Product Description

Windows Vista Home Premium makes finding information, staying connected, and interacting with your PC easier and more secure. Using, organizing, and sharing photos, video, TV programs, and music becomes a part of your everyday life. With Windows Vista Home Premium, balancing your checkbook, doing homework, watching a movie, listening to music, or playing a game is a better and more enjoyable experience.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1534 in Software
• Brand: Microsoft
• Model: 66I-00003
• Released on: 2007-01-30
• Platforms: Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Vista Home Basic
• Format: CD
• Dimensions: 8.00" h x 2.00" w x 6.00" l, 3.00 pounds

Features

• User-friendly software combines the features of Windows Vista Home Basic with even more impressive and user-friendly capabilities
• Features Windows Aero, an efficient and visually stunning interface that makes it easier to accomplish multiple tasks at once by providing a three-dimensional, real-time, animated view of all of your open applications, and documents
• By integrating search throughout the operating system, helps you quickly find and organize large collections of documents, pictures, movies, videos, and music
• Includes Windows Tablet and Touch Technology that enables you to interact with your Tablet PC-compatible computer with a digital pen or your fingertip instead of having to use a keyboard
• Upgrade from your current edition of Microsoft Windows XP or Windows 2000 (including Windows XP Professional, Windows XP Home, Windows XP Media Center, Windows XP Tablet PC, Windows XP Professional x64, Windows 2000)

Amazon.com
The Windows Vista Home Premium Upgrade DVD-ROM makes finding information, staying connected, and interacting with your PC easier and more secure. Whether you use your PC organizing and sharing photos, watching videos and TV programs, balancing your checkbook, doing homework, or listening to music, Windows Vista Home Premium makes it easy to enjoy your computing time. An ideal operating system for homes with advanced computer needs, Windows Vista Home Premium combines the features of Windows Vista Home Basic with even more impressive and user-friendly capabilities. It will help you use your laptop or desktop PC more effectively as well as enable you to take advantage of cutting-edge digital entertainment experiences--all with the benefit of added security and reliability.

Windows Sidebar gives you quick access to gadgets like picture slide shows, Windows Media Player controls, or news headlines. You pick the gadgets you want to see in Windows Sidebar. View larger.

Use Flip 3D to navigate through open windows using the scroll wheel on your mouse. View larger.

Compare Windows Vista editions.

Use Instant Search to quickly find the information you need. View larger.

Windows Vista Aero provides spectacular visual effects such as glass-like interface elements that you can see through.

The redesigned Windows Media Center in Windows Vista lets you enjoy your media throughout your home, even on your Xbox 360. View larger.

Update Eligibility
You can upgrade from your current edition of Microsoft Windows XP or Windows 2000 (including Windows XP Professional, Windows XP Home, Windows XP Media Center, Windows XP Tablet PC, Windows XP Professional x64, Windows 2000) to a corresponding or better edition of Windows Vista by purchasing and installing this upgrade copy of Windows Vista. Depending on which edition of Windows you are running and the edition of Windows Vista you would like to install, you have two options for the installation process: You can upgrade in-place, which means you can install Windows Vista and retain your applications, files, and settings as they were in your previous edition of Windows or you can do a clean install. If you are currently using Windows 2000 Professional or Windows XP Professional x64, you are eligible for an upgrade copy to a corresponding or better edition of Windows Vista, but a clean install is required. For versions of Windows earlier than Windows 2000, upgrade copies are not available. These earlier versions of Windows require you to install a full copy of Windows Vista.

Breakthrough Windows Vista Experience
Designed to help you feel confident in your ability to view, find, and organize information and to control your computing experience, all editions of Windows Vista introduce a breakthrough user experience. The visual sophistication of Windows Vista helps streamline your computing experience by refining common window elements so you can better focus on the content on the screen rather than on how to access it. The desktop experience is more informative, intuitive, and helpful. And new tools bring better clarity to the information on your computer, so you can see what your files contain without opening them, find applications and files instantly, navigate efficiently among open windows, and use wizards and dialog boxes more confidently.

