14 DAY TRIAL // Windows Blue, the first major Windows 8 upgrade that’s expected to hit the shelves this summer, is very likely to be a lot cheaper than the operating system it’s based on, Ben Bajarin, analyst of consumer technologies for Valley consulting firm Creative Strategies, said.
Bajarin wrote in a column published by TabTimes that Microsoft may release Blue with a lower price for PC makers, especially because it needs to bring to the market more devices running it.
Blue could cost manufacturers approximately $40 (€31) or $50 (€38) per tablet, which is $20 (€15.5) below Windows 8’s price, the analyst explains. Previous reports indicated that Windows Blue could be offered with a freeware license to Windows 8 users, as it’s considered to be an upgrade to the current operating system.
In addition, Bajarin believes that Blue is very likely to spawn new Microsoft tablets, including smaller devices that “will dominate tablet sales and represent more than 60 percent of total sales.”