fonte: http://www.winsupersite.com/reviews/winvista_02.asp
nn c'è che dire... un bel delirio...a queste ovviamente si aggiungono le versioni studenti
A product edition matrix
Here's how the Windows Vista product editions break down. This chart lists each edition, which XP product editions they most closely compare to, how they are acquired, and other related information.
Vista product edition Compare with... x64 version? Type Retail price Upgrade price Windows Vista Starter XP Starter Edition No Select countries only, with new PC purchase n/a n/a
Windows Home Basic XP Home Edition Yes Retail $199 $99.95
Windows Home Basic N XP Home Edition Yes Retail, EU only $199 $99.95
Windows Vista Home Premium XP Media Center Edition Yes Retail $239 $159
Windows Vista Business XP Professional Edition Yes Retail $299 $199
Windows Vista Business N XP Professional Edition Yes Retail $299 $199
Windows Vista Enterprise XP Professional Edition Yes Volume-license only n/a n/a
Windows Vista Ultimate n/a Yes Retail $399 $259
Whittling down the choices
Let's immediately cast off a few of the less desirable product editions.
Windows Vista Starter. Since Windows Vista Starter is only available in a limited number of regions and cannot be purchased at retail, we won't discuss that version here any further.
Windows Vista Home Basic N and Business N. Created to satisfy power-hungry antitrust regulators in the EU, the so-called Vista N Editions are just like their related non-N versions, but drop Windows Media Player, Windows Movie Maker, and other Windows Media-related technologies. These products have proven enormously unpopular in Europe for obvious reasons, and I expect that trend not continue. Skip them.
Windows Vista Enterprise. A new offering, Windows Vista Enterprise is available only to Microsoft's Software Assurance (SA) customers via volume licensing. From a functional standpoint, it is very similar to Windows Vista Business, but with a few additional features. I'll highlight those in the tables below.
This leaves most people with four Vista product editions to consider: Windows Vista Home Basic, Home Premium, Business, and Ultimate. But we can trim it even further: Since Vista Home Basic is crippled and does not include some of the best features found in other Windows Vista versions, I have some very basic (ahem) advice:
Do not purchase or use Windows Vista Home Basic. It's that simple.
In the end, most Windows users are going to want to choose between Windows Vista Home Premium, Business, and Ultimate. And what's interesting is that the first two of these choices correspond almost perfectly with the two mainstream Windows XP versions that are currently being provided on new PCs today: Windows XP Media Center Edition and XP Professional, respectively. Windows Vista Ultimate is brand new and can be considered a superset of the home-oriented features in Vista Home Premium and the business-oriented features in Vista Business. So those who want it all--and don't mind paying for it--should snag Vista Ultimate. That's the version I'll be using.
Regardless of my opinion, you should make your decision based on which version of Windows Vista meets your needs. And the way to figure that out is to compare which features are available in which Vista product editions. So, in the following tables, you can find that information. Note that individual features will be discussed and rated in later parts of this review.
Comparing the product editions feature-by-feature
In the following tables, logically divided by category, you can see which Vista features are available in which Vista product editions.
User interface features
Home Basic Home Premium Business Enterprise Ultimate Windows Vista Basic UI Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows Aero UI ("Glass") Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows Flip Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows Flip 3D Yes Yes Yes Yes
Live Taskbar Thumbnails Yes Yes Yes Yes
Instant search Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Live content organization in Explorer windows Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Security features
Home Basic Home Premium Business Enterprise Ultimate User Account Control (UAC) Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows Security Center Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows Defender Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows Firewall Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Internet Explorer 7 Protected Mode Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Phishing Filter (IE7 and Windows Mail) Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows Update (can access Microsoft Update) Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Parental Controls Yes Yes Yes
Performance features
Home Basic Home Premium Business Enterprise Ultimate Windows ReadyDrive Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows ReadyBoost Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
64-bit processor support Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Maximum RAM (32-bit version) 4 GB 4 GB 4 GB 4 GB 4 GB
Maximum RAM (64-bit version) 8 GB 16 GB 128+ GB 128+ GB 128+ GB
Physical processor support 1 2 2 2 2
Processor core support Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited
Reliability features
Home Basic Home Premium Business Enterprise Ultimate Real-time backup and recovery Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Scheduled backup Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows ShadowCopy Yes Yes Yes
System image backup and recovery Yes Yes Yes
Encrypting File System (EFS) Yes Yes Yes
Windows BitLocker Full Drive Encryption Yes Yes
Windows SuperFetch Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Automatic hard disk defragmentation Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Internet features
Home Basic Home Premium Business Enterprise Ultimate Internet Explorer 7 Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
RSS support Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows Mail Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Bundled applications
Home Basic Home Premium Business Enterprise Ultimate Windows Calendar Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows Contacts Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows Sidebar Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Games Explorer Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Premium games Yes Yes Yes Yes
Digital media features
Home Basic Home Premium Business Enterprise Ultimate Windows Photo Gallery Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Themed photo slide shows Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows Media Player 11 Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows Media Center Yes Yes
Windows Media Center HDTV and CableCard support Yes Yes
Xbox 360 Media Center Extender compatibility Yes Yes
Windows Movie Maker Yes Yes
Windows Movie Maker HD format support Yes Yes
Windows DVD Maker Yes Yes
Networking features
Home Basic Home Premium Business Enterprise Ultimate Network and Sharing Center Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Improved wireless networking Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Improved power management Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Number of supported simultaneous peer network connections 5 10 10 10 10
Windows Meeting Space View only Yes Yes Yes Yes
Improved file and folder sharing Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Network Projector support Yes Yes Yes Yes
Presentation Settings Yes Yes Yes Yes
Remote Desktop Client only Client only Yes Yes Yes
Join domain (Windows Server/SBS) Yes Yes Yes
Offline files and folder support Yes Yes Yes
IIS Web Server Yes Yes Yes
Mobility features
Home Basic Home Premium Business Enterprise Ultimate Windows Mobility Center Partial Partial Yes Yes Yes
Sync Center Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Tablet PC functionality Yes Yes Yes Yes
Touch screen support Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows SideShow (auxiliary display support) Yes Yes Yes Yes
Other Windows Vista features
Home Basic Home Premium Business Enterprise Ultimate Windows Anytime Upgade Yes (to Home Premium or Ultimate) Yes (to Ultimate) Yes (to Ultimate)
Windows Ultimate Extras Yes
Speech recognition suport Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Accessibility Settings and Ease of Access Center Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows Welcome Center Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
XPS document support Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Windows Fax and Scan Yes Yes Yes