For Windows 7 addicts. There is bad news for you. Not only for you but also for the retailers of operating systems and OEM’s(Original equipment Manufacturers) as Microsoft has declared an ‘end of sales’ for this OS.
End of sales refers to the date when a particular version of Windows is no longer shipped to retailers or Original Equipment Manufacturers(OEM’s). Examples of OEM’s are Samsung, Lenovo, Dell – PC manufacturers who often preinstall Windows Software. Upgrading is necessary when a version of Windows reaches its end of sales date.
However, many online retailers like Amazon are still selling on virtual shelves stocks full of various versions of Windows 7. Certain OEM’s versions of Windows products include downgrade rights. Downgrade rights makes it possible to use a previous version of Windows instead of the licensed software preinstalled on a new PC.
The retail space for Windows XP ended in June 30, 2008 and was no longer licensed to OEM’s on October 22, 2010. Windows Vista was discontinued in stores on October 22, 2010 and no longer sold to OEM’s on October 22, 2011.
The latest news now is that your present Windows 8 wont be sold in stores starting October 31, 2014, replaced by Windows 8.1, which launched on October 18, 2013.