Microsoft May Be Trying to Kill the Netbook Market

This article is about the Gagetology Report on consumer responses to new netbooks packed with only the Windows 7 Starter Edition. Learn about what you would be missing with the smaller Windows 7 Starter Edition, compared with the original, larger Windows 7.

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Before Windows 7 arrived, netbooks were loaded with Windows XP. Then, as Windows 7 rolled out, Microsoft decided to offer a Starter Edition of Window 7, made exclusively for netbooks, but it lacked functionality and attractive features found in the original.

A Gadgetology Study questioned 1100 potential netbook owners about what they knew and how they felt about the pre-installed Windows 7 Starter Edition.

Not surprisingly, 61% of consumers intending to purchase a netbook were unaware that Windows 7 Starter Edition was so limited in functionality. After presenting them with the facts, 56% of those respondents indicated dissatisfaction.

Features Missing From Windows 7 Starter Edition:

·         No desktop personalization for things like background photos or wallpaper means you’re stuck with the Windows background.

·         No DVD playback is available, even on external DVD drives.

·         Multi-monitor support for extending your desktop to another monitor is not an option. You can only mirror your screen onto a second monitor. You can also forget about hooking it up to a TV.

·         No Aero for you. Netbooks have the graphics to run Aero, but Microsoft decided that all the cool interface components on Aero, including the new Aero Peek and Aero Snap, were to be disabled in Windows 7 Starter.

And The List Goes On

Those were some of the stand-out omissions from Windows 7 Starter Editions. Here are some more:

·         No Multi-Touch

·         No Premium Games

·         No Windows Media Center

·         No Presentation Mode

·         No Windows XP Mode

To Live With It or Upgrade It

You can always spend $80 for the Upgrade Anytime program and upgrade to Windows 7 Home Premium, although most netbook consumers are unlikely to do this, because laptops under $600 like the Lenovo G450 already come with Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit) installed.

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