Windows 7 could be sold on thumb drives, but probably not
By Joseph L. Flatley 
posted Jun 26th 2009 1:50PM
posted Jun 26th 2009 1:50PM
As you know, Windows 7 pre-orders begin today (unless you're lucky enough to be in Europe, that is). This of course begs the question: what is a Win7-aspiring netbook owner to do? External optical drives are pretty kludgey, in our estimation, and trip to the Geek Squad? Out of the question. According to CNET, a "source" of some sort is goin' around saying that Microsoft is planning on making the OS available on USB thumb drives for the ultra-portable market, although we feel that such devices are best left to the college students who rely on campus computer labs -- or the occasional J.Lo album. As for Microsoft, they've said nothing about any of this, although we have noticed that its online store has all three upgrades (Home Premium, Professional, and Ultimate) available for pre-order download (at $49.99, $99.99, and $219.99 respectively). Problem solved, right?
this post could be necessary, but probably not.
The same could be said about your comment (or maybe not).
What if we're all just an autistic child's dream? This existence is a farce!
...and the cake is a lie!.
Yes I have an idea for Engadget's next article.
"Windows 7 could come with a free photo book of Clint Eastwood, but probably not."
Or even better, "All new laptops could be $30 cheaper, but probably won't be."
These are all gold.
Neat, I could use a free 64GB thumb drive or the 16 GB of the Starter Edition...
I would like my home premium copy that I just pre-ordered to be on a thumb drive, but that would cost to much IMO.
I purchased a 4gb thumbdrive for $9.99 (which I could get for even less now) a year ago. In bulk, I'm sure that MS could afford to spend a little extra for the thumbdrive version.
Even if Microsoft could get 4GB USB thumbdrives (by the way, isn't the ISO 7GB?) for $2-$3 each, I don't see them going that way. They're more likely to include a "utility" to easily allow you to package the install disk to USB. Think about how much profit margins they'd lose going flash vs. DVD. Sure, it doesn't seem like much (it's only a few dollars!) but when you sell thousands upon thousands of media, it really cuts into your profit margins.
I can buy a 100 spindle of 4.37GB dvd for $15 at Costco - it costs them less to press them.
Look at the cost difference.
@Precurse:
the way i see it, instead of selling Win7 Ultra for $300, or whatever it is they're selling it for, it would be like selling it for 5-10 bucks less in terms of profit. It does add up after enough copies but what i'm saying is that it's only a minor deviation. heck, i'd pay the extra $5-10 to get it on a thumbdrive. Why ? Cause i know it won't affect the digital information stored on it if i scratch it !
- more robust media
- faster deployment of their new OS
- smaller formfactor
- easier deployment on DVD-rom-less systems
- sexy and innovative (?)
Yeah, that last one may not be appropriate for MS but hey ! They should at least try a limited edition or smth.
Thumb drives as a more robust media? For day-to-day use, yeah, sure. But for long term storage, optical is still the way to go. Most people will need to actually use the install for Win7 a handful of times over the 2-3(?) year life-span of the product. Using the install so little, it really shouldn't be hard to take care of the disk. Now, as to long term storage, it's well known that flash has problems when it comes to long-term data storage. I don't think I know anyone who hasn't had a perfectly good thumb drive just stop working (e.g., not reading drive, corrupted files, etc.) Optical, on the other hand, if taken care of (see: don't scratch the thing) can hold data for a very long time.
Once costs for each media are factored in, then optical is most definitely the way to go.
I could see them just charging an extra 5 or 10 bucks for it to come on a flash drive...Actually they would probably charge more.
or...
http://dotnetwizard.net/vista-stuff/tips-how-to-bootinstall-windows-7vista-from-usb-flashhard-drive/
and poof... it's on a usb...
That's okay. We wouldn't want Giampaolo to struggle with a thumb drive. His hands are really huge, you know.
Microsoft should give Vista users free upgrades to 7. Seriously - this OS is such shit that I MUST switch. And I PAYED for Vista... what makes Microsoft think I want to dole out hundreds of dollars just to find out that 7 is worse than Vista?
payed eh? awesome...
You probably downloaded a bunch of shit on your computer or do not even own Vista. I have been running it since RTM and it is way better than XP. I would never go back to XP from Vista and especially 7.
No they shouldn't.
If I had used this RC and saw that there is little benefit, then I wouldn't have picked up 2 licenses today.
50 bucks for a 7 license? Why the hell not? Why not 2 or more?
The cost more than justifies the updates to the OS. I enjoyed Vista, and don't feel I deserve a free upgrade, because I don't believe the horse shit that is mentioned on the web regarding Vista.
if you are that worried about windows 7 sucking, why don't you download the RC and try it out?
@NakedOldGuy, that's why they released the RC free for a full year. Some large companies have already switched.
