Earlier this week we were able to confirm with Microsoft that it will be offering Windows 7 Anytime Upgrades at retail, not just through an online authentication process.
Now that we know all about the retail packaging for the disc-based installs, it’s time to take a look at what the Anytime Upgrade boxes will look like. AeroXperience snapped a few pictures of the upgrade boxes for Ultimate and Professional.
As Microsoft told us earlier, the Windows 7 Anytime Upgrade retail boxes will not come packed with any media inside, but rather only hold a product key for buyers to punch into their Windows 7 installs to initiate the upgrade.
Consumers will have the opportunity to purchase a Media-Less Key (MLK) at Retail.When they return to their PC, the customer will use the same WAU Tool to manually enter the Product Key printed on the MLK.Once the key is entered, the WAU Tool will initiate the upgrade process (EULA acceptance, feature unlock, etc.)
Why such elaborate packing is required just for a few slips of paper is beyond us, but at least it’ll be identifiable as a Microsoft Windows product when sitting on the store shelves.
