Some Win7 PCs to Ship Days Before Official Win7 Release

If you buy a standalone copy of Windows 7 or a PC shipped with the operating system (OS) by a big-name manufacturer, it's unlikely you'll get your hands on the highly-anticipated Microsoft OS before October 22nd, 2009. But firms selling custom-built PCs will now be able to ship Windows 7 machines from October 13th.

Jon Bach, president of Puget Systems, recently revealed that Microsoft told him in writing he has permission to ship the machines nine days before the official release. Microsoft has noted the scheme does apply to all such "system builder" manufacturers, but says the advantage should be limited.

To clear up any confusion, the early release date does not apply to larger manufacturers such as Dell who allow some degree of customization over their models. Instead, it only applies to firms who specifically build a machine to order, often with parts from a wide variety of manufacturers.

Build Now, Pay Later

The way Windows installation works makes the change of timescale particularly useful for system builders. The terms of the license they use means they can install the system without immediately needing a product key. This means they can build up a large stock of Windows 7 machines as soon as they receive the master discs, but won't need to pay for the operating system until they are ready to ship, at which point they obtain the product key from Microsoft. (Source: techflash.com)

It wasn't initially clear why Microsoft was allowing this exception to the rule. Bach's theory is that the system was confirmed as ready-to-go earlier than expected. It could also be that Microsoft thought it impractical to change the mainstream release date given it will have a carefully planned publicity schedule, while at the same time recognizing that there was no need to enforce the release date in the comparatively small market for custom-built machines. (Source: computerworld.com)

MS Expecting Few Early Users

Microsoft has since said that although it is technically allowing the early release, it believes that with the Windows 7 master discs not shipping to system builders until October 12th, most of them won't be able to finish building a computer and have it delivered to the customer until at least October 22nd anyway. Firms including Puget Systems seem to be seeing that as something of a challenge.

This isn't the first time that system builders have been granted extra flexibility over Windows schedules. They were also given extra time to sell Windows XP after its official withdrawal earlier this year.