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Don't be in a hurry to upgrade, experts say

Roger Fillion, Rocky Mountain News

Published January 29, 2007 at midnight

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Should you rush out and buy Vista?

Not necessarily, experts say.

Most argue the new bells and whistles aren't worth the price. Vista can cost hundreds of dollars, depending on the version.

Experts suggest instead you wait until you need to buy a new computer, one that comes preloaded with the new Microsoft operating system.

"I'm hard-pressed to come up with any examples of consumers who should upgrade to Vista immediately," says Christopher Null, Yahoo! Tech's adviser.

Null concedes that Vista - at least visually - offers more "eye candy" and "looks a lot more modern" than previous Microsoft operating systems.

But, he adds: "My advice is to wait as long as you possibly can before you upgrade. And don't do it until you buy a new PC with it already installed."

Why wait?

For starters, experts say, waiting will give Microsoft time to flush out bugs or kinks that might surface after Vista's initial rollout.

Owners of older computers, particularly those older than 18 months, also may want to wait.

Experts say the older PCs and laptops aren't capable of easily handling all the memory that Vista consumes.

The upshot: Your computer will run more slowly.

"It's going to be quite a bit of a hog as far as resources go on your computer," says Brandon Hamilton, founder of Rocky Mountain Tech Team, a Boulder provider of information technology services.

"It's a pretty powerful piece of software," adds Hamilton, who's been running a demo version.

Experts say new computers bought within the past six months should be more suitable.

Look for a sticker saying the model is "Vista Capable" or "Premium Ready," meaning the computer is capable of running the Home Basic version of Vista or perhaps the Premium or Ultimate versions.

Here's another way to look at it: Make sure you have at least 1 gigabyte of RAM, or perhaps even 2 gigabytes.

But there are people out there who may want to upgrade. Who?

Those of you who must have all things new, or so-called early adopters.

Gadget freaks who love listening to music on their iPod or MP3 player or who like to download photos from their digital camera also may be Vista candidates.

"Those people will get a lot out of it," says Jeremy Kaplan, executive editor of PC Magazine. "It's going to be easier for all those things to work smoothly."

Kaplan likes Vista because the search function for scouring your computer or the Internet is easier to find. He also says Vista is more secure from outside threats such as viruses.

But what if you're the type of person who uses their computer merely to send e-mail or surf the Internet. Does it pay to upgrade?

"If that's all you really want to do," says Kaplan, "there's no reason to go out and get this extra functionality."

Upping the score

- Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James will make cameo appearances in Microsoft commercials that will begin airing Tuesday.

Predicting a windfall

• Friedman, Billings & Ramsey Co. estimates that Vista will boost Windows revenue to $16.3 billion in 2007 (the calendar year, not Microsoft's fiscal year) from $12.4 billion in 2006.

What you need to run the software

Vista is a much bigger software program than its predecessors and requires more hard-disk space and processing power.

That means some Vista versions necessitate PCs with high-performance components, such as souped-up graphics cards.

And that means consumers might need to buy a more expensive computer rather than attempt to upgrade an old one.

• A PC needs at least 1 gigabyte of memory to run Vista Premium. The current average selling price of a 1-gigabyte notebook computer is $883, while a notebook with about half that memory costs about $567, according to the most recent research from Current Analysis Inc.

• But customers should really opt for 2 gigabytes of memory, for an average sale price of $1,228, says Sam Bhavnani, an analyst with Current Analysis, to get the best Vista experience.

• Consumers who install Vista on their old PC instead of buying a new computer may face challenges. Just getting the software onto a computer can be troublesome, analysts say. If something goes wrong during the installation, it's possible that old data stored on the PC may become corrupted.

Predicting a windfall

• Friedman, Billings & Ramsey Co. estimates that Vista will boost Windows revenue to $16.3 billion in 2007 (the calendar year, not Microsoft's fiscal year) from $12.4 billion in 2006.Which version is for you?

• Home Basic:Designed for home computer users. It includes the improved security and search functions but leaves out the new Aero interface and the Media Center and Tablet functions. Likely to be preloaded on low-price PCs. $199 new, $99.95 to upgrade

• Home Premium: Designed for home computer users who need advanced computing functionality. The version most consumers will likely want to use. Includes the Aero interface and several digital entertainment features. Incorporates Windows Media Center and Windows Tablet, no longer available as separate products. Preloaded on most midrange and some high-end PCs. $239 new, $159 to upgrade

• Ultimate: Designed for telecommuters and others who need to connect to a business network. Includes all features available to both business and home users. A good choice for those who need particular network configurations in order to work from home. Likely to be preloaded on high-end PCs. $399 new, $259 to upgrade

• Business: Designed to help businesses of all sizes manage their IT functions. Includes Aero as well as several functions to better enable mobile computing. $299 new, $199 to upgrade

• Enterprise: Designed to help global organizations and enterprises with complex IT infrastructures. In other words, it's not designed for general consumer use. Only available through volume licensing.Of note

• Apple's Mac OS X operating system already includes many of the most visible upgrades in Vista. Mac OS X was upgraded in 2005; it debuted in 2001. Apple's next operating system, the Leopard, is scheduled for release in the spring.

What you need to run the software

Vista is a much bigger software program than its predecessors and requires more hard-disk space and processing power.

That means some Vista versions necessitate PCs with high-performance components, such as souped-up graphics cards.

And that means consumers might need to buy a more expensive computer rather than attempt to upgrade an old one.

• A PC needs at least 1 gigabyte of memory to run Vista Premium. The current average selling price of a 1-gigabyte notebook computer is $883, while a notebook with about half that memory costs about $567, according to the most recent research from Current Analysis Inc.

• But customers should really opt for 2 gigabytes of memory, for an average sale price of $1,228, says Sam Bhavnani, an analyst with Current Analysis, to get the best Vista experience.

• Consumers who install Vista on their old PC instead of buying a new computer may face challenges. Just getting the software onto a computer can be troublesome, analysts say. If something goes wrong during the installation, it's possible that old data stored on the PC may become corrupted.

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