Microsoft released the future of personal computing last week, but the future may not be that interested.
Last week, Microsoft released Windows Vista, its newest operating system and Windows XP successor, but on campus, a bastion of young, tech-savvy early-adopters, there was little palpable excitement or fanfare.
Most students did not even know it had been released.
There hasn’t been much interest in the new product, University of Oregon Bookstore Digital Duck department manager Curtis Smith said.
He said he expected sales might pick up after Microsoft eventually releases a service pack.
“When it first comes out there’s almost always something wrong or something needing to be patched,” he said.
That, and the fact that Vista might not run smoothly on older PCs, makes buyers cautious, he said.
Microsoft has been forward in courting the next generation of Windows users by spending on promotions aimed specifically at the college-age demographic. Company founder Bill Gates appeared as a guest last week on “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,” and the company sponsored a Web site, a tour and a Comedy Central special for comedian Demetri Martin.
Associate Professor of Marketing David Boush, who studies the relationship between consumer behavior and marketing management decisions, said the problem is twofold. Microsoft’s product purpose and image don’t line up with college students.
“The product that they’re offering is not necessarily something that meets the needs or wants of college students, so it may not seem terribly relevant – even if they got Bill Gates on ‘The Daily Show,’” he said.
Lindsey Lombardi, a self-described “anti-tech savvy” laptop owner, had no idea that a new edition had even been released. She had to think for a second if she would even bother purchasing it.
“Isn’t it like $400 or something? – no,” she said.
Lombardi is not alone in her confusion. Windows Vista comes in six different packages, both with full versions and packages intended as upgrades. The prices range from $99.99 to $399.95.
Business major Heather Haggard knew about the release because of a computer course she was taking at the Lundquist College of Business.
“I’ve been waiting to get a laptop until it came out,” she said. “I’m a little bit worried because I’ve heard it’s very different and that there might be a learning curve.”
Windows Vista has been marketed extensively for its new security features, but also its slick and modern translucent appearance. That seems to make little difference when consumers already have a perception.
Compared with Apple, the maker of the iPod and a competing operating system, Microsoft has a “techie” image, Boush said.
“Microsoft is associated with corporate work and schoolwork,” he said. “They’re not really hip and stylish. A lot of students would have been paying attention if this was something like a new iPod or something that was meeting their needs.”
In some ways, the battle may have already been fought and won for the hearts and dollars of many young consumers.
At Digital Duck, student buyers are now more likely to buy an Apple Macintosh than a PC loaded with Microsoft’s software, Smith said.
Lombardi said if her Dell laptop were to die, and money was not a factor, she would buy a new Apple laptop.
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