I just got this little notebook and it came with Win 8.1. So far, despite all the negatives I've heard out there, it's actually not that bad. I find I can get around easily and it's not that much of a learning curve from Win 7. On the negative side, this install didn't come with any default games but there's a lot of "try and buy ware" from the manufacturer and other 3rd parties. I'm working on uninstalling all that garbage. Other than that, 8.1 feels like a lighter footprint than 7 or Vista.

With win8 I'm in the boat you were when win7 came out.
I love my win7 and will not switch to win8.
I had two win8 laptops in my hands to repair and all I could say was wtf?

Touch wood but mine is functioning flawlessly. I hear they downgrade gracefully to Win 7 but of course you have to buy the new license and you have to do a full format/install.

I have Win8 and keep getting reminders that 8.1 is available for download. Now if this was Ubuntu or another Linux distro, I wouldn't hesitate to download because I wouldn't have to worry about losing any files or apps. After reading on some Win8 forums about what a user has to go through to prepare for downloading/installing 8.1, I don't think I want to take a chance.

laffin... I did the 8.1 download as soon as I opened the laptop for the first time. Your best to do it on a fresh install.