Vista Ferrari Debacle Isn’t About Ethics

At least that’s what David Taylor thinks on the Intuitive Life Business Blog. David states the real problem is that Microsoft knows Vista is a “bear” to install and the only way they think they’ll get good press is they need to send it on a smoking hot laptop that’s sure to have all the hardware requirements nailed down.

David states that Microsoft paid at least $150,000 for this little marketing effort (90 laptops at $1500 + s/h + Vista OS = $150,000+/-). I for one serious doubt Microsoft paid anywhere near $1500 for each of those laptops. You’ve got to think there’s some benefit in it for Acer to be promoting their Ferrari laptops. We’re talking Acer here. I’ve never thought of them or recommended them as a laptop option for myself or friends that asked me about what kind of laptop they should buy. It’s always been a Sony, Toshiba, Compaq, Dell or something like that. Not Acer.

However, if I had been one of the “chosen” ones to receive a loaded Acer laptop with Vista pre-installed and had a wonderful experience, I wouldn’t have been just talking about Vista. I would have been speaking about the great hardwar I received as well. So, $1500 per laptop from Acer? Microsoft didn’t pay that, I’d be surprised if they paid a third of it per laptop.

David goes on to suggest that the real problem here is whether or not Vista is an upgrade worthy OS option. After all, there are still people using Me and 98 right? Of course, there are also people still watching B/W TV’s, listening to cassette tapes and records, and they don’t have cell phones.

Some people have no desire to upgrade anything in their lives and don’t see the importance. It’s been quite awhile since there’s been a new OS from Microsoft, and there’s been plenty of hardware development in the meantime. I’m sure there will be plenty of people interested in upgrading.