The idea of a family pack which allows your operating system to be installed on multiple computers in your home was first promoted by Apple with the OS X Family Pack. It has now been confirmed that Microsoft is copying Apple (again) and releasing a Family Pack for the upcoming Windows 7.

Earlier this month keen blogger Kristan Kenney was poking around in a recently leaked build of Windows 7 Home Premium and ran across the term “Qualified Family Pack User” in the Microsoft Software License Terms. This started a rush of blogging about if Microsoft will release a Family Pack for Windows 7.

Well, it has now been confirmed. Brandon LeBlanc of Microsof has confirmed the rumours in the Windows 7 Team Blog.

So it is official, for the Home Premium version of Windows 7 (and only the Home Premium) there will be a family pack which can be installed on up to 3 PCs. There is no word yet on pricing, rumours for USA pricing vary from $136.95 to $199 but nobody is sure.

All this is in contrast to Apple’s forthcoming update to OS X, dubbed Snow Leopard, which will be available as an upgrade for just $29 for a single user and $49 for their Family Pack which allows OS X to be installed on up to 5 computers.

People often say that PCs are cheaper that Macs? That might be true for the initial hardware, but is it true overall once you consider all the upgrades to Windows and the fact that Macs come with iLife for free?

Related links:

Microsoft Confirms That The Windows 7 Family Pack is Real; No Word on Pricing | Gaj-It.com – UK Gadget and Tech News, Reviews and Shopping

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