PETERF works for microsoft
Well given your experience with Vista, when 7 comes out MS knows you'll be smart enough to have "payed" for an upgrade...
"Some large companies have already switched."
Can you name one? I don't think any large company would risk their business by switching to the release candidate version of an operating system. Most won't even switch until after the first service pack. Why do you feel the need to lie in order to promote Microsoft's operating systems?
"Can you name one?..." Yeah, Microsoft!
Should have put that money towards school instead.
i've learned several valuable lessons on the internet:
1) no one's opinion on the internet matters.
2) anyone's opinion, who spells 'paid' as 'payed,' definitely doesn't matter.
If you download an OS, don't you need an OS to begin with? And how do you install an OS with an OS already installed without creating a new partition? You would be stuck with 2 OS' or an empty partition if you uninstall the old OS afterwards.
You can boot from the USB drive, can you not?
Well that would depend on what the download format is. Can you just dump it in an USB and have it boot up?
Linux Live CDs are great for this type of thing. Ubuntu's default install disk is a LiveCD. The only catch is that once you use it, you might not bother installing windows.
1) Download OS
2) Burn to DVD or copy to USB drive
3) Boot off media of choice and install OS.
There are other solutions I'm sure but those are the two that come to mind. I've installed it about a half dozen times off a USB stick and think it's the way to go.
Since the idea would be to upgrade your primary OS, I would imagine that if MS were to ship it on USB drives, that yes, they would put it in that format. Contrary to popular belief, there are in fact at least several intelligent people working there.
Worst case scenario:
You have to drive to the nearest public library and order an Ubuntu CD via Shipit.
In Soviet Russia, Windows 7 sells thumb drives on you!
I think it'd be great if Microsoft shipped 7 on flash drives. I suppose it'd be a bit pricier than shipping DVDs, but when you factor in the huge plastic case 7 is currently set to ship in, Microsoft could save some serious money by reducing the shipping weight per-install and potentially increasing shipping pallet density tenfold. It would be a huge win for MS on the front of conserving packaging and CO2.
I rather have a DVD to make backup copies.
What would really be cool is if OSs were on ROM cartridges that just plugged into the computer.
Similar to what we have on smart phones.
No it wouldn't, thumb drives would be great but a thumb drive consumes alot more resources to manufacture than a plastic dvd case, and since a dvd in a case weighs very little I think your whole enviromental angle is bullshit, like most enviromental nonsense.
Yes I want my windows 7 on a sega genesis cart. It's more convenient for me (don't ask why), so I think Microsoft should do it.
Installing Windows from a flash drive is a lot faster than from a DVD.
Fascinating.
wouldn't the usb drive be for people who would prefer not to use a cd drive, aka those with netbooks and other ultraportable? seems however flatley is referring to having windows 7 run from the usb drive itself. either way, i'd be interested
or for people who have a Macbook AIR
Haha, MacBook Air.. trouble is, it can't boot over USB unless the device is 'blessed' and the OS on it doesn't use BIOS calls...
..so, for non-OS X operating systems, USB boot simply doesn't work.
You can just make your thumb drive bootable, then copy all the files from the install disc to the thumb drive, and it'll install right off the thumb drive. You, of course, need a computer with a disc drive to do the copy, though.
http://www.eeeguides.com/2007/12/install-windows-vista-from-usb-flash.html
Hmm, the kludgy way I can think fo doing this would be via Gparted. Download iso via torrent or over home network, create a second bootable partition, image the iso into it, boot from it, install to bigger partition, delete installer partition and use gparted to reclaim the installer partition into the main partition.
Pretty funny that they would even say that Geek Squad could install it on your netbook. The cost of the OS plus the cost of the install would add up to more than the price of a new one. Of course, they already knew that.
Screw the Geek Squad, it's all about EasyTech now. Cheaper, better, and certified technicians. For those who don't know, EasyTech is the second largest retail tech firm, and it is wholly owned by Staples.
Thank God someone else knows the truth!
If they give you the option to download it, just give an option for bootable usb drives. I wouldn't see the problem with just giving the option and creating a small supply for those who might want it. Also with the option just have right next to it (+5.99), I'm sure at wholesale price a 3gb drive wouldn't be that much even if its one of those micro drives.
Given the choice between optical or USB (putting aside download for now) I would prefer USB. Problem is that USB would cost them MUCH more to manufacturer then optical.
you can run almost all linux distros on a thumb drive. it makes it super easy to run an install oses ms should follow suit.
When you buy the Win7 download, do you still have to burn it onto a DVD as with the betas?
that was supposed to go to a different reply
Or, as biggie said, it was all a dream
So i am paying $200 for Vista with transparent start menu.... :-?
bugfixes
...and they moved around some things again.
