Windows 7 Shipping Date - Sept 2009?

According to Compal (system builders for HP, Acer and others), Microsoft could be shipping Windows 7 as soon as September/October 2009. This is earlier than MS have previously suggested, with most leaked documents pointing to a 2010 release.

Quote:

Amelia Agrawal, a spokeswoman for Microsoft, maintains the official company position that Windows 7 will be available within three years of when Vista shipped. However, the company's upgrade program plans and other leaks have increasingly suggested that the public goal, which would put the release in early 2010, is deliberately conservative and meant to avoid embarrassment in the event of an unexpected delay. Microsoft has acknowledged a shortened development track that includes just one public beta and one readily available release candidate before the ship date. While Windows 7 itself has proven stable in testing, the company is believed under significant pressure to release it this year. One of the first significant declines in Windows revenue surfaced in Microsoft's most recent financial quarter as continued hesitation over Vista as well as a preference for Windows XP in netbooks have both hurt the company's core business. Windows 7 improves both performance and user interface elements, and is explicitly designed to run more smoothly on netbook-level hardware.

Get the full story at Electronista.

Does this mean we will be able to buy it once it goes to RTM? Or does it mean that big computer companies will be able to sell it with systems before the rest of us can get it?

I seem to remember something like the latter happened with Vista, but I could be mistaken