Microsoft Announces Vista Prices

Microsoft has announced pricing for its Vista operating system, the successor to Windows XP which is set to be rolled out to business customers at the end of this month. The Home Premium Edition will cost $239 with a suggested upgrade price of $159; Home Basic will cost $199 with upgrades likely to cost $100; while Vista Ultimate will retail for $399 with upgrades likely to come in at $259. Businesses looking to make the switch from XP to Vista will need to shell out $199 for an upgrade, or around $299 for a retail version.The only version of Vista not to have its price set is the top-end Enterprise Edition. A statement on the Microsoft website states that "the Windows Vista Enterprise edition is only available to Microsoft Volume License customers; it is not available for retail purchase".Consumers will have to wait until the new year to get their hands on the Home Basic, Home Premium and Ultimate versions of the snazzy-looking new OS, while businesses that are especially keen on a Vista PC should be able to get hold of one some weeks earlier.As a sop to those looking to buy a new PC, Microsoft is running an upgrade voucher scheme so that anyone buying a new XP system will be able to move over to Vista as soon as it launches. The upgrades will be redeemable via the manufacturer in the case of the most established brands while Microsoft is "working to provide guidance to smaller system builders" – meaning that even if you buy from a small PC manufacturer, you won’t miss out on the Vista goodness.