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Acer VP trashes Vista Home Basic
Acer, the world's fourth largest PC manufacturer, says Microsoft is effectively forcing consumers to pay for the pricier Vista Premium because Vista Home Basic isn't any good. "The new [Vista] experience you hear of, if you get Basic, you won't feel it at all," said Acer senior VP Jim Wong, "There's no [Aero] graphics, no Media Center, no remote control." Since PC buyers won't settle for Home Basic, Wong Says, they'll demand Premium, but won't want to pay extra for it. Premium costs manufacturers 10% more than Home Basic, which increases the cost to build a PC by to 1-2%, a significant amount in the low-margin OEM world.What do you think? Will anybody want Vista Home Basic, or will PC manufacturers be stuck holding the bill? If nobody wants Home Basic, should Microsoft ditch it and lower the price for Premium?
Comments
9
Subscribe to commentsFabuloOct 27th 2006 6:47PM
So... Acer will have to pony up 10% over the base price. What is it like? $3? bfd
I'd feel bad if there was some kind of unfair treatment, but everyone will buy the same licensing bulk oem licenses from Microsoft.
Home Basic: $30
Home Premium: $33
If you are in the cheap ass low end low margin hardware market, your customers will be cheap as well. They won't mind the crappy home basic. And I won't mind either, I'll ubuntize it anyway.
Gardiner WestboundOct 27th 2006 5:47PM
Why anybody would want Vista? I tried to order my last computer with Linux pre-installed or sans operating system, but Dell turned me down. If Dell won't accommodate me the next time I'll find a manufacturer that will.
VAStateOfMindOct 27th 2006 6:14PM
Amen, #1 -- I have used Ubuntu off and on for the past year and I'm really impressed. I just downloaded Ubuntu 6.10 to install and dual-boot on my 4-year old PC -- we only keep WinXP installed to use iTunes. Our family has decided to make the full-time jump to Ubuntu/Linux over the next month or so, and we're never looking back to Windows. Sorry, Microsoft -- no Vista for this household.
ChrisOct 27th 2006 8:12PM
"There's no [Aero] graphics, no Media Center, no remote control."
Seriously, what percent of the general population even cares about this? I certainly know that my parents, brothers, girlfriend, friends, co-workers, etc certainly don't give a damn about these features. Areo graphics, while nice, certainly aren't necessary, heck they don't even exist now. Also, Media Center is and probably always will be a niche product that won't be missed by most people who have their computer in a study, bedroom, etc and not in the middle of their living room.
FranklinOct 27th 2006 8:13PM
At the rate that Microsoft is criminalizing its customers, I expect that my next notebook will be a Macbook, and that I'll be installing the latest Ubuntu (or another Linux distro) on my old desktops in the near future. I'm very reluctant to pay Microsoft for what will essentially be DRM'ed crippleware.
JamesOct 28th 2006 8:33AM
If e.g. #1 and #2 are only keen to run Linux, why are you bothering to get a new PC? 99% of upgraders (according to my extensive personal research =-) are trying to run games faster and/or prettier. There's all of, what, 5? 6? commercial (and therefore demanding) games for Linux? If you're going to bother getting a dual- or quad-core system, or a smokin' graphics card, I'd think most people are going to want Windows so they can play the next F.E.A.R. or Command and Conquer or what-have-you. No?
Jason H.Oct 28th 2006 5:37PM
I've been running Vista RC1 on my laptop since last month and I'm honestly not missing Aero. That, and I'm not even using Media Center at all. There's PLENTY of new and semi-cool things to enjoy about the basics of Vista. The new Start Menu, the new Start Menu search feature, navigation within Windows Explorer, standard instant desktop search (as opposed to a separate download), etc. It seems obvious to me that the man isn't even using Vista.
VAStateOfMindOct 28th 2006 11:31PM
#6 -- Actually, I refuse to give into Microsoft's semi-forced OS upgrade strategy by purchasing a new PC this winter. Furthermore, I wasn't keen at all to try Linux a year or two ago, let alone make it my full-time OS. I bought a Dell PC 4 years ago that, at the time, was more computer than our family needed, hoping that it would last at least this long. It has served us well. WinXP Pro bogs down slightly these days when more than 5 or 6 apps are running on the PC but it's still a workhorse. It's even MORE of a workhorse and faster to boot when running Ubuntu 6.10. You're right in that the latest-and-greatest folks will run out and buy new PCs just to experience the Vista eye candy. But I decided a couple months ago that WinXP would be the last version of Windows that I *ever* purchase.
Claude GelinasOct 29th 2006 2:26AM
I'm surprised nobody has brought up the paranoid security and "Big Brother" features that are forced down users' throats, in Windows Vista.
The "in-security" features (for the user) are enough to scare me away -forever- of Windows "dinosaurware" Vista. By the way, in Vista, nobody (other than Microsoft) knows what's going on in the core.
Would you -really- trust Microsoft? Hummm?
Think about it: 6 different versions of the same OS? Windows Vista is a big (and alarmingly expensive) joke on the IT world which should plainly reject it as "alpha" development, at best.
I love MacOS X for the sheer power and eye candy of the operating system and let's not forget the dizzying array of top notch software available... including multimedia and remote controls ; )