

 

[Radenight]

Yes it does exist but it will only be available during special promotions.. It won't be on sale all the time like Home Premium and Business will be.. And yes, the RC is Windows 7 Ultimate.. The fact that it's 'just an RC' doesn't mean anything.. the version is still Ultimate..

Hopefully this clears things up a bit..

If your running Windows Vista Ultimate now you won't be able to 'Upgrade' to Windows 7 Professional.. You could only 'Upgrade' to Windows 7 Ultimate.. You could however do a clean install of Windows 7 Pro.. That would of course wipe your HDD so make sure you back everything up prior to installation..

 

[kojo87]

so i just spent $100 on software that doesn't work for me. Why would they only make it available during certain times? that just seems foolish to me. how many people that use Windows Vista Ultimate aren't going to be able to upgrade to Windows 7 Ultimate? i want to upgrade on October 22! not whenever Microsoft decides to let me!

[EDIT]: just found Windows 7 Ultimate Upgrade on Newegg and Amazon for $220. why is Ultimate excluded from the half off discount that Home and Pro get? im not very happy right now. looks like i might not be paying for 7 afterall

 

[Radenight]

You didn't buy a product that won't work for you, as I said, you can still do a clean install and you'll end up Windows 7 Professional.. which is still a fine version of Win 7.. I refer you to the following link which explains the differences between each version of Win 7..

http://www.winsupersite.com/win7/win7_skus_compare.asp


You'll see that there really aren't that many differences between the Pro and Ultimate versions of Windows 7.. I do see your point though, it is rather frustrating but in all fairness, Microsoft did state that Ultimate would only be available during promotions and what not long before the Pre-Orders went live..

 

[kojo87]

i see that it was my own error. its just frustrating that no retailers even said that Ultimate was and option. guess i will just put that Pro upgrade on my dad's computer or my laptop. maybe i will just suck it up and pay the $220 when the time comes. i really don't feel like doing a clean install. i just reinstalled Vista...

you can upgrade from the RC (specifically build 7100) to the final retail edition right?

[EDIT] Thanks Drew. glad im not the only one in this boat. Microsoft's website doesn't even list Ultimate in the pre-order section. and why should we have to pay over twice as much as Pro users? i can see there being a small price difference but $120 more?? and for what? Bit-Locker?

 

[Radenight]

Unfortunately no you can't upgrade from the RC to the Final Retail version.. A clean install must be done OR you can install a previous version of Windows (Vista) and Upgrade from that..

 

[kojo87]

so what i gather from this article is that there is no difference in the data on an Upgrade DVD or a Full DVD. the only difference is the license key you are given. is this correct? so i could clean install Windows 7 Pro from my Upgrade DVD and obtain a license elsewhere? and i could still use that same DVD to upgrade a different computer and use the given upgrade license key?

 

[Radenight]

Yes, you are correct.. All you pay for is the license.. The actual software on the disc is the same as the Full Version..

 

[kojo87]

ok. well this might not work out so bad then. thank you both

 

[Radenight]

Your very Welcome.. Enjoy the true gem that is Windows 7..

 

[kojo87]

i have build 7100 on my netbook and i have to say i am more than impressed. looking forward to getting it on my desktop and eventually all the computers in my house.

 

[Radenight]

I don't blame you a bit.. You'll notice a huge difference when you install it on your desktop compared to a netbook.. Microsoft have definitely hit one out of the park with Windows 7..

BTW Welcome to Windows7forums..

 

[john3347]

Windows Vista doesn't =Windows 7 Professional

Radenight and Drew gave you links to charts that show which 7 OS is considered equal to which Vista OS, but didn't point out that you made an incorrect statement in your original post.

Vista Home Premium=Windows 7 Home Premium
Vista Business=Windows 7 Professional

If one is moving from Vista Home Premium to Windows 7 Professional, for instance, they must pay full version price to move to the higher version. The upgrade prices only apply to "same level" upgrades Vista Home Premium to 7 Home Premium, Vista Business to 7 Professional, etc.

I made a typo in the title here. I meant to say that Windows Vista Home Premium does not = Windows 7 Professional

 

[kojo87]

i really can't wait to get it on my desktop. it runs pretty snappy on a 1.66GHz single core Atom. makes me droll thinking of how it will run on my 3.5GHz quad core Phenom II.

thank you for pointing that out John. the only thing that doesn't really make sense to me is how does Vista Business = 7 Pro? Vista Business was lacking certain features that Vista Home Premium had (namely Media Center) while 7 Pro has everything 7 Home Premium has and more.

Link Removed

 

[Tepid]

how does Vista Business = 7 Pro? Vista Business was lacking certain features that Vista Home Premium had (namely Media Center) while 7 Pro has everything 7 Home Premium has and more.

Because MS learned from the Vista mistake of removing/adding certain features in a kind of loopy way.

They didn't restrict the next version up or down like they did with vista. If you go up one level you get everything in the levels below plus the extras you are paying for. They didn't do that with Vista.

Business didn't include Medial Center because they didn't think business needed it, so why put it in there.
Games were there but not installed by default.

Looking at the Add/Remove Windows Features in Win 7 Build 7264. You can install/uninstall just about everything.
Media Center, Media Player, IE8, Gadgets, Games, etc.
They have made 7 (to my understanding) more modular

 

[Tepid]

The upgrade prices only apply to "same level" upgrades Vista Home Premium to 7 Home Premium, Vista Business to 7 Professional, etc.

I am not sure that is entirely true. Can you provide an official link that explains this?

 

[john3347]

...the only thing that doesn't really make sense to me is how does Vista Business = 7 Pro? Vista Business was lacking certain features that Vista Home Premium had (namely Media Center) while 7 Pro has everything 7 Home Premium has and more.

Windows Vista: Compare editions

Microsoft admits to this mistake that they made with Vista. They decided that a "business" application did not need to play music or movies. What they overlooked was that there are a large number of home network users that need the networking capability of a "business" OS yet also need the entertainment capability of Media Center. Plus that, there were a lot of business users who wanted the Media Center capability to provide background office music and movie players to play demonstration and training films, etc. For these reasons, Media Center is included in every version from Home Premium and up with the ability to disable/uninstall this and (as Tepid has pointed out), several other included features.


Tepid, I will have to do some searching for the link you want. Give me a day or two.

 

[kojo87]

i don't think thats true either. why would they discourage people from upgrading to higher, more expensive versions?

 

[Tepid]

Thanks John, will check back later. I was searching MS 7 site, but can't find anything regarding this.
That doesn't mean it's not true. But should be out there to inform people. Cause I know I'd be angry after buying Pro/Ultimate Upgrade just to find out that I can't upgrade my XP Home or Vista Basic/Home Premium.

With that said, there are ways around it. And this is not for me personally, but should definitely be known by all.

 

[john3347]

They are not trying to discourage people from moving to a higher (aka more expensive) edition, they are just trying to capitalize on it. They WANT you to buy the more expensive edition. That is why they don't offer certain features in the cheaper versions.......to make you want to buy a more expensive one.