Windows 8 PCs Show Up Early On HSN Website

Windows 8 is still weeks away with an official launch date of October 26, but that didn't stop one shopping website from posting up new Windows 8-equipped laptops from the likes of Gateway and Acer. The Home Shopping Network (HSN) apparently put up the laptops for sale on purpose, saying that all five models are ready for shipping when ordered.

It's no doubt that these new machines are, in fact, equipped with Windows 8 and aren't just eligible for upgrades. Even the keyboards show the updated Windows 8 logo on the Windows key, as well as accompanying Windows 8 stickers on the edges. Also, just like with any OEM Windows PC in the past, it looks like these Windows 8 machines will see their fair share of bloatware.

All five PCs listed have 60-day trials to both Microsoft Office 2010 and Norton Internet Security Suite, as well as Nero 12 Essentials and CyberLink PowerDVD. They also have a handful of the manufacturer's own offerings, such as respective Games apps, backup and recovery software, and cloud storage solutions.

All five machines are still listed on the HSN website as of this writing, but it appears that all the images are dead when you click on an individual computer. It turns out that Microsoft has confirmed these Windows 8 machines listed on HSN are unauthorized listings, and all Windows 8-based PCs won't officially go on sale until October 26th. We're curious to see if anyone who ended up ordering one of these machines on HSN will receive it before the official launch date, but our guess is that HSN will cancel all of its orders.

[via ZDNet]