So you’ve done it. You’ve consulted with your spouse, your lawyer, your priest, and your therapist and you’ve decided to ditch XP for the wide open fields and OSXivity that is Windows Vista. And you’ve even chosen which flavor you want. But when upgrading one Windows OS to another, the nagging question has always been: clean install or upgrade the current install? In the past, a clean install always made for a more stable, faster system with less legacy bloat. A clean install, however, would also mean re-downloading and re-configuring all of your favorite applications, if they even worked with the new OS. It’s not an easy choice to make, but fortunately the people at Extreme Tech have done some of your homework and put together a shoot-out between Vista as an upgrade or Vista as a clean install, and the results are surprising. → Read More
If you’re one of the many who are interested by the idea of Windows Vista but are hesitant to take the $400+ plunge without back-up, then look to your local CompUSA for a safety net. The national computer retail chain is guaranteeing that you’ll love Windows Vista, or you get your money back. In addition, the techs will re-install your former OS free of charge if you’re not simply tickled pink. Of course, you must pay to have its technicians install it for you, and your hardware must meet certain minimum criteria, but if all of this is OK with you, then the $50 premium for the piece of mind should seem like a bargain. Of course, if your computer needs to have some upgrades to properly run Vista (as most will), CompUSA is more than happy to sell you the parts and service to make sure your computer is ready for the OS. CompUSA Guarantees Vista Experience of Money Back [BusinessWire] → Read More
We all know that China cares very little for our silly copyright laws, and that is illustrated nicely with these black-market knock-offs of Windows Vista that have hit the streets of Beijing. Instead of paying $400 for a copy of the latest, resource-hungry version of Microsoft’s flagship product, you can get a “Frankenbuild” version on the street for less than $3, including realistic-looking packaging. Frankenbuilds are versions of the OS that combine different portions of different test builds into a (theoretically) close approximation of the final build of the software. These versions are buggy as all hell, but at less than the cost of a Whopper, that’s to be expected. The Chinese government tends to look the other way when confronted with semi-piracy like this, as it has no love for Microsoft. That attitude is shaping up to be a major trade barrier between itself and the USA, though China’s argument that the average Chinese citizen can’t afford Microsoft’s prices seems to be a valid one, when at upwards of $500 for a fully-loaded version of Vista, the average American can’t, either. In China, you can purchased pirated DVDs and CDs for about one dollar, in shops and with street vendors [Steve W Designs] → Read More
While I’m not a fan of Windows, let’s give it up to Samsung for introducing their two new widescreen monitors with Windows Vista certification. Yes that’s right I said Windows Vista certification. These beauties come in 20 and 22 inch models (CX206BW and CX226BW) with a sassy black high-gloss piano finish to rev up there new Syncmaster LCD series. Details are skimp but we do know this much, contrast ratio is 3000:1 with 2ms response time. They’ll set you back about $400 and $475 respectively. Samsung Vista LCD’s [AVING] → Read More
The word around the blogosphere is that tomorrow, November 8, 2006, will be the day that the retail and OEM versions of Vista will finally start marching down the assembly lines, but ZD-Net asks a fairly poignant question: just because Vista has “gone gold”, does that mean it’s ready for prime time? The November 8 start of manufacture will ensure the ship window of “early next year,” but this is just the core Vista, there is still the Ultimate Extra Add-ons package, which will be put together manually. In addition, there will of course be copious updates, as, ya know, it’s Windows. But at least there’s movement. Go, Redmond, go! With Vista, what does “done” really mean? [ZD-Net blogs] → Read More
Well with all the gripes circulating about Windows Vista, it’s about time we got some prices. These prices became available through a fluke in the Microsoft Canada page. So keep in mind that these prices are CDN and that there isn’t really any telling whether or not the US cost will be at all similar. Assuming they are, however, the price of this new OS are going to be as ridiculous as the rest of it: FULL versions (all prices Canadian) Windows Vista Ultimate $499 Windows XP Professional w/SP2 $429 Windows Vista Business $379 Windows Vista Home Premium $299 Windows Vista Home Basic $259 Windows XP Home w/SP2 $259 UPGRADE versions (all prices Canadian) Windows Vista Ultimate Upgrade $299 Windows XP Professional w/SP2 Upgrade $259 Windows Vista Business Upgrade $249 Windows Vista Home Premium Upgrade $199 Windows Vista Home Basic Upgrade $129 Windows XP Home w/SP2 Upgrade $129 Just to give you an idea, if the only factor to consider was the Canadian vs. US price differential, the Windows Vista Ultimate would cost $449USD. Yikes. Vista prices revealed! [ZDNet] → Read More
