$29.99 Windows 7 Professional – Special Deal for Students

Microsoft is offering the RTM copies of Windows 7 Professional at a massive discount compared to the retail variants of the operating system. Essentially, Windows 7 Professional is now available for purchase for as low as $29.99. The catch is that the special deal is only offered to students in the United States. The offering is part of a larger initiative from the Redmond company, College Ready – Career Ready via the “Are you ready” website.

“Work hard. Play harder. With Windows 7, your PC becomes your entertainment hub; TV shows, movies, photos, and music - and you still get work done like a pro. Save money too with this exclusive $29.99 price from Microsoft,” the software giant noted.

What students will be getting via the special deal is the Upgrade flavor of the operating system. At retail, Windows 7 Professional Upgrade comes with a price tag of $199.99, $100 less than the full edition of the OS, which sells for $299.99. It is easy to see why the $29.99 Windows 7 Professional is an excellent deal for students. “In order to qualify for Windows 7 Professional Upgrade, you must be a licensed user of qualifying Windows XP or Windows Vista software,” the company added.

The same “Are you ready” website where the Windows 7 Professional deals are available also allows students to buy Office Professional Academic 2010 for just $79.95. Language Packs for Office 2010 are also up for grabs, at $9.95 for a single item.

“Eligible students may purchase up to three licenses, but no more than one license from each of the numbered sections above per valid e-mail address or billing address. Eligible students can obtain the software by downloading or ordering a disk from the official Offer web site. The cost for ordering disk(s) is $13.00. Product keys will be provided on the purchase confirmation page and sent to the student's eligible educational institution email address entered into the Offer web site during the purchase process,” Microsoft added.

Windows 7 RTM Enterprise 90-Day Evaluation is available for download here.