Microsoft is getting such a good reaction to its first Beta version of Windows 7 that it decided to remove yet another download blocker or limitation. Windows 7 Beta 1, the one that Microsoft made available to the general public earlier this month, came with two major download limitations: restricted to just 2.5 million downloads until the 24th of January. The 2.5 million restriction has been removed almost immediately after the release of the OS, and now Microsoft has declared that it will extend the deadline as well, making Windows 7 Beta 1 available for download until the 10th of February, 2009.

Communications Manager with the Windows Client Communications Team, Brandon LeBlanc explains: “Because enthusiasm continues to be so high for the Windows 7 Beta and we don’t want anyone to miss out we will keep the Beta downloads open through February 10th. Customers who have started but not completed the download process will be able to do so through February 12th. Product keys for the Windows 7 Beta will continue to be available. So if you have the Windows 7 Beta but didn’t get a product key you will be able to do so even after February 12th.”

If you did not get Windows 7 Beta 1 and would like to do so, you have two more weeks at your disposal, so make sure to download the OS before that time is up.

What does this mean for Apple and their upcoming Mac OS X 10.6, the Snow Leopard which has already been leaked to torrent sites? According to AppleInsider the two operating systems are not meant to compete one against the other; Windows 7 is meant to lure back users that decided to switch to Mac, or at least maintain the current user base while the Mac OS X is meant to draw in more and more users, especially the ones that have had it with Microsoft and their Windows-based OS.