eWEEK content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More.
Laplink Software has announced a new release of its PCmover application, which is designed to make it easy to set up a new Windows 8 PC.
Laplink said PCmover supports all Windows 8 upgrade scenarios, whether moving to a new PC or upgrading an existing one. According to Laplink, Microsoft only provides support for a few limited scenarios and does not provide any solution for transferring applications to a new PC. Laplink’s software will be available Oct. 23; Windows 8 becomes generally available Oct. 26.
For several years, PCmover has been a hot-selling application for PC-to-PC migration that was popular for its capability to automatically move files, settings and even programs from an old PC to a new one.
“This release of PCmover sets a new standard,” Thomas Koll, Laplink’s CEO, said in a statement. “We support all transfer scenarios: upgrading an existing PC to Windows 8, restoring from a hard drive or image, or moving from an old PC to a new one. In addition, our Free Transfer Assistance, where we provide a trained professional to assist or actually perform the transfer remotely, is available 24/7. Nobody has ever made it this easy to set up a new PC.”
The Windows 8 version of PCmover is available for presale at www.laplink.com at a 50 percent discount until its official release Oct. 23, including the following editions that correspond to different user scenarios:
- PCmover Professional: Perfect for any user or situation; presale price of $29.95.
- PCmover Home: Designed to meet the needs of most consumers; presale price of $19.95.
- PCmover Windows 8 Upgrade Assistant: The only way to perform a complete upgrade of an existing PC to Windows 8; presale price of $14.95.
“Upgrading to Windows 8 will be a nightmare for many consumers,” Koll said. “PCmover will support all users with the added benefit of our new remotely assisted, phone-based Free Transfer Assistance. We want to be sure everyone has the best experience possible in their move to Windows 8.”
According to Laplink’s research on PC buyer habits, one in every five PC buyers are so concerned about the new PC setup process that they will actually put off buying a new PC. The top concern has little to do with the hardware or operating system, but rather the anxiety of how to transfer everything—including programs—from the old PC to the new one, Laplink said.
Meanwhile, for consumers, PCmover saves an entire weekend of PC setup and configuration tasks, reducing the PC setup process to just a few mouse clicks, the company said. All email, address books, pictures, music, videos, and even programs like iTunes and Microsoft Office are automatically copied over from the old PC and installed, ready-to-use, on the new PC.
For businesses, PCmover Enterprise provides IT departments the ability to manage migrations, with studies demonstrating savings of more than $300 for each PC upgraded or deployed. Migrations using PCmover for remote offices, subsidiaries and non-standard PC rollouts that do not follow standard IT processes can result in cost savings in excess of $1,000 per PC replaced or upgraded, Laplink said.
“We believe that PCmover is simply the best migration solution available,” Randy Clark, COO of Laplink, said in a statement. “But we’re committed to making it faster, better and cheaper. This new version is all of the above—and fully compatible with Windows 8.”
Overall, the new version of Laplink is faster, with improved transfer speeds and a streamlined user interface. It also features updated error-checking, a more intelligent transfer engine, and the availability of hands-on (remote-control) or over-the-phone Free Transfer Assistance. And with presale pricing available now, consumers can purchase PCmover for less than $15. Businesses will generally need PCmover Professional or Enterprise, which have multiple-license purchases available at substantially reduced pricing, the company said.