You obviously haven't tried the RC or read reviews by people who have. It really delivers a much better user experience than Vista (and far beyond what XP ever had to offer). Go and do some real research and you'll see that most everyone loves it.
compared to what? With OS X being the direct competition, Apple has charged all their user base with $150 fee's for updating their operating system every year and a half. And each so called "upgrade" was identical to the last one.
However like the previous replies to your comment, you obviously have not used Windows 7 if you're asking this question.
At the volume of unit they are selling it would be easy to special order USB sticks that are pre-coded for the software on it. The registration key could be unique to that USB stick and to the install files on that USB stick. Much easier to track down those who buy and liberally share.
first of all i think that offering the option to buy your OS on a thumb drive is very good. This option ofcourse in addition to the normal CD option and the download one for users who prefer otherwise.
i was just wondering about the reading speed of the PC of USB and DVD. Will the installation be faster using the DVD option that the USB thumb drive. Since a company offering the OS on a thumb drive will often buy the cheapest one to increase its profit, which means this drive would have a slow reading speed.
one other thing, there radio buttons in the title !!!
Wouldn't that be great if it was? I would buy one
I would pay for a USB drive with Win 7 preloaded, only as long as there was not a premium charged. If the Disk is $100, the USB version should not be $150! Especially since a quality 4GB USB drive costs around $10 these days. I own 3 netbooks, and while I do own a USB CD-Rom I think it would be easier (not to mention faster) to load it from a thumbdrive. While I am quite capable of making a bootable USB drive from the disk, that is extra time I have to expend before getting started, so I would gladly pay the extra $10-$15 for it to arrive preloaded on the thumbdrive, but probably not much more than that.
If you're a MSDN subscriber, all of the OS's come as an ISO download. I imagine that's what the downloaded version of the OS is going to be. Granted, that may be a bit complicated for a lot of users - so they may have something else in place to make it a little more user friendly.
As far as I know (unsure because I've never done it) but you should be able to extract the ISO to a flash/USB drive and go from there with no problems.
Of all the sites to report this story, Engadget is the only one that managed to make it sound negative at every turn, even in the title.
I mean, even the Windows 7 screenshot is an ugly mess of shortcut icons.
Yes thats because it is a desktop one of the "experts" at Engadget use, probably on a macbook.
Pretty much every Windows desktop (but the one I use at work because I turn off desktop icons) is like that. People keep adding icons to their desktop because they think that's the best place for it. Since Windows really doesn't have a strict standard and controlled method for icon placement (or application install) in a categorized menu people will continue to put icons on their desktop. Windows is NOT user friendly in this manner and never will be until they restrict installations to specific rules. That's a known problem. Microsoft only has recommended policies that nobody follows. (Because, IMHO, they really suck.)
@Andir3.0
What? Are you too lazy to select an icon and hit that little key that says "delete"? If a child has a messy bedroom you don't blame the room, but the kid who can't keep the stupid thing clean.
I usually have no more than 5 icons on my desktop at any given time, ideally 3 or less.
just put the dvd in your desktop computer and install onto a netbook over wifi.
I could be shagging Megan Fox tonight, but probably not. I'd have a routine wank instead.
How long before some dipshit delete it and go into full blown panic mode
If anyone has an old Xbox 360 HD-DVD drive laying around (or still in use like me) that works fine to install DVD based software to a netbook.
USB Drive or Not...I pre-paid for my copy.. and I'm happay!
i think it's happening. Discs are on their way out, and good riddance.
Every computer (even netbooks and MacBook Airs) have a USB port. Flash memory is cheap. There's no reason not to.
I also think it's not a coincidence that Apple installed a bootable SD card slot on all the new laptops. Maybe Snow Leopard will ship on SD cards, Windows 7 on Thumb Drives. Then, we can start a Fanboy argument over SD vs. USB...
windows 7 on thumb drive! cool that's nice although all I want is microsoft relaxing a bit when it comes to tweaking with vLite. Now you can't install SP2 in vista if you deleted one of the million drivers for printers in the original install. So I hope this will be relaxed a bit in windows 7 when SP2 will come along (and it will happen!)
For me its more portable to use a USB thumdrive as an installer, compared to the DVD medium.
Dvd disk are supceptible to scratches and data loss due to wear and tear..in the long run you would either make a DVD back-up or buy a new one once its beyond repair.
Its so simple to create a Bootable drive using Microsofts own OS..
Diskpart
Bootsect
is all that you need..V-lite is also a good option
A Mac can be booted off a Firewire or (more recently) a USB drive so I'd certainly welcome the distribution of the OS via a flash memory stick rather than a DVD and I'd certainly support the same for Windows (or any other OS, for that matter). There are increasingly few reasons for keeping the optical drive and delivering the OS via a USB memory stick would be a major hurdle overcome, plus installation should be faster.
Windows 7 could be sold on 5.25" floppys, but it probably wont.
Look at me mom, i created my own news article.