Rumor: Windows 8 Going RTM in 2012

we Just got windows 7 really to take off (compared to the established windows XP which is still the majority) and they're thinking of windows 8 next year? way too short of a time for some that call this new OS the son of god....

if this OS was so good, why replace it now?

money and marketing

don't see why they can't add all those features to windows 7

Unless it makes dinner and wipes your butt - why would anyone even go to this? Win7 is working GREAT and it has everything most everyone needs for years to come.

yes i agree with the comments above. way too soon to release another windows version, just release service packs and add the new features there. this almost makes users who are doubting to buy 7 wait untill 8...

dave, someone could also mention that windows 95 has almost everything the world uses....access to the internet.
people buy things because they are shiny, new, and 'cool'. look at the iPhone, the updates from year to year are minimal or ass backwards(antenna on iphone4)
but people buy them.

[citation][nom]if this OS was so good, why replace it now?[/citation]

Perhaps they should sit around until their competitor releases something better then get blamed for being out innovated and slow?

It's a reasonable timeframe but no-one realises that because of the massive delay between XP and 7 (Vista was - rightly or wrongly - considered a failure and so didn't really count). Microsoft used to release new OS versions every couple years, 95 to 98 to Me to XP, all just a few years apart. Just because a new version comes out doesn't mean everyone has to migrate from the previous version to that one, it is possible to skip a version or two.

What does need to change is Microsoft's pricing to retail customers though.

Maybe a late 2013 release. Give us at least another 2 1/2 years.

@malphas It's been the same since 95. $99 for upgrade, $199 for full or pro-upgrade, $299 for pro-full. Most consumers end up with the $99 version or a preinstall. Most Pros end up with an OEM, Technet, or other such version. Adjusted for inflation over the past 15 years it's dropped significantly.

People may buy that way, but businesses don't and releasing Windows 8 so soon is another reason why businesses hate Microsoft. Most businesses are still using XP and won't even think of going to Windows 7 until SP2 comes around, but with Windows 8 not much further in the distance many might just wonder if they need the upgrade in the first place. I imagine Microsoft will use their monopoly to force businesses to upgrade by not supporting updates to XP, something they have talked about for some time, but ultimately I think this is just going to hand business to other emerging players such as Google.

If Google can successfully target business users they could put a considerable dent in Microsofts profit margin, but that's a really big if of course.

Windows 8 will be a new cross-platform OS that better enables touch and multiple hardware formats. It isn't viewed as being a replacement for Windows 7, although many OEMs and users will leverage it and choose to upgrade. As many have stated, there will be those that remain on Windows 7 until there is a compelling reason to upgrade. Windows 8 won't provide most average users that added value to cause them to want to upgrade. From what I understand it will contain some features (such as app marketplace) that leverage the cloud to make reinstalling a breeze. I just hope they work on the file system and performance at the same time. Windows 8 will be even more modular to allow the system builders to leverage the pieces that make the most sense for their particular hardware and or use scenarios (full desktop power user vs. light tablet media consumption style devices).

The release date is for early 2013. That's still two years away. Considering all the additions Micrsoft is talking about, I would be happy to upgrade.

If this was some kind of Apply fanboi button, people would be lining up to pay them 200 dollars. But a Micrsoft upgrade... every 3.5 years.... Its not a big deal. Just shut up and buy it, or just keep using M7 if you don't want it.

So this is really about the cloud-based implementation more than anything else. I think that is taking off perhaps better than expected.

Agree! People jumpt OS versions all the time, just as they do with CPU's and GPU's. Only a minority has the money, enthusiasm and need to swap OS, GPU and CPU every year.

Most people kept XP during Vista's lifespan and they didn't lose any critical functionality (at least 90% didn't as all software ran, and still mostly runs, on XP), Some people jumped from a single core Pentium 4 to a Core 2 Duo, and then jumped the Core 2 Quad straight to a Core i5 or i7; the same with GPU's: some people jumped the GTX 2xx series from a 8800GT/9800GT/GTX to a GTX 460.

It happens all the time, and it works.

The iPhone 3G, or even 3GS to the iPhone 4 was a huge leap. The screen resolution is way higher, the battery life is almost double, the processor is faster, there is more RAM, not to mention the case profile is slimmer and nicer looking. I have used both, and these aren't just stats thrown out arbitrarily. The difference is huge. I hate Apple as much as the next guy, but there is clearly no need for bashing in this case.

Still too expensive, a lot has changed since the 90's. Software - even lousy software - used to be incredibly expensive because less people could code, now we have FOSS and people releasing high quality software for free, and Microsoft has steadily increasing competition from Apple, Google and others.

I think win7 is the new XP its good enough that most people are just going to shrug their shoulders at win8.

There are zero reasons for companies to keep XP due to XP mode being available within Windows 7. Heck, GXS, supplier of edi, still INSISTS that their clients have ie6 to view their web information and that meant that I had to provide 2 damn machines.

Next week I'll be installing Win7 with XP mode and that will be the job done.

(CLoses opera, opens ie8, posts. Please Toms, let me use Opera to submit my comment!)

I seriously doubt they put much money into market exposure. Windows is the most widely used operating system. Everyone who owns or has ever used a computer before has heard of Microsoft. I mean, it's on the damn boot screen.

January 2013 ? Before it's adopted by mainstream it will probably take another 6 months or so (especially for retailers to catch up). Then there's the hardware requirement issue, drivers issue... Vista all over again for at least another 6 months.

i do like that there pushing out new product but i don't see my self buying windows 8 unless it does the following: it performs 2x fast then windows 7, Same goes for games it has to be 2x faster in all games, give me the abilty to play my xbox thro a stream onto my PC

You can bet that the next MS OS will support ARM!

ARM ? Hmm... Sure. Though I read somewhere that they're going for a gaming approach.

2012? Just as the Mayans predicted...

instead of making me waste my time reading a whole page of lies why could this not have been posted in the first paragrph kevin? GRRRRRR

XP is a decade old now. The end of security updates for XP is 2014, which is equivalent to supporting Windows 98 today with security updates if you go by release time, ME/2k by release of a successor.

Ironically, the reason Vista got delayed until 2006 was because of XP. Not because it was good, but because it was being exploited left, right and center. The bad old days of XP SP1. If they were using a lack of XP updates to kill it, they'd have stopped back then with SP1.

With the cloud features included, I believe Windows 8 is targeted at commercial users.

ask them why they couldn't add the windows 7 features to vista and you will know why

if the RTM is going to be in 2012 would there have already been some leaked Betas by now

LOL yea i was so happy i that a decided to skip windows ME

the only reason vista sucked is because joe blow try to install vista on there 10yo PC that could barly run XP. vista was a good OS

Gaming approach = Making 360 exclusives and showing finger at PC gamers