Love Windows 7? You’ll still be able to buy PCs with it on until November 2014

If you’re one of those people afraid to upgrade to Windows 8, but are in desperate need of a new machine then you’re in luck: you’ll still be able get one with Windows 7 pre-loaded until November 2014.

Microsoft’s product lifecycle does however mean that you can no longer buy it as a boxed piece of software. If you do opt to buy a Windows 7 device before then though, it’s worth bearing a couple of things in mind.

First, you’ll be working on an OS that’s about to stop being supported (sort of). According to Microsoft’s Windows lifecycle page, mainstream support for Windows 7 will end on 13 January 2015. Extended support meanwhile will last until around 2020.

That means you’ll be able to get away with running Windows 7 for a good while yet, but after five years you will no longer receive the security updates that are meant to help protect your PC from harmful viruses, spyware, and other malicious software that can steal your personal information.

If Microsoft’s history is anything to go by though, the drama around Windows 8 should be forgotten by then and it’ll have an OS that the majority of the public reckons to be worth using.

Image: Masaru Kamikura (via Flckr).