Comments on: Stick with XP? Windows 7 Battery Life Worse on Netbooks

By: Amitav

Amitav — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 08:54:00 +0000

I would rather use windows Xp to windows 7. There are lots of third party softwares for Xp
I can n-lite the Xp to further reduce the hardware load. Use irfan view, foxit reader and vlc media player to to run the nettop as a fullscale laptop.

If one is not using internet, better stick to Xp. It can serve you for another 6 years. You can save the money in upgrading the hardware later.

By: Mark

Mark — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 12:24:01 +0000

You shouldn’t install a 10 year old operating system on a netbook, especially one made by Microsoft.

Take a look at the Ubuntu Netbook Edition, MeeGo Netbook or Joli OS (AKA Jolicloud), they will perform even better in terms of battery life than XP.

Windows 7 is A LOT better than Windows XP. And FYI, netbooks are only shipped with Windows 7 Basic, because Windows 7 Home Premium etc were never meant for netbooks.

By: Marcus

Marcus — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 20:07:13 +0000

good article, just shows more ways Windows XP is better compared to Windows 7. I feel sorry for any laptop users running Vista.

By: Andy Leo

Andy Leo — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 11:25:35 +0000

Very helpful review!

I just got an Acer D255 netbook. It came with Win7 and I installed Mint9 and Mint10 to try out. Mint shorted the battery life by half, where Win7 lasted about 7+.

Now after reading your review I will try XP. As I use this netbook mainly for reading ebooks. Win7 on netbook is nice to have but I think XP is more suitable.

Thks, Andy Batam Island – Indonesia.

By: nick

nick — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 13:18:32 +0000

check out tinyxp

By: nick

nick — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 13:16:26 +0000

Well not surprises here ofc windows xp does its a more streamlined os (1gb of ram used by 7 to like 50-100mb used by xp). Windows xp has way more drivers and has far better preformance (i have used both on the same machine, win xp trashes 7.

By: noman khalid

noman khalid — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 15:20:16 +0000

Hello!
i bought sony vaio VGN-SR45h last year.
its jenuine windows was Visa.
but i installed windows 7, it had good battery timing in beginning around 3 hours but now it runs just for 20 min .
Plz anybody guide me to overcome this issue.
thanx.

By: Col. Sanders

Col. Sanders — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 12:58:32 +0000

Yeah… Windows 7 is an overkill for netbooks. Most people praise its speed and new UI features but, honestly, they don’t really mean that much of relevance on netbooks; Windows 7 actually performs slightly slower on netbooks. Moreover, HD (at least 720p) videos on netbooks running Microsoft’s latest consumer OS are barely watchable–something that makes Windows XP shines.

It’s no secret that operating systems are designed for current and, most importantly, future hardware and computing needs (as well as trends), not that of the past. That’s what Windows 7 is all about. Netbooks, on the other hand, are mainly about boosting efficiency by means of recycling past technologies.

By: Mike Behnken

Mike Behnken — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 02:56:21 +0000

“I would “PAY” for MS to sell me a copy of Windows Fundamentals with a 7 theme for a netbook. I want a small OS and neither XP nor 7 completely gives that to me.”

I agree with that sentiment. I just bought the ASUS Ul80VT notebook which is claimed to get “12 hours unplugged” and windows 7 ultimate tells me 6 hours at 100% even on power saving mode with little features.

This really makes my $850 purchase almost completely worthless because I “upgraded” from a more powerful computer which I have to sell for a huge loss.

By: James Lehman

James Lehman — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 21:45:13 +0000

I would “PAY” for MS to sell me a copy of Windows Fundamentals with a 7 theme for a netbook. I want a small OS and neither XP nor 7 completely gives that to me.