Vista Ultimate team releases new discounts, but no new freebies (yet)
After a week on the road, I'm catching up on a few interesting news items I missed this past week. One of them involves Microsoft's Vista Ultimate.
Microsoft has caught hell -- as it deserved to -- for failing to deliver in a timely manner the Ultimate Extras it promised purchasers of its high-end Vista Ultimate Extra SKU. Last week, the company launched a new Web site, UltimatePC.com, promising to deliver new "Ultimate Exclusives."
Exclusives and Extras are not the same thing. Exclusives "provide Windows Vista Ultimate customers with unique products and services at special discounts." Exclusives are not meant to replace the Extras; they supposedly will complement them. Ultimate Extras -- which include everything from a Texas Hold 'Em game, to BitLocker Online Key Storage -- are freebies positioned as thank-you gifts for Ultimate users for choosing Microsoft's priciest SKU.
On the list of Exclusives so far are deals on EVGA e-GeForce 8800 graphics cards for gamers; discounts on video-editing software and HD TV products from Pinnacle Systems; and promotional pricing on Stardock's Multiplicity for multi-PC control.
Microsoft officials have said (repeatedly) that the company is continuing to work on more Ultimate Extras, the free ad-ons available to Vista Ultimate users. Bink.nu was running a list of "hints" about some of the coming Extras, which the site ended up pulling at the request of Microsoft.
Luckily, the cached version was still live when I checked. Here are what was on the list of hints for forthcoming Ultimate Extras:
- A New original game
- Enhancements to Movie Maker and DVD Maker
- DreamScene experiences
- A Few New Screen savers
- New sound schemes
When will Microsoft release these new Extras? Maybe in a month -- or 12? It's anyone's guess, at this point....
Vista Ultimate users: Are you interested in these kinds of Exclusives and Extras? What would you like to see Microsoft provide to make you feel as though you got true bang for your Ultimate buck?