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General Software Discussion / Re: Questions re Windows 7 Starter on a Netbook
« Last post by Josh on December 13, 2009, 10:45 AM »Almost all the netbooks seem to come with Windows 7 Starter, including the Toshiba NB205, the one I'm most interested in. I'm most interested in using a netbook for the following, especially when I'm traveling:-cyberdiva (December 13, 2009, 10:36 AM)
I am the owner of a Toshiba NB205-N210 so I can provide you insight into my experiences with Windows 7 on my netbook. I am currently running Windows 7 Pro with aero enabled. I have 2GB of ram and have a fairly snappy system.
1) reading and sending email (I use Mulberry as my main email client, and Gmail for some personal email)
You should not have very many issues in this department. Most software I have found works flawlessly on W7.
3) playing large video files, some downloaded from the web and others converted from DVDs I own. I currently play most of these files with KMPlayer 2.9.4.1435. I'd definitely want to be able to continue to play these files--e.g., when I have a long plane ride. What I've read about Starter is very unclear concerning its capability to play video files. I don't care at all that it doesn't have Windows Media Center, but I do want to be sure that I can put a player such as KMPlayer on it and play the videos smoothly.
This is a touchy area as most netbooks are fairly low in power. I can play various files but when you get into HD (mkv/h264/x264) files, you will notice significant lag. Flash video lags on my netbook as well (suprise suprise). KMPlayer will throw W7 into basic mode because of the way it handles video although VLC plays video back fine in aero mode.
4) playing CDs and DVDs with an added piece of hardware such as Samsung Super-Writer Master. I don't plan to take this with me on trips, just use it for adding software or watching DVDs when I'm at home but not at my desktop.
I have not ventured into playing DVDS on my device but I will test it and let you know.
As far as which version of W7 you can run, I would say all of them. I am running Win7 comfortably on my system and it works very well. Enterprise should work without a hitch as it really adds business level functions such as domain join and a few other features. Overall, I feel you will be better suited with any edition OTHER than starter. Starter, from what I have read, limits the number of taskbar based applications you can run and eliminates certain key features which you will probably enjoy in home premium, pro and enterprise editions. I would go with home premium at a minimum.
Hope this helps
