Gartner: Hold Off 'Til 2008 On Microsoft Windows VistaGartner: Hold Off 'Til 2008 On Microsoft Windows Vista

Analyst firm Gartner Inc. said Monday it has recommended that companies wait until 2008 to begin adopting Windows Vista, Microsoft Corp.'s next upgrade of its desktop operating system.

Analyst Michael Silver said in a recent report to Gartner clients that despite the improvements planned for Vista, which is scheduled to ship by the end of next year, "users may not find them compelling enough to upgrade."

"Buyers should proceed with caution," Silver said, according to excerpts from the report sent to TechWeb by the analyst firm.

Microsoft said in a statement that the Gartner report was "balanced." "Microsoft feels that Gartner's report is balanced and also includes the 10 reasons why you should care about Windows Vista, which captures many of the innovative features in the operating system," the company said. "We've been working closely with Gartner throughout the development process and will continue to do so."

Silver went on to say that Windows Vista would offer only "incremental, evolutionary improvements" over Windows XP and Windows 2000.

"The majority of improvements that directly benefit users are security-related; however, most of this functionality is available via third-party products today," Silver said.

Gartner is recommending that Windows 2000 users plan to begin a complete migration in early 2008. Windows XP users, on the other hand, should plan to manage an environment with both operating systems, bringing in Vista on new desktops or laptops beginning in 2008.

Microsoft, based in Redmond, Wash., released Vista in beta in late July.

The company said it expects Vista to be the "largest and fastest adoption in history of any OS we've shipped." "Microsoft remains on track for shipping Windows Vista in the second half of 2006," the company said.