Microsoft announced this week the U.S. prices for Windows Vista, the upcoming version of the widely used operating system in the Windows family. Microsoft also confirmed today plan to target a general consumer launch of the product in January 2007. Windows Vista will carry a retail price of $199 to $399, ranging from the basic version to the top-end "ultimate" edition. For customers upgrading from Windows XP, Vista will cost between $100 and $259, according to Microsoft.
Vista Release Candidate 1, a beta version of this next flagship OS, was made available to more than 5 million customers worldwide.