Windows 8 users that want to take advantage of the free upgrade to Windows 8.1 that shipped earlier today better hope they don’t have more than one PC to upgrade.
That’s because there’s currently no way to get one’s hands on an ISO version (a DVD disk image) of the operating system upgrade, unless you’re prepared to venture deep into the bowels of the Internet and visit illegal download sites, or happen to have an Enterprise Agreement or Technet subscription with Microsoft.
Speaking to us at a press conference to launch the new operating system earlier today, Colin Erasmus, OEM lead at Microsoft South Africa said that the only way for consumer to get their hands on the update is for them to download it through the Windows Store application located on their Windows 8 PCs (at about 3.63GB a pop), or should they be on an older version of Windows, like 7 or XP, buy a license key and then download the installation media from Microsoft’s Windows Store website.
They can of course also visit any of the myriad technology retailers in the country and get a shrink-wrapped box copy there.
That’s not great news if you have more than one Windows 8 PC in your home. Until Microsoft releases a link to the ISO, each PC in need of an upgrade will have to be updated via the Store, again, at 3.63GB a pop.
Have four PCs in your home? You’ll need 14.5GB of data to burn. And on an average 4Mbps ADSL line, expect to wait well in excess of two and half hours per PC for the upgrade to download.
So expect to do your four PC upgrade over a two day period, because you’ll burn more than 10 hours on downloading the content, never mind the time the actual installation will take for each PC.
As things stand, Microsoft has made no provision for users to visit retailers or other consumer-facing channels to get a copy of the new OS, albeit on DVD for a small fee, instead of having to shoulder the massive download.
I’m not being picky here, but by contrast, when Apple released its 1.3GB iOS 7 update for iPhones, iPod Touches and iPads, it had a download link on its website for users that needed to install on more than one device. The local Apple representatives, Core Group, even went so far as to invite customers into its Apple Stores, where professional service folks would do the upgrade for free.
It seems almost criminal that Microsoft, who owns the vast majority of the market share in desktop and notebook PCs, didn’t do anything remotely similar, considering the massive bandwidth constraints and connectivity issues in South Africa.
