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| Windows Vista Ultimate with SP1 | 
 enlarge | From: Microsoft Software
Category: Software
List Price: $339.99
Buy New: $87.92
You Save: $252.07 (74%)
New (76) Used (5) from $87.92
Avg. Customer Rating:  104 reviews
Sales Rank: 57
Format: Dvd-rom
Platform: Windows Vista
Media: DVD-ROM
Edition: Ultimate
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Shipping Weight (lbs): 3
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.2 x 1.6
MPN: 66R-02261
Model: 66R-02261
UPC: 882224661447
EAN: 0882224661492
ASIN: B0013O77GM
Release Date: March 19, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 An Improvement, But Beware May 1, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Usually, I live on the bleeding edge of technology, but after reading reviews that advised holding off on this one until you performed a hardware update, I held back. In retrospect that was very good advice. Those with older single core processors will not gain very much through an upgrade from Windows XP. That said, I have upgraded my system and brought its operating system up to date with Vista. There is a lot to the OS, and I cannot say that I have tested everything, but here are my observations, along with a couple of cautions to be aware of.
My copy is on DVD, so there was no disk swapping, thank you Microsoft. Installation on a fresh hard drive was smooth; I opted for a 64-bit installation that caused certain problems, but nothing that a little money couldn't solve. Caution: it is possible that not all of your old plug and play devices or add-on cards will have 64-bit drivers available (I lost my Airlink wireless network card and my Haupage WinTV PVR card).
Microsoft boasts of the upgraded security, but then I run a virus/intrusion suite anyway so I don't see much from this other than home network issues. Caution: sharing files between home network systems, while not impossible, will require that you jump through some new hoops. The graphics for the desktop have been upgraded and are indeed nice. Caution: one reason older systems should avoid the upgrade, better graphics comes with a cost in processor cycles.
I have been working with Windows since its initial release and had gotten used to accessing many of its more advanced features. Caution: on Vista I am finding the need to relearn where everything is, from access to familiar items like the control panel to digging into the registry, almost to the point of buying a secrets of Vista book just to come back up to speed.
Overall, my opinion of Vista is good, even if I do need to struggle with the above issues of replacing older hardware, reestablishing my home network and cresting the learning curve.
P-)
 An OS with some nice features, but not worth the update April 29, 2008
Once you get the box the disks come in open -- which might prove to be a challenge in itself -- Vista can be a challenge for inexperienced users to install over an exiting operating system. I got it to work eventually, but it took some doing. Once it was up and running, the software worked okay, although it has its shares of annoying quirks. (But all OS do.)
Vista has been a controversial OS ever since its release. The long and short of it is: is this an improvement over Windows XP? And in my opinion, it is not. It consumes more resources than XP -- and so will likely slow most users' systems down -- but offers no substantial improvements.
As of right now, I don't see any reason to recommend that users upgrade if they're already running XP. The advantage to Vista Ultimate over the Home version of the software is that it has some additional features. But it's still not enough to make me advocate making the change.
Do you need it? April 20, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Windows Vista has come a long way since its release, and most of the early-adopter problems are taken care of. This is also a nice package, containing both the 32- and 64-bit versions. However, you have to analyze if this is a product you'll actually be able to make use of rather than buying into the hype.
If you already have Windows XP, there is little, or no, reason to upgrade. If you're building a new PC, on the other hand, and it needs an operating system, there's probably no harm in going with Vista.
Businesses may appreciate the enhanced security features, or, then again, they may be cumbersome.
In the end, this is going to eventually be your only choice for an operating system in the commercial world. While it's basically a monopoly, at least it's a pretty decent way to run your PC life. I've been using it for a while now, and I found adjustment and acclimation quite easy.
But did I need it?
Nope.
Other caveats are that it requires a modern system. If you do not have a PC purchased in the last 2 years, or a powerhouse from 3 years ago, stick with XP, or you're going to have problems. Even some systems sold today with Vista can't handle it. 512MB of RAM is insufficient, and slower processors, even ones that ran XP just fine, will take a little longer with Vista.
 Retail version is a lot better than EOM April 18, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I really like it, and I waited for more than a year to switch from xp to vista because I heard that the early version was not stable but with this SP1 I think it's good enough and with this Vista Ultimate which all the best from vista are present from multi-media to business functions and Top of that I'll be able to do multi-OS.
Runs Flawlessly... on a Mac Pro! April 18, 2008
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
I've read the reviews, trade articles, and press on Vista. I was fully expecting the worst when I received the Ultimate edition for review. But, on my Mac Pro (2008 model), Vista has been running flawlessly. Out of the box, the installation took 25 minutes, in addition to prepping the drive via Apple's Boot Camp software. I've lived with the OS for about 30 days before writing this review.
Every device I connected was instantly recognized - my Canon digital camera, my Canon 4400F scanner, and even my Brother 2070N laser printer. I've installed Maya Unlimited as well, and it seems to launch and work fine without any issues.
The user authentication issues doesn't bother me that much - and isn't as annoying as others seem to indicate. My recommendation is to run as a User, not Admin - for security purposes.
Aero is a bit distracting, but thankfully I can revert back to the classic Windows look (and free up the GPU for more important tasks).
Don't let the hype fool you. Vista is not difficult to use - in fact, I much prefer it over Windows XP.
Perhaps running it on a Mac has something to do with it?
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