Which version of Vista is right for your ThinkPad?

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When you’re ready to order your next ThinkPad, which version of Windows Vista should you choose?

At both ends of the scale Vista Home basic is just that, very basic without the gorgeous Aero interface and let’s face it, if you’re going to have Vista, you may as well have Aero!

At the other end of the scale Vista Ultimate has all the bells and whistles you could wish for! Ultimate offers everything you could want in an operating system and has every feature Microsoft can throw at you.

The downside however is that it costs … literally!

Add Ultimate to your shopping cart and you’ve just stuck $90 on the price of your ThinkPad.

There is one clear favourite though and that’s the edition that Lenovo ships as standard with all current ThinkPad laptops from the T Series to the X300, and its Vista Home Premium.

Windows Vista Home Premium includes everything in Windows Vista Home Basic, plus the Windows Vista Aero™ and Media Center and Tablet PC capabilities.

If your ordering an ThinkPad X61 Tablet then you’ll love all the Tablet capabilities that Home premium offers, but you’ll need to get yourself a copy of OneNote!

According to IDC Research, almost 75% of all consumer PC’s shipped with Vista Home Premium in 2007. For business users though, XP pro still rules the roost, although that seems to be changing with Vista Business rising in popularity.

Most people we speak to love Vista Home Premium, but maybe that’s because they are running it on a fairly powerful ThinkPad?

Our recommendation? Go with Home Premium if you are a student, home or small business user, but if you are a business user working for a company with an established IT department, you probably wont have the choice and you will end up with XP Pro!