Although Windows 11 is a free upgrade if you"re running a licensed copy of Windows 10 on your PC, Microsoft has now rolled out physical retail boxes for its brand new OS too. As spotted by Luke Blevins on Twitter (via OnMSFT), Best Buy is now selling retails boxes containing Windows 11, seven months after the OS" official launch. You can see the packaging in the graphic below:
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The Windows 11 retail box sports the Bloom wallpaper prominently. Windows 11 Home comes with a light background while Pro features a dark background. The former is priced at $139.99 while the latter carries a price tag of $199.99. These are exactly the same prices as Windows 10 Home and Pro, respectively.
If you"re wondering what the box actually contains, there"s a USB flash drive containing the installation and an activation key.
Although the vast majority of people probably won"t go through the cumbersome process of installing through physical media, the option to install Windows in this way has existed for years and there"s clearly a market for it. It is important to note that obtaining a valid license digitally costs the same as purchasing physical media, but the "benefits" you get with the latter include a complimentary USB flash drive and some nifty retail packaging.
Oh, and if you"re looking to save some money on purchasing a valid path to Windows 11, you can also take a gander at the arguably superior OS, Windows 10 Pro which is being sold for $85 on Amazon right now, this is a savings of $45. Getting this version will also grant you a valid and free upgrade path to Windows 11.
Source: Luke Blevins (Twitter) via OnMSFT