Microsoft is bringing back its ugly sweaters for the holiday season. After taking a break for 2024, the company has an “Artifact” holiday sweater with lots of retro iconography, an even uglier Zune brown option, and even a green Xbox version.
Clippy was the star of Microsoft’s ugly sweater in 2022, and the Artifact option this year puts the paperclip at the center, surrounded by MSN, Minesweeper, Internet Explorer, MS-DOS, and plenty of Windows logos. The Zune brown holiday sweater has a play button that I really hope lights something up. Both the Artifact and Zune sweaters are available for $79.95, and the Xbox sweater can be pre-ordered for $59.95.
Microsoft first started sending out ugly sweaters to Windows fans in 2018, and then sold them to customers from 2020 onwards. For some reason the software maker didn’t ship an ugly sweater in 2024, but this year’s sweaters can be purchased through Microsoft’s online company store or its brick and mortar version in Redmond, Washington. Microsoft will also have its holiday sweaters available at its Microsoft store (experience center) in New York City.