Official XP SP3 release date still up in the air

A Microsoft spokesperson declined this afternoon to confirm reports circulating on technology blogs today citing purportedly leaked documents as saying the online release date for Windows XP Service Pack 3 will be April 29.

"We expect Windows XP SP3 to be available in 1H 2008, provided it meets our quality bar for release," stated the spokesperson, in response to BetaNews' question about the specific date.

The blog story appeared to indicate a large lag time between SP3's release through the Microsoft Update service and the release through Automatic Updates, purportedly in June. Those dates would indicate a long period of time for initial installers to make sure drivers are in working order, similar to what ended up being required for Windows Vista SP1.

The latest refresh of Release Candidate 2 of XP SP3 is still
available for download through BetaNews FileForum.