The actual code base of the next iteration of the Windows client is not the only aspect of Windows 7 still in Beta stage. In fact, along with the operating system's bits, the packaging of the product can also be considered nothing more than a Beta version, as the image included with this article reveals. For the time being, just as Windows 7, though the development of Milestone 1, M2 and M3 phases was still very much Vista, the box design for the Beta Build 7000 version continues to be in the style of the retail versions of its precursor. And as Windows 7 is nothing more than an evolution of Vista, going forward, one way for Microsoft to drive the Windows 7 box design is to take Vista's hard, plastic containers one step ahead, while, of course, tailoring the Aero-inspired visual candy to Win 7.

The Windows 7 Beta Build 7000 box manages to give no actual indications as to the direction that Microsoft is considering when it comes down to the packagings for the final product. Still, the Windows 7 logo with the Beta label on a black background (courtesy of the image from Andrew Parsons, Microsoft academic developer evangelist) is bound to evolve into something a tad more appealing, and certainly more customer-friendly.

However, just as the Redmond company decided to stick to Windows 7 as the official moniker for the gold version of the operating system, the platform needs a container that will reflect the same level of simplicity. The seventh (well, v6.1 in all fairness) version of the Windows client deserves a packaging as raw as the name.

At this point in time, however, users will have to satisfy their curiosity in terms of the Windows 7 box design with just the packagings offered by Parsons. For Vista, Microsoft only revealed the containers of the operating system very late in the operating system's development, around RTM. If this will also be the case with Windows 7, users will have to exercise their patience. For those interested, the six boxed copies of Windows 7 Beta are up for grabs. You only need to email Anderson, and be in the first six to contact him, if it's not already too late.

“If you’d like one, simply contact me through Email and if you’re one of the first six, I’ll ship it out to you directly,” Parsons explained. “This is the full product – kinda equivalent to Windows Vista Ultimate – and works beautifully. I’ve been running it for the past month without a hitch. The beta will last until August too, so you’ve got plenty of time to check out this next version of Windows before it hits retail.”

Windows 7 Beta is available for download here.

Product keys to activate Windows 7 Beta are available here.