Innovative User Interface
Windows Vista Home Premium has a new user interface named Windows Aero, which is both efficient and visually stunning. This new interface makes it easier than ever before to find your way around the operating system; it even makes it a snap to accomplish multiple tasks at once by providing a three-dimensional, real-time, animated view of all of your open applications and documents. Additionally, Windows Vista Home Premium helps you quickly find and organize large collections of documents, pictures, movies, videos, and music. By integrating search throughout the operating system, this software helps you quickly find exactly what you are looking for.

Improved Mobility
Windows Vista Home Premium makes it easy to take your home computing experience with you wherever you go. For example, the system includes Windows Tablet and Touch Technology that enables you to interact with your Tablet PC-compatible computer with a digital pen or your fingertip instead of having to use a keyboard. Computers that include Windows Vista Home Premium and an auxiliary Windows SideShow display will also allow you to access key data even when your computer is off. You'll even be able to share files between other PCs in your household and to manage your laptop computer settings to more securely connect to your favorite Wi-Fi hotspot.

More Entertainment Options
Windows Vista Home Premium has the power to improve every aspect of your digital entertainment experiences, including viewing and sharing photos, video, TV, movies, music, games, and more. For example, you can create your own DVDs and edit your own high-definition movies. The most exciting news, however, is that Windows Vista Home Premium includes all of the Windows Media Center capabilities for turning your PC into an all-in-one home entertainment center so you can enjoy your music, photos, and DVD movies. You can also use Windows Media Center to record and watch your favorite TV shows (even HDTV) and to access new kinds of online entertainment content. You will also be able to connect Windows Vista Home Premium to your Microsoft Xbox 360 to extend your Media Center experience to multiple rooms in your home.

From the Manufacturer
Here it is: the preferred edition of Windows for home desktop and mobile PCs. Windows Vista Home Premium delivers more productivity and entertainment at home and on the go--making it easy to enjoy digital photos, music, TV, and movies with Windows Media Center, while providing a whole new level of security and reliability on home and mobile PCs. Windows Vista Home Premium will take your home computing to a whole new level of enjoyment.

Note: This is a Windows Vista Home Premium Upgrade DVD-Rom.

Get Things Done More Easily and Intuitively
It starts with a breakthrough design that makes your PC easier to use every day. With Windows Aero you'll experience dynamic reflections, smooth gliding animations, transparent glass-like menu bars that let you see behind windows, and visual ways to switch between your open windows in a three-dimensional layout. And, with instant desktop search capabilities and powerful ways to organize and visualize your information, you can instantly find and use the e-mails, documents, photos, music, and other information you need.

Better Protection than with Any Previous Version of Windows
Windows Vista Home Premium also helps keep your personal information, your PC, and your family computing experience safer than in previous versions of Windows. With Windows Internet Explorer 7, Windows Vista Home Premium includes automated defenses against malicious software and fraudulent websites so you can use your PC online with greater confidence. Windows Vista Home Premium also provides automatic backup of your files, such as your priceless digital photos, music, movies, documents, and other files, so you can relax and focus on the things you care about most. And, by using the built-in parental controls, parents can help ensure their children's computer use is appropriate and safer.

Enjoy Home Entertainment in a Whole New Way
A major advance in Windows Vista Home Premium is the dramatically improved digital entertainment experience. Windows Media Center makes organizing and enjoying photos, music, DVDs, recorded TV, and home movies easier and more fun. Enjoy the entertainment on your PC or even on your TV in the living room with an Xbox 360 wirelessly networked to your PC. Windows Vista Home Premium also enables you to easily burn your photo slide shows and home movies to a professional-looking video DVD so you, your friends, and your family can watch them on a DVD player or PC whenever you like. Combined with unbeatable support for gaming and music, Windows Vista Home Premium takes your home entertainment to the next level.

Stay Productive and Entertained with Your Mobile PC
If you prefer to use a PC that keeps up with you while you're on the go, then you'll appreciate how Windows Vista Home Premium helps you get the most from your mobile PC. It provides simplified power management, easier wireless networking, and streamlined ways to sync with the devices that keep you connected. You can even draw and write by hand on a Tablet PC, and enjoy all of your entertainment through Windows Media Center when you're on the road, in a coffee shop, or relaxing on the couch. Mobile computing has never been like this before.

Simplified Setup and Maintenance
Finally, Windows Vista Home Premium makes it easier than ever to set up your new PC with features that easily transfer all of your data and settings from your old PC to your new one. What's more, you can have more peace of mind for years to come with technology that keeps your system running quickly and reliably over time.

