The other day we received an email advising us that Vista was coming and suggesting we download the Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor. Vista is due to be released in January, and the smart move is to review the information. We all know eventually we won’t be able to hold onto XP and be forced to shell out money to Microsoft.
So, we tried the Vista Advisor on a Dell E1405 laptop running Windows XP Media Center Edition. It informed us that Windows Vista Home Premium appeared to be the best version for us. Home Premium is akin to XP MCE, it includes Windows Media Center.
The other flavors of Vista are Home Basic, Business, and Ultimate. Home Basic is equivalent to the current Home version. Business includes not only the advanced networking functions that are stripped out of every XP version but Pro, but extra security tools and backup. Ultimate includes all the business functions and the Premium Media functions.

The question you must ask is: Why Switch? Ultimately, as we mentioned, XP will be obsolete, fewer and fewer programs and drives will run, and we’ll feel the peer pressure. But for the early days, until it is time to replace a computer…what makes Vista worth it?

Pricewise: Home Basic will retail at $199, $99 for upgraders; Premium $239, $159 for upgraders; Business, $299, $199 for upgraders; Ultimate, $399, $259 for upgraders.

Now…you could buy a computer for these prices…not top of the line…but should your OS cost as much as the system? If you buy OEM, they will probably give you one of these options, most likely Home Basic. But for an upgrader or a builder…let’s get into more detail.

Vista overall makes useful improvements in multiple areas. The majority of XP Users log in using administrative privileges to have full access to features and thus leave themselves open to various security issues. A new feature called User Access Control allows one to log on as a standard user but perform certain tasks with enhanced privileges. This is possible under XP using the RunAs command…however its implementation is not convenient. Either way, many programs written for Windows do not properly implement their own security under the XP Security model and may not under Vista. PC Magazine noted that the feature is plagued by implementation problems and frequent popup windows that may cause users to disable it entirely, negating its point. Other security improvements include Microsoft Defender, an antispyware program and IE7 which was just released for XP.

On the useless, or at least minimally practical side of things is Windows Aero, a new graphical user interface that will require state of the art processors and graphical hardware to be able to run. It looks nice, but those who buy Home Basic won’t even get it and many power users will turn it off to avoid the performance hits.

There is more…increased search functions, new designs, and it will come out at the same time as Office 2007(Another product to dump your money on).
If you decide to buy a computer from a manufacturer before Vista is released though, note that some manufacturers as well as Microsoft itself will be offering free upgrades to Vista if you buy during the holiday season, since it was unable to release in time for the lucrative holiday sales market. For more details on the various manufacturers, click here.

In conclusion, if you get Vista…enjoy it. But it is not yet worth the investment. For those of us a bit more frugal, we will be unveiling a new category here on Gadget Wisdom…Free Software. Remember, Free does not mean bad.

We’re always looking for new and amusing items to report on, and often CrunchGear finds something simple and useful that proves that innovation is not dead.

We found this item, the True Utility Locklite…which is an LED light that affixes directly to the housekey, becoming a part of it. It is simple, elegant…and we wonder why no one has thought of it before. Unfortunately, the manufacturer is a British company, and we could not…so far find a US distributor to refer you to…the one downside.

SeekingAlpha’s Sound Money Tips is a good source for interesting advice for cost-conscious individuals. We do not always agree with their advice, but it is certainly a good starting point. Today, they present their Tips on Buying a New Desktop PC. Their three tips are…

1. Back to Basics
2. Remember Memory
3. Process This

Back to Basics advises you to avoid frills, but make sure the basics you buy are easily upgradeable. We agree that fancy components can add to the bottom line of your price, but the question is what you plan to do with the computer. Prune down the list of things you want to do with the computer to the most important, and start your design with that. You can always add extras later if the company isn’t offering a good bundle rate for them.
Remember Memory…Memory is a very easy to accomplish upgrade that most non-technicians can do themselves. It is not as delicate as CPU replacement. Remember that many PC manufacturers will give you 2 pieces of RAM to reach your total amount as it is cheaper to them than giving you one piece of the total size. Remember…sometimes it is worth a little extra to have that extra slot available for later. Obviously you should get the type of memory your computer’s motherboard uses(just remember there isn’t only one type), and while size is a consideration…memory speed can also enhance your offerings. Unlike megabytes, speed has to be the same across the chips to get the benefit.

Process This…the CPU is the heart of your computer. A program goes from your hard drive, to your RAM, to your CPU. Slowdowns at any stage can mean performance decreases, although the percentage of performance varies. Intel and AMD both have their advantages. For the last few years, AMD had outpaced Intel in the 64-bit and dual core areas, but reports indicate Intel’s new dual core offering blew AMD out of the water. However, AMD has a lower average price point.

Obviously, the issue is more complicated than that. Specific issues of processors, memory, etc will likely be addressed in future articles. For now…just remember rule of thumb if you aren’t building it yourself…never buy bottom of the barrel…always try to buy somewhere in the low-end of middle of the price spectrum at the least.

We’re always looking for new ways to improve our experience controlling our computers. Sometimes this means a trackball instead of a mouse, an ergonomic keyboard, remote control, etc.

CrunchGear brought this particular item to our attention. It is a USB Powered Knob which can be programmed to control anything from volume to fan speed. If you are interested, the PowerMate USB 1042BPMT is available through Amazon.