Most Popular Windows

  1. Windows Vista Ultimate
  2. Windows Vista Home Premium
  3. Microsoft Vista Home Basic
  4. Windows Mobile 6
  5. Windows 7 prebeta (build 6801)
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Top Rated Windows

  1. Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional
  2. Microsoft Windows XP - Professional
  3. Microsoft Windows XP - Home Edition
  4. Microsoft Small Business Server 2003
  5. Windows Vista Ultimate
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overview
overview

THE GOOD
Windows Vista Ultimate does improve some features within Windows XP; fewer system crashes than Windows XP; Windows Vista offers better built-in support options.

THE BAD
Windows Vista Ultimate does not put Search on the desktop (it's buried within applications, within the Start Menu); optimized only for the Microsoft Windows ecosystem (for example, RSS feeds from Internet Explorer 7 get preferential treatment); there's simply too much and not all of it is implemented properly; no new software yet written exclusively for Windows Vista; and there are too many editions of Windows Vista.

THE BOTTOM LINE
Windows Vista is essentially warmed-over Windows XP. If you're currently happy with Windows XP SP2, we see no compelling reason to upgrade. On the other hand, if you need a new computer right now, Windows Vista is stable enough for everyday use.

Go to the Full CNET Product Review »
Copyright © 2008 CNET Networks, Inc., a CBS Company. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
 
Average CNET Reader Rating: 4.9 out of 10

CNET Reader Reviews

  1. January 25, 2007 06:31

    3.0/5
    I have the business version of Vista and have been running it for about a month now. I did a clean install just to make sure there were no remnants of XP. Installation was very smooth and took about 40 minutes.

    First the good: I really like ...  read more »

    - Silver-Surfer57

  2. January 24, 2007 10:03
    Terrible
    0.5/5
    Vista has an 11GB install size, compared to 2GB with XP it should be 5 times better or more secure right? Wrong. Vista is really the worst thing since ME. I don't know about you, but I like to try out new software every once and a while. When I tr...  read more »

    - bb2012

  3. January 14, 2007 11:21
    Terrible
    0.5/5
    Windows vista is like some Frankenstein creation between OSX and windows XP. As expected the results are not good. While the new look is much better that the blue windows of XP, it is still very ugly compared to OSX. The effects is nice, but for peo...  read more »

    - mrpiddly1


All CNET Reader Reviews (460)

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