14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft's switch to a modern operating system reached another chapter a few hours ago, as the company officially ended sales of new Windows 7 PCs, which means that those who want to purchase a new computer need to choose a different operating system than consumer editions of Windows 7.
The decision to stop sales of computers running Windows 7 Home Basic, Home Premium, or Ultimate is part of Microsoft's transition to newer operating systems, as the company has already launched Windows 8 and 8.1 and is working to roll out Windows 10.
However, it's very important to know that even though consumer editions of Windows 7 are no longer pre-installed on new PCs, OEMs are still allowed to deploy Windows 7 Professional on computers, so this particular OS version will continue to be available for a while.
The company hasn't yet announced a date for Windows 7 Professional new PC sales, but this is very likely to continue through 2015.
Windows 7 PCs still in stock
Today's decision definitely comes as a big hit for customers who can't get used to Windows 8, so choosing Windows 7 as the operating system powering new PCs is clearly the only option, at least until Windows 10 arrives.
Fortunately, while Microsoft put an end to sales of new machines running consumer versions of Windows 7, some retailers still have them in stock, and with some search online, one could easily find a computer in stock.
At the same time, in case you really want to stick to Windows 7 for now, the Professional version continues to be available, but it's worth keeping in mind that a computer running this particular edition is a bit more expensive, as the OS brings new features and enhanced functionality.
All eyes on Windows 10
The decision to discontinue new Windows 7 PC sales takes many by surprise, even though the company announced this deadline last year.
But what's more important at this moment is that many consumers are still expecting Windows 10, an operating system that fixes most of the annoyances of Windows 8, while also retaining the full functionality of the Windows 7 desktop in a modern package.
Obviously, Microsoft needs to bring Windows 10 to the market as soon as possible, but according to sources, that's not going to happen sooner than spring 2015. As a result, there's a gap of approximately half a year between the death of Windows 7 consumer editions and Windows 10's launch, so it's going to be really interesting to keep an eye on how new PC sales will go in this period.
As a reminder, despite yesterday's deadline, do not forget that Windows 7 support continues to offered until January 2020, so it has nothing to do with patches and security updates.