Downgrading from Windows 8 to Windows 7
In his blog post, usability expert Jakob Nielsen of the Nielsen Norman Group explained in excruciating detail exactly why and how Windows 8 is difficult to use. It was a damning report that might have many questioning whether to take the Windows 8 plunge. The good news is you can buy a PC loaded with Windows 8 Pro, try out the new OS, and then downgrade to Windows 7. Unfortunately, however, the road back to Windows 7 can be confusing and full of twists.
Hewlett-Packard is typical: It does not support downgrades of consumer-grade Windows 8 PCs to Windows 7. But if you buy a machine loaded with Windows 8 Pro, you can make the jump. HP's policy is based on Microsoft's licensing terms, which support downgrade rights only to new PCs preloaded with Windows 8 Pro, the version of Windows designed for business.
Unfortunately, machines loaded with Windows 8 Pro will demand a pricing premium over similarly spec'd Windows 8 systems. We ran a quick comparison survey of machines from HP, Dell, and Toshiba, and found that an upgrade to the Pro version of Windows 8 increased system prices anywhere between $35 and $100.
And even when the price delta is small enough to justify buying a Windows 8 Pro machine (complete with downgrade rights!), the downgrade process can still be difficult to figure out. When PCWorld researched this, sales and support reps for both Microsoft and major PC manufacturers told us two different stories.
A Dell representative said that to downgrade from Windows 8, you needed to buy a new, unused copy of Windows 7—thus making the whole point of having downgrade rights pointless. Another representative said a Windows 7 disc image would be built into new Windows 8 Pro machines. This contradicts pretty much everything Microsoft has ever posted online about downgrade rights.
But after scouring Microsoft's online support pages, checking out real-world downgrade experiences on various forums, and then confirming the process with Microsoft's press team, we can now share the truth about how downgrades work for anyone with a PC running Windows 8 Pro.
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Senior Member
Posts: 1843
Joined: 2005-08-12
What you write is total absurd that makes no sense and is just wrong. There are enough hate posts without any reason already.
back to topic:
If for some reason one wants to downgrade (eg. corporate software compatibility), it's good to have such option. Still, it should be a little more straightforward.
Senior Member
Posts: 2939
Joined: 2004-10-03
I agree, Windows 8 is fine. I've had zero problems with it and in most cases is faster. This is just going to bring the flocks of boo birds and the herds of nay nay goats.
Senior Member
Posts: 899
Joined: 2003-10-28
I too have had no problems with Windows 8. It took a month of getting used to but now I actually prefer it over 7/Vista/XP/etc now. Not to mention the Win 8 launch went a lot smoother than 7's, or at least for me. I was an early adopter and finding drivers and whatnot was a chore when it first came out. That wasn't at all the case with 8. I won't go into detail again though since I've already done that on another thread.

On topic though, they really should lower the price of Win 7 instead of punishing people for their preferences. It doesn't make sense for Windows 8 to be 1/2 to 1/3rd the price of 7. I mean, I guess it does from a company perspective to encourage more people to buy 8 but tradition says that once a new product comes out it's predecessor should be less expensive.
Chuck Norris
Posts: 2537
Joined: 2012-02-06
I didn´t like w8 at first due to the UI. Now that i got it, i think it´s good. I understand why people might not like w8, but i fail to see what´s all the hate about. I´ve been using w8 for a week now and i´ve mastered how it works. Don´t like it? Fine, don´t use it. You have the right to criticize it as much as you want and that´s positive as long as you stay rational but mostly what i read here on the negative side is plain bitching. I wonder if people actually used w8 before make an opinion.
Senior Member
Posts: 263
Joined: 2012-05-13
The thread title is wrong, from win 8 to 7 is actually an upgrade, only M$ wants people to believe otherwise. And upgrading from win 8 to 7 isn't so easy in some cases, many notebooks for example come without the ability to disable "secure boot" which means you are stuck with win 8. At least now we know what the secure boot feature is actually good for, it's there to prevent people to upgrade to a better OS like win 7 or Linux.