Win 7 HP vs Pro

Sgooter · 14 Aug 2010

My notebook PC (using Win XP) is on a home network and I can get Win7 Pro at the student discount price. I've looked at the comparison chart for the different versions of Win7, and it appears that Win7 Pro simply adds features to Win7 Home Premium. Win7 Pro seems like overkill for my student needs on a home network. So, I'm looking for the real truth here versus the sales brochures: Will I notice any less or missing features on Win7 Pro compared to using Win7 Home Premium?

Tews · 14 Aug 2010

This is a comparison list of features between the Windows 7 Starter, Home Basic, Home Premium, Professional, Ultimate, and Enterprise editions.

Compare Windows 7 Editions

Barman58 · 14 Aug 2010

Personally, I would suggest it depends on how you intend to use your PC

the additional "extras" in pro are usefull if you tend to tweak your system (GP editor is a lot easier to use than Regedit).

The major advantage is of course XPmode as you are coming from XP and you more than likely have a lot invested in XP applications, you may find some (though not Many) applications will only be usable in XP

Personally as I do not actually have to pay for my OS I went with pro over either HP or ultimate as the feature set met my needs, and is more used by clients.

Only you can decide but I would lean towards pro unless the cost difference is great

ken9122 · 14 Aug 2010

To me the main feature Pro offers over Home is to be able to backup over a network.

Ken

PeteC · 14 Aug 2010

Outside of the XP compatibility mode, I see no compelling reason to choose Win 7 Pro over Home. In fact, none of the apps that I use (on win 7 Home 64 bit) have any problem running on 32 bit compatibility mode, but some older printers and such may be easier to configure through the Win XP mode...as always, "Your mileage may vary!"

Actually, as much as I like Win 7, if I were using a notebook from Win XP vintage, I probably would not bother spending any money to upgrade it to Win 7. This notebook that I am posting from, was Vista-pre-installed, and although I very much like Win 7, outside of curiosity, there was no real burning need ot have spent the money upgrading the OS...it ran perfectly fine with Vista.

pparks1 · 14 Aug 2010

Sounds like staying on HP is the right move.

Darician · 14 Aug 2010

Really depends if you can get Pro for cheaper or not. As a student, I know they sell it pretty cheap and if you can get it at a decent price, go for it. The main difference for me is XP Mode and the fact that in Pro, you can join a domain whereas in Home Premium, you can't.

Mellon Head · 14 Aug 2010

There isn't a lot of justification to going for Pro unless you need to back up to a network device, or need XP mode. If you still have a valid XP install on the laptop, you can always dual boot with HP. That's what my wife does.

KazeNoKoe23 · 14 Aug 2010

Ask yourself these questions.

1. Do I need the ability to back up over a network?
2. Do I need Windows XP Mode for older applications or hardware that is incompatible with Windows 7?

If your answer is "no" to either one of these, then you probably don't need the Professional edition. Hope this helps. :)

pparks1 · 14 Aug 2010

KazeNoKoe23 said:

Ask yourself these questions.

1. Do I need the ability to back up over a network?
2. Do I need Windows XP Mode for older applications or hardware that is incompatible with Windows 7?

If your answer is "no" to either one of these, then you probably don't need the Professional edition. Hope this helps. :)

And you could also include

3). Do i need to be able to connect to a Windows domain?
4). Do I need the ability to remote desktop into the machine?
5). Will I ever have a need to use the group policy editor