Comparing Windows Vista editions

Six editions of Windows Vista are available:

• Windows Vista Starter. This edition is intended for (and sold only in) developing technology markets. It's an inexpensive way for people in those markets to get Windows Vista.

• Windows Vista Home Basic. This edition includes key features such as integrated search tools, Windows Photo Gallery, improved security, Windows Parental Controls, and Windows Speech Recognition. It has a simpler interface than the Windows Aero user experience (which features translucent windows). It's intended for basic needs such as Internet access and e‑mail.

• Windows Vista Home Premium. This edition provides a premium home computing experience, adding the Windows Aero user experience with Windows Flip 3D navigation, Windows Media Center, Windows Movie Maker, and Windows DVD Maker. It also adds scheduled and network file backup and support for Tablet PC features.

Windows Media Center, included with Windows Vista Home Premium and Windows Vista Ultimate, allows computers with a TV tuner to record and play TV shows

• Windows Vista Business. This edition is intended for businesses of all sizes. It does not feature the media capabilities of Windows Vista Home Premium but does include the Windows Aero user experience. It also includes several features important to businesses, such as advanced backup features and Remote Desktop Collection.

• Windows Vista Enterprise. This premium business edition is available only through volume licensing to organizations covered by the Microsoft Software Assurance program.

• Windows Vista Ultimate. This edition provides a superset of all of the features of the other editions of Windows Vista, including the media capabilities of Windows Vista Home Premium and the business features of Windows Vista Business. It adds Windows BitLocker Drive Encryption to help protect data on a lost or stolen PC. Windows Vista Ultimate also offers Windows Ultimate Extras, free downloads that extend functionality or provide new features.

Whether you are a home or business user, you really need concern yourself with only a few editions, so let's start by narrowing the field a bit.

You can eliminate both Windows Vista Starter and Windows Vista Enterprise from consideration right away. Windows Vista Starter is sold only with new PCs in emerging markets and is not available at all to countries and regions with more developed technology markets, such as the United States, Canada, the European Union, Japan, and Australia. Windows Vista Enterprise is sold through volume licensing, so if your company licenses it, you'll be using it. Not much choice there.

This leaves four main editions for consideration:

• Windows Vista Home Basic

• Windows Vista Home Premium

• Windows Vista Business

• Windows Vista Ultimate

It's tempting to consider the first three of these editions (Windows Vista Home Basic, Windows Vista Home Premium, and Windows Vista Business) as roughly analogous to Windows XP Home Edition, Windows XP Media Center Edition, and Windows XP Professional. However, the disparity of features between Windows Vista Home Basic and Windows Vista Home Premium is greater than that between Windows XP Home Edition and Windows XP Media Center Edition. Windows Vista Home Basic does not include the Windows Aero user experience, Windows Mobility Center (a single place to adjust common mobile PC settings), or Tablet PC capabilities. Windows Vista Home Basic also does not include other media features such as Windows Movie Maker or Windows DVD Maker.

Windows DVD Maker, available in Windows Vista Home Premium and Windows Vista Ultimate, enables you to create DVDs of your home movies and photos

For me (and I suspect for most people), this pretty much eliminates Windows Vista Home Basic from the competition. I don't recommend it to anyone who asks, because Windows Vista Home Premium provides so many more features for a relatively small price difference. That isn't to say that Windows Vista Home Basic doesn't have its place. On low-end computers used primarily for e‑mail and Internet access, it might be an ideal choice. But if you're the type of person who likes a richer set of features, Windows Vista Home Basic is probably not for you.

And then there were three. For most people, the choice of Windows Vista editions will come down to the following:

• Windows Vista Home Premium. For the vast majority of home users, Windows Vista Home Premium is the edition of choice. It's also likely to be bundled with the majority of new desktop computers sold because most manufacturers are now invested in providing computers with Windows Media Center capabilities. This edition also offers significant mobility features and will likely be included with most mobile PCs.

• Windows Vista Business. For most business users, Windows Vista Business will be the right choice. With significant business features such as Remote Desktop Collection and the capability to connect to a domain—and without the added weight of Windows Media Center—Windows Vista Business makes a good fit for businesses of any size.

• Windows Vista Ultimate. For anyone who needs both Windows Media Center and business functionality, Windows Vista Ultimate is, well, the ultimate choice. It's also a great choice for anyone who just wants the best and is attracted to the possibility of an ever-growing list of new features through Windows Ultimate Extras. Of course, it also works well for anyone who has the money and doesn't want to worry about which features are needed. If, like me, you mostly use a single computer that has to pull business, gaming, and entertainment duties, Windows Vista Ultimate is a perfect choice.

Windows Anytime Upgrade gives people who acquire Windows Vista Home Basic, Windows Vista Home Premium, or Windows Vista Business the capability to upgrade to a more powerful edition at any time, online, for a price that should be equal to or less than what the upgrade edition would cost.

In other words, if you decide on Windows Vista Home Premium or Windows Vista Business now, and then later decide that you need the extras that Windows Vista Ultimate provides, you can simply buy a new product key online, unlock the new edition, and you're good to go.