“Leading PC manufacturer Acer has accused Microsoft of ratcheting up the cost of Windows by effectively forcing consumers to opt for the Premium version of Vista,” Jon Honeyball and Barry Collins report for PC Pro.
Honeyball and Collins report, “Acer claims that the Vista Home Basic – the new entry-level Windows – is so poorly featured that consumers will simply reject it. ‘The new [Vista] experience you hear of, if you get Basic, you won’t feel it at all,’ said Jim Wong, senior corporate vice president at Acer. ‘There’s no [Aero] graphics, no Media Center, no remote control.'”
“Wong claims that the manufacturer’s licence for Vista Home Premium is 10% more expensive than for XP Home… As a result, he claims the total cost of building a PC has risen by 1-2%, which is a significant increase in such a low-margin business… Acer isn’t the first PC manufacturer to complain about the inadequacies of Vista Home Basic. Other OEMs, including Evesham Technology, have told PC Pro that they have no plans to ship that version on their PCs as they feel there will be no consumer demand,” Honeyball and Collins report.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: The whole Vista mess is a lemon. It’s Windows. Duh. When life presents you with a lemon, grab an Apple instead: Get a Mac, it’s awesome out of the box.
Other computers include software, it’s true. But once you start using that software, you find that you’re hobbled in some way or another. Software included with the Mac, on the other hand, is critically acclaimed as best in class. – Apple.
Microsoft tries to spur sales with Windows Vista coupons; eWeek says consider Apple Mac instead – October 25, 2006
The plight of the Windows sufferer prompts CNET Editor to suggest: Get a Mac – October 24, 2006
Development approaches of Mac OS X Leopard vs. Windows Vista yield very different results – August 15, 2006
Analyst: Apple’s new Mac OS X Leopard sets new bar, leaves Microsoft’s Vista in the dust – August 08, 2006
Symantec researcher: At this time, there are no file-infecting viruses that can infect Mac OS X – July 13, 2006
Sophos: Apple Mac OS X’s security record unscathed; Windows Vista malware just a matter of time – July 07, 2006
Computerworld: Microsoft Windows Vista a distant second-best to Apple Mac OS X – June 02, 2006
Analyst: Windows Vista may still impress many consumers because they have not seen Apple’s Mac OS X – January 05, 2006
I like how MDN suggests-rather blatantly-that ACER called Vista a lemon, which is a complete lie. MDN simply lifted the headline from Channel Register.
I defy anyone to find a story where ACER is quoted as saying Vista is a lemon.
DPTK, “Lemon” IS the wrong term. The correct term is “Bait and Switch”!
“Know what? I might use that Basic edition on a Intel mini just for a Windows app that will never be ported that I need for some business tasks at the bank my company has its accounts..”
no you won’t. the basic versions don’t do emulation. or at least MS has said as much. the license requires that you have the pro for that.
cool, huh…..
“Acer claims that the Vista Home Basic – the new entry-level Windows – is so poorly featured that consumers will simply reject it.”
In other words, its a lemon.
Acer: Implies that Microsoft’s Windows Vista Home Basic is a lemon.
Too wordy for a headline.
@To Macromancer
What about “weird”, “leisure”, “height”, “seize”, “forfeit” (I’m sure there are more).
I always hated that crazy I before E rule
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“Leading PC manufacturer Acer”? Leading who?
Richb :
XP Home is perfectly adequate where it is meant to be used – in the home. It does the job for gaming and other standard uses, albeit in typical Windows dysfunctional style. There is no sense in doling out more money than neccesary for any MS crap. I can’t wait for Vista to come out. It should be good for lots of laughs.
@ cubert: nope that is not me.
Although I do develop some minimal software for my own needs.
Considering what Windows Vista can and should be called, calling Windows Basic a lemon seems to be a rather mild disparagement.
Windows Vista-Basic…..XP SP 2.1
I bet the free coupons are for Vista Home Basic.
Suckers!
@ LorD 1776>
Well, leading Apple on a global basis for a start with around 3.45 million CPU units shipped in the last quarter and the number four player all in all.
But let’s focus on getting the real message out there to potential switchers: Vista Home Basic is nothing more than XP SP2 ½ (that’s 2.5 in case it doesn’t come out correctly) and – to get the full XP SP3 experience – you have to get Vista Home Premium at the minimum.
they have no plans to ship that version on their PCs as they feel there will be no consumer demand
There won’t be consumer demand, but there very likely will be retailer demand.
Think about it. Fine stores like Best Buy and Wal-Mart (heh) make their money on up-selling. And what better upsell than a Vista update for a new Vista PC?
I bet the free coupons are for Vista Home Basic.
Of course. The same way Gates Foundation contributions are often to be used for the purchase of MS software (gee thanks guys). When it comes to MS, the only free things are headaches.
Vista update, upgrade, whatever.
We should thank Microsoft for Vista. Not only will OS X pull Windows sheep into the Mac corral, but Vista will be kicking them in the ass to keep them moving – baaaaaaaahhhh!
@If Only: Evesham Technology are deservedly one of the UK’s biggest Windows PC manufacturers – heck, when I HAD to get a Windows laptop for part of my work, I bought one of theirs. They mostly (maybe even exclusively) sell direct to the customer, not via retailers – so for them to say this is significant.
I think I could Shen, after all I really don’t like the idea of emulating Windows inside OS X, I would only run that crap on another partition through Boot Camp…
For that bank app I only need the basic Windows functionality (just their dlls to install and run a VB app) and IE7 (IE6 would do but I guess Vista will come loaded with IE7).
Can anyone say Windows ME II? (Pun severely intended)
Good idea: give the pc manufacturers Panther and tell their customes to go Mac to get Leopard!
Classic.
Erm, since when is Acer a “leading PC manufacturer?”
As a recent switcher, one of the things that I love about my Apple is that Mac OS X comes in only desktop flavor: “The Best.”
No Mac user has a handicapped version.
to the two of you not following (blucaso, loganson), the 256/3app limit is for Vista Starter, not Vista Home Basic
Vista Home Basic is pretty much the equivalent for XP Home. and it doesnt have the free upgrade coupon, that’s for Home Premium and Business version (Home Basic is a half-off coupon)