Gartner Warns Windows 7 Costlier Than Thought

Microsoft has scored some impressive early sales with the rollout of Windows 7, and with the release of Service Pack 1 early next year, that momentum can fairly be expected to build, particularly as more and more businesses enter their IT refresh cycle. But at what price?

Research firm Gartner is warning of an “extra budgetary and resource burden” companies can expect to absorb as they make the transition, particularly in the form of labor costs. CIO Update takes a look at Gartner’s analysis of the costs of deploying Windows 7.

Most IT decision makers agree that migrating to Windows 7 is the smart thing to do, especially after Service Pack 1 (SP1) ships in early 2011 — but a leading analyst firm is cautioning IT organizations that the move could be more expensive than they think.

Many companies have already started what analysts and technology executives refer to as the corporate PC “refresh cycle” — replacing all the aging PCs in a company with new ones as the older machines amortize out, or upgrading existing PCs to run the new operating system. Most new PCs will come with Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) Windows 7 pre-installed.

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