Windows 7 nabs Amazon's top sales spot

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Computerworld - Just hours before Microsoft is set to launch Windows 7, the new operating system has jumped to the top of the software bestseller list at online retailer Amazon.com and accounts for three of the first five spots and five of the top 10.

The $149.99 Windows 7 Family Pack, which lets users upgrade three PCs to Windows 7 Home Premium, held the first spot in Amazon.com's software bestseller list as of 11 a.m. Eastern today.

The $119.99 Windows 7 Home Premium Upgrade owned the No. 3 spot, while the $219.99 Windows 7 Ultimate Upgrade claimed No. 5. In the eighth and ninth spots, respectively, were the $199.99 Windows 7 Professional and the $199.99 Windows 7 Home Premium, the full version of the operating system that doesn't rely on an earlier edition to install.

Windows 7 claimed the top spots for a time in late June and early July, when Microsoft discounted preorders to as low as $49.99 for the Home Premium upgrade.

Apple's only showing on the top-10 list today was its $29 Snow Leopard upgrade, in the No. 4 position. In August, Snow Leopard snared the top spots on Amazon for several days leading up to, and after, its late-in-the-month launch.

Amazon and other online sellers, such as Newegg and TigerDirect, continue to sell Windows 7 at its full list price prior to its launch tomorrow. It's likely, however, that they will offer small discounts starting tomorrow. Amazon, for example, now sells Snow Leopard -- which launched Aug. 28 -- for $25, a price reduction of 14% from full retail.

TigerDirect is also keeping track of the time left before Windows 7's launch with a countdown clock that, as of early today, read just over 12 hours.

Microsoft will host a New York City launch event tomorrow at 11 a.m. Eastern, when CEO Steve Ballmer will kick off the coming-out party for the successor to the much-maligned Vista.

Read more about operating systems in Computerworld's Operating Systems Knowledge Center.