Microsoft announced yesterday that the consumer version of Windows Vista will be on the shelves on 30 January next year.
So we hit the streets of London to find out what people thought of the new Windows version, and whether they would be rushing out to get their copy of the upgraded operating system.
It turns out that not many people did - of the 35 people surveyed at random around London's Covent Garden yesterday, only four (or 11 per cent) had even heard of Vista. With a little prompting, however, comprehension dawned for a further 11 of our sample group.
But of the 15 people that were aware of the new Windows version, only two (or 13 per cent) said they were likely to upgrade within the first few months of its release.
Another five said they would probably upgrade within the first year, but the remaining eight people said they were happy with their current version of Windows and would stick with it for the foreseeable future.
New features in Vista include claimed improvements to security, a 3D interface as well as more search options. Office 2007 will be launched to consumers on the same day.
Vista will be Microsoft's first new version of Windows since 2001. The company said it expects its release to spark a rise of at least 10 per cent in sales of Windows PC software over the coming year. Anna Lagerkvist
