Discount Coupon for Windows Vista

People who buy certain Windows personal computers this holiday season will be offered free or heavily discounted coupons to upgrade to Microsoft's new operating system, Windows Vista. Vista is currently scheduled to be released to consumers sometime in January. The cost to upgrade or buy a new version of Vista at full retail price will range from $99.95 to $399, depending on the version.

The coupon program begins tomorrow and runs through mid-March. Particulars of the deal will vary depending on the computer maker and retailer:

(i) Hewlett-Packard Co. released a statement saying that people in North America who buy certain HP Pavilion, Compaq Presario and HP Digital Entertainment Center computers equipped with Windows XP, Microsoft's current version, can upgrade to Vista for free. There may be shipping and handling fees, depending on the retailer.

(ii) Dell Inc. also released a statement saying that buyers of Vista-capable Dell computers running Windows XP Home Edition will be able to buy Windows Vista Home Basic at the discounted price of $45, plus shipping and handling charges. Buyers of computers running Windows XP Media Center or Windows XP Professional will only have to pay shipping and handling to get a comparable Vista version.

(iii) Gateway Inc. will offer free upgrades for people who buy Vista-capable computers directly from the company. However, shipping charges or duplication fees may be charged to people who buy Gateway computers through other retailers.

Microsoft said it also is backing a similar program for people who buy computers that come pre-loaded with the current version of its business software, Office 2003, and would want to upgrade to the new version of the software suite, Office 2007 which is due out in January as well.