Vista Business, Home Basic or XP Pro

I have a new Dell Vostro that is coming with Vista Home Basic and I am wondering from the stand point of battery life and power features, is it worth it to use Business or XP pro?

 

Microsoft claims that there is improved battery life under Windows Vista than XP. (Of course they said that about almost every Windows release that was designed with laptops in mind ) I would say that they are about the same with XP being just a little bit better.

 

XP Pro > Vista Basic ~= Vista Business

XP just does not need as much CPU or GPU processing power, so it will use less in most circumstances. Basic and Business will have about the same battery life if the laptop is programmed to turn off Aero while on battery power.

 

Business/XP Pro > Home Basic (you can turn off the Aero in Business and still have the good security features of Vista Business)

 

Yea, Home Basic really reeks. Don't get it, Business edition has a lot more in it.

 

I am trying to decide which one I am wanting to install. Home Basic offers no sort of battery managment but it's the defualt installation that comes with the laptop and I might like some of the media stuff that would disappear with the installtion of a different OS. Should I do it anyways? I have the option of either/or. due to my college degree program program

 

I agree with SmoothTofu-If you plan to get Vista and only have the option between Home Basic and Business, just get Business. It's better all around with Complete PC Backup, the Aero interface, and Fax support.

 

Unless you have the need to join a domain, Vista Home Premium is a logical choice for most users.

 

I actually have the laptop ordered with the Vista Home, but I am thinking that I can forgo some of the default features that come with it and just install business over it. Is it possible to "upgrade" form one version to the next, or should I just format and do a clean install? I might use the vlite installer and create a smaller ISO and install from that and strip out unneeded things like Aero.

 

True, but I don't think that's offered on the Vostro. Domain joining is a somewhat useful feature at colleges - it allows you to access files on the university's servers from your own computer, but really isn't necessary if you've got a nice flash drive and access to university computers at any time should you forget to copy a file to your flash drive.

All other things equal, I'd choose Vista Business over Vista Basic, but I wouldn't pay the standard $100 extra for it. In terms of ease of adjustment of battery life settings, Vista wins over XP - it's pretty ease to change settings such as when to power down the hard drives and processor, after how long to turn off the screen, etc., but resources usage is also higher than XP in general. In terms of features, AFAIK, XP Pro and Vista Business are quite similar. In the end it comes down to whether you are willing to try the latest, or want to stick with the tried and true XP.

 

There is always the source for comparisons.

 

Overall, Vista Biz certainly has the most features of the three. However, Home Premium has the most multimedia features of the three. It kind of depends on what features you're interested in. Have a look at the feature chart on this page: http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase/winvista_editions_final.asp

If you just don't like Vista, then get XP Pro. (Although Vista Biz may give you XP Pro downgrade rights... you could look into that if you're interested.)

Vista Home Basic is a money-saver if you don't need very many features.

 

I'd say go with XP Pro.

 

vista home premium...eventually this will be the way to go...most pcs and laptops are being made with a Vista OS, but some still offer the XP option