Windows 7 - Should I install 64-bit or stick with 32 when I upgrade

Ok, so I pre-ordered 7 through Amazon and paid $24.99 after applying a gift "card"!! Now my question is whether to go ahead and do the 64 bit version. I understand the memory usage capability advantage of using 64, and that i'll be doing a clean install anyway. But I'm not aware of the cons, if any, of moving to 64. Are there compatibility issues with 3rd party vendors? Are there 64-bit specific versions of freeware programs such as Comodo and Avira, Picasa photo editor, etc. Or paid programs such as Quicken?

Thanks in advance for the opinions/advice!

Murph

Hello papaSmurph, I have been using the 64bit for some time now, all the way back to the first rise of XP64 and Vista64bit. When 64bit first came on the market there where drivers issues but that have long been passes and hardware makers now have support for 64bit OSs. As for software I have yet to find something I couldn't run, Im very happy with Windows 7 64bit it runs very smooth and if I didnt know the program was 32bit or 64bit there would be no way to tell unless I open the taskmanager, it just runs seemlessly. You do need to remember the x86 apps install in the Programs(x86) folder and 64bit just install to the Programs Folder thats been the only thing big I have to remember from time to time. As for Quicken it works great I use Quicken2008 and have QuickBooks Pro2009 for my company files both work great on 64bit.

You may have some peripheral device driver issues with certain printers and certain cameras sine their manufacturers are too stupid to release x64 drivers...

Intend to upgrade from XP Pro/SP3 (32bit) to Windows 7 Pro
& my hardware is 64bit & VM capable.

Since Windows 7 will require clean install (& both 32/64 on disks)
is there any way to upgrade to 7 Pro/64bit at that time?

Does 32bit XP/VM mode compensate for most driver/compatibility
issues with older programs?

Thanks all -

If you plan on going anywhere near 4gb of RAM go 64bit. As far as drivers are concerned, Windows 7 will supply most of them, and for those that aren't you can find on the manufacturers web site. If there isn't a 64bit driver available, I have had lots of luck forcing the 32bit vista or even 32bit xp drivers without any problems.

All of your 32bit apps should work. AVs and firewalls are a little different but I can confirm that AVG, Avira, and MSE works flawlessly on 64bit.

I think comodo has working on a 64bit version, they may have a beta out already.

Yes, since you are doing a clean install when you upgrade(you have to for xp, and you have the choice to for vista) you can go from 32xp to 64 7

According to your system specs you would benefit from 64bit. I have been using Vista 64 and Windows 7 64 for over a year and have had only one driver problem with a Fax modem which was easy to fix.
You cannot directly upgrade from 32 to 64 but the extra work to reinstall your software is worth the effort.
You would rarely need XP/VM mode except for 16bit stuff.

Good luck
Ken

Well since he has XP he wouldnt be able to directly upgrade anyway. Upgrading xp to 7 requires a clean install. So since its XP, he wouldn't have any problem with going from 32xp to 64 Windows 7

As those before me have indicated go with 64 bit it is the only right way to go in today's computing world. As DarkXeno as indicated he has been 64 bit for a couple of years, and so have I, and in those pass couple of years there as been no real problems. Look at this way a great deal of us on SF are using a Win 7 64 bit, and some like me are using dual boot systems that are 64 bit (heres mine: Win 7, Vista, and OpenSuse Linux 11.2, all setup as a triple boot). So in reality you really cannot go wrong with Win 7 64 bit.

That's false You cannot use 32 bit device drivers in a 64 bit system. Period. There is no "some might work, this one did, this one didn't" etc. 32 bit device drivers will not work in a 64 bit OS.