Microsoft has yet to confirm that it has wrapped up the upcoming development milestone for the next iteration of the Windows client internally, but speculations are pointing out that Windows 7 Beta 1 has been finalized as early as December 12, 2008. In this context, Windows 7 Beta 1 Build 6.1.7000.0.081212-1400 is reportedly headed for a select pool of testers by the end of 2008. At this point in time Microsoft continues to stick to the same refrain when it comes down to the availability of the next development milestone of Win7 past M3, namely that Windows 7 public Beta is still planned for launch in early 2009.

More or less officially, Microsoft did manage to offer confirmation that Windows 7 Beta 1 would be made available in January 2009. The latest indication in this sense from the Redmond company involves the January 2009 Quarterly Update Kit, which will start shipping on January 5, 2009, to all companies with a Microsoft Action Pack Subscription (MAPS). The Redmond company revealed that Windows 7 Beta would be included in the January 2009 Quarterly Update Kit, but that the package would not actually deliver the bits, as the Beta Build would have to be downloaded.

At the same time, the Redmond giant is luring participants to the MSDN Developer Conferences in 2009 with a promise that attendees will receive a copy of Windows 7 Beta 1, which will be delivered to them after the events. Microsoft Evangelist Keith Combs revealed that the first Windows 7 Beta 1 DVDs would be ready for shipping as early as January 13, 2009.

Following tradition, Microsoft will have a strong presence at the international Consumer Electronics Show in January, which is scheduled to take place between January 8 and January 11, 2009, in Las Vegas. At CES 2009 the Redmond company's focus is expected to be Windows 7, and with the proximity of the Beta 1 release, the event could have something to offer to those expecting the next development milestone of Windows Vista's successor.

Dissecting the 6.1.7000.0.081212-1400 Build number indeed reveals that this release was signed off on December 12. In this regard, 6.1 is the version number of Windows 7. Microsoft already explained that ensuring the continuation of a high level of compatibility between Windows Vista and Windows 7 was the reason for the 6.1 version number (6.0 is the NT kernel, the same as Vista's, and 1 is the next major iteration of the Windows client, and the minor version number).

Windows 7 Build 6956, which is the latest development milestone of Windows 7 leaked to torrent websites, is still in pre-Beta stage. With the 7000 Build number, Win7 evolves into fully-fledged Beta, with 0 making the minor build number and 081212-1400 representing the release time stamp, namely  December 12, 2008, at 2 p.m. It is possible, although unconfirmed, that Microsoft will hand partner companies and exclusive testers the Beta 1 of Windows 7 by 2009. However, the public will have to wait until next year in order to get its hands on Windows 7 Beta 1.