Windows 7 "free" upgrade for Canadians - ripoff!

I can't beleive they are charging $30.89 USD to ship the 'free' Windows 7 upgrade to Canada. This is $10 USD more than it costs to ship in the US - just for shipping! You would think that they could just offer the ISO for download from the Lenovo site, when you enter your model and serial numbers. sheesh!!!


:smileymad:

 

that is a bit of pain considering that from my knowledge at least HP offers free shipping on it.
I'd gladly save them the materials, packing and handling and settle for the serial number alone e-mailed to me. legally finding a free copy of Windows 7 shouldn't be difficult once it's out, and then just activating it with the serial number.
heck, I'd even be willing to pay them $8for emailing the serial to me (I'd still be saving a lot !), I don't care much about the fancy Microsoft hologram...
Unless their shipping method is going to be next day air or something along those lines (which I doubt), the shipping charges are indeed a bit on the high side.

 

Agreed, this is a complete scam. Microsoft should be ashamed of this - it's just plain wrong. Shipping a disk cost less then $5. So obviously, the upgrade is no longer "free". I would like to see a class action lawsuit against Microsoft for this plain robbery.

 

To my shock (and later left with a feeling of entirely expected, considering this is Microsoft that we are dealing with), I discover too that MS is charging a hefty shipping fee to give me a "free" copy of Windows 7 when the OEM clearly stated in all their promotions that it would be a free upgrade to the customer.

This smacks of deceptive advertising, lying and worse, in order to get customers to buy new machines and thereby profit from both OEMs and end customers. In addition, this shows that Microsoft also does not care about the environment. It is willing to cut down trees and use our precious natural resources to ship shrink wrapped packages to millions (billions?) of people.

I work in marketing myself and this appears to be one of the worst abuses of marketing. I echo the call of previous poster and add that only the threat of a massive class action suit, coupled with hefty fines and other disciplinary measures will make microsoft behave honestly. This is the only method that this company understands apparently. How shameful!

 

Is this MS or Lenovo though?

 

Microsoft is leaving it to the individual manufacturer's to formulate their own policies for Windows 7 upgrades. Lenovo charging $30.89 for shipping has NOTHING to do with Microsoft.

 

QFT. Each manufacturer sends its own branded, packaged disks with their own instructions and, in most cases, a drivers disk as well. They are in charge of the entire distribution procedure; Microsoft just provides the Windows 7 codes (maybe not even the CD, who knows?).

 

You're going to sweat $10?

 

$10 per customer makes quite a lot, my friend.

 

...and yet you assume the extra $10 is going in lenovo's pocket rather than toward the extra cost of shipping from the US to canada determined by USPS or UPS.

have you ever shipped something from the US to canada?   i shipped a $35 wireless card to a colleague in toronto and it was $25 via USPS.   the same shipment in the US could have been done for $5.

considering the costs of creating the media, logistics of gathering addresses and creating shipments, paying employee wages, and paying for the actual shipments, $20 is reasonable -- adding, of course, $10 for the extra fees and customs associated with shipping to canada.   if these were shipped 100% free to the consumer, lenovo would see millions of dollars in losses, killing their quarterly profit and likely putting even more people out of work.   in this economy, that simply isn't going to happen.

as the saying goes, there ain't no such thing as a free lunch.

 

so uh, where is this windows 7 upgrade?

 

Like I said, every manufacturer has their own program. If you're in the United States, Microsoft has a web portal that can take orders for $10. Otherwise, Microsoft has links to the manufacturer's website.

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/buy/offers/upgrade.aspx

 

HP seems to be offering free lunches to their costumers...
Considering how big the purchase of a new laptop is, I guess I would expect to be offered free shipping on it rather than be put in a situation where I would kind of be forced (there dosen't seem to be any other way to acquire the serial for it) to pay to get my "free" upgrade to Windows 7.
Either pay the full retail at the store for it when it comes out or shell out "only" $20-30 for it. people would still get it if Lenovo/Microsoft charged $40 to ship as it would still be a lot cheaper than buying it retail, but would it be fair towards the costumer?
I did not find out nor thought I would have to pay anything for this upgrade until after I had ordered my laptop (and I'm pretty thorough!). Not that it would have affected my purchase decision of course, but I just feel like I should have been offered it for completely free with no hidden charges. Or at least be given the option to download it or at least acquire the serial/license online.
I think that it would only make sense to save on materials/manpower, if they really didn't want to make some money out of this, and keep the cotumers happy.

I remember Microsoft once offered a free service pack upgrade that was shipped free to your house with up to 3-5 copies permitted per household, I remember it coming in a nice hard paper envelope with the CD in it carrying the beautiful Windows and microsoft hologran on the inner circle of the CD. all that without paying a penny...

I say offer it for free, you'd be surprised how many of the laptop buyers either forget to take advantage of the promotion or either don't care/afraid to approach a "dreadful" OS installation /data backup etc.

 

Look at the glass half full for once. You're getting a new OS months before it's released and it's only costing you a small amount.

 

I don't know where this $10 figure suddenly appeared from (leaving aside the question of whether $10 is even justified). For Canadians, the shipping fee is approximately $31.

Whether it is 10, 31 or 1 cent, this discussion I thought had more to do with the principle than about what it cost Joe Schmoe american to ship a personally autographed undergarment to Joe Schmuck canadian (humor included).

 

For reference, shipping to my location within the US is $17.03.

Note that shipping prices have gone up quite a bit this summer. I recently had someone ship a package for me that would have cost $10-15 via USPS Priority Mail last summer. This summer, it would have cost $32; if I wanted it shipped cheaper, I'd have had to go for Parcel Post (I had her ship it UPS Ground instead, which tracks better).

Then tack on the Canadian aspect --it unfortunately costs a ton more to ship to Canada, something I have done in the past, and have warned the recipients about (in addition to the holdup at customs, but that's another story).

I'm guessing Lenovo is paying workers to pack and ship all of this, so there's part of the fees we all pay as well in addition to postage.

 

the etymology of the word free was once apon a time "given without cost", then came the internet.

I find it interesting though how people started to adopt the new meaning of free over the past few years.

However, I got my Windows 7 legally and for free (in the archaic sense) via download from my student portal. So, who am I to judge?