Whether you're balancing your checkbook, studying for school on your mobile PC, watching a downloaded or recorded movie at home, or sharing your favorite photos with friends on a custom DVD, the experience is much better on a PC running Windows Vista Home Premium.

Features in Windows Vista Home Premium

Easier

• Windows Aero--features stunning visual effects, including helpful animations, transparent glass menu bars, and live thumbnail previews of open programs.
• Windows Flip 3D--enables you to dynamically flip through your open programs in a three-dimensional, stacked view.
• Instant Search--integrated throughout Windows Vista.
• Internet Explorer 7--includes web searching right from the browser and tabbed browsing.
• Windows Sidebar and gadgets--bring real-time information directly to your desktop.

• Windows Defender--helps safeguard your PC against pop-ups and security threats.
• Dynamic security protection--helps you browse the web more securely.
• Anti-phishing technology--helps protect you from fraudulent websites that attempt to steal your personal information.
• Internet Explorer protected mode--helps prevent unwanted malicious software downloads.
• Parental Controls--manage the rules for your children's computer use including web access and games.

• Windows Media Center--enjoy your entire digital entertainment library on your PC or television.
• Windows DVD Maker--burn your photo slide shows and home movies to DVD.
• Extend Windows Media Center--enjoy your digital entertainment on TVs throughout your home with an Xbox 360 or other media extender.
• Games for Windows--are available on your PC or online for every age and ability
• DirectX 10--enables Windows Vista to run the latest, most graphically advanced PC games in the market.
• Windows Games Explorer--helps you install, manage, and enjoy all of your games in one easy-to-access location.
• Three new premium games--includes Mahjong Titans, Chess Titans, and InkBall.
• Windows Movie Maker--helps you capture, edit, and publish your digital home movies in standard or high-definition format.
• Windows Media Player 11--new features are designed to help you manage your library of digital music, photos, and video and synch with a variety of portable players.

• Fast Sleep and Resume--Pause and resume your computer session in just seconds while conserving your battery life in sleep mode.
• Network and Sharing Center--helps you more easily and securely connect to wireless networks.
• Windows Mobility Center--saves time by giving you quick access to key mobile system settings.
• Windows Meeting Space--helps you wirelessly connect your mobile PC to a friend's PC for sharing files--even when you're not connected to the Internet.
• Sync Center--helps keep your portable devices synchronized with your PC.
• Touch screen technology--allows you to express yourself more naturally and more personally with a Tablet PC.

Customer Reviews

Windows
Had a problem with the Product Key,
Could not register this copy of Windows Vista upgrade,
Had to exchange it,

maybe it's me
I do not know if it is me or not however my Intel Pentium 4 w/ HT according to HP is supposed to not only be set up for Vista, but is also supposed to run the 64 bit version. Maybe I did not load the program properly.

A fine upgrade, not great
I'm blown away by the number of "less than accurate" statement made by people here. I'm especially blown away by the Mac Users who come here to say bad things about a product that they don't even use. When OS X came out there were plenty of problems with compatibility because OS X was a completely different system from System 9 for the Mac. Yet most people have decided it was a good move for Apple.

Vista is like that but it maintained much better backwards compatibility than OS X did. The problem is that Microsoft has 15 times as many users, so when a small percentage have problems, it still looks like a lot of people. Simply because a LOT of people use Windows.

Having used Vista Home Premium for a year now I can say that the product works very well. I dual booted with XP for a month to make sure I was happy with Vista before switching permanently. In that time I found that most of the claims that Vista was buggy and performed badly were false.

The two biggest reasons that people have had problems with Vista are:

1) Not enough RAM, Vista needs a minimum of 1GB of RAM and should have at least 2GB.

2) NVidia graphics drivers. The early drivers from NVidia were horrible and caused numerous problems for people, especially gamers.

I personally never put together a system these days with less than 2GB of RAM, and I am an ATI graphics card user, so neither of these problems plagued me. If you knew these things going into Vista, you would be a lot happier.

Today it seems that MS and NVidia have straightened out most of the problems with the Drivers. So unless you are buying a system without sufficient RAM, Vista is a fine upgrade. Not great, but great upgrades are very rare in the modern software world.