Microsoft delays Windows Vista until 2007:

Jim Allchin, co-president of platform products and services at Microsoft, said in a conference call that the company decided to delay the consumer version of Vista because PC manufacturers required more time to test and prepare their systems.

Windows Vista was hit by quality issues that caused the release to be pushed back "a few weeks". But this prompted manufacturers to ask Microsoft to delay the consumer version until 2007 because they had insufficient time to test and prepare their systems for availability this year.

"Quality is the top-line message, and we needed just a few more weeks," said Allchin. "We will release to manufacturing and sit on the disk for the consumer launch."

Windows Vista was originally promised for the second half of 2006, but delays have plagued the operating system throughout its development.