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    Windows 8 for USD$40?

    TechnologyWindows 8 for USD$40?

    For those running Windows XP and higher, Microsoft announced that the jump to Windows 8 Pro will cost only USD$40 (Php 1,667 as of today) for a limited time only. By contrast, upgrading to Windows 7 from an older version of Windows was USD$120 (Php 5,000), and upgrading within Windows 7 (for example, from Home Premium to Ultimate) was USD$65 (Php 2,708).

    Microsoft said that the promo would only run through January 2013 and that it would have to be downloaded from the Internet. If you were to just buy Windows 8 in stores without upgrading from a previous version of Windows, it would cost USD$70 (around Php 2,917) during the promo period.

    In contrast, Apple charged just USD$29 (Php 1,208) to upgrade to the last two versions of Mac OS X, and when their Mountain Lion update goes on sale later this month, the company will charge just $20 (Php 833). 85% of Mac users are running the latest releases of the Mac OS, Snow Leopard (10.6) and Lion (10.7).

    Despite releasing Windows Vista in 2007 and Windows 7 in 2009, over half of Windows users, especially business ones, are still running the 11-year old Windows XP, which was released in August 2001. Although there are some concerns about Windows being a memory hog, especially for older computers, the new, lower price point will hopefully encourage Windows XP users to upgrade.

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