Review: Microsoft Windows Vista operating system

The 64-bit editions offer improved performance, memory capacity and system reliability but with some possible compatibility issues due to a current lack of driver and application support.

64-bit Vista also requires all drivers to be digitally signed before they can be installed.

The good news is future drivers signed by Microsoft for use with Windows Vista must be submitted in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions, so driver availability should become less of a problem over time.

Curiously, because signed 64-bit XP drivers also work on 64-bit Vista, there are many cases where hardware works now on 64-bit Vista while 32-bit users will have to wait until official Vista drivers are released. Many vendors don’t seem to be in that much of a hurry to release them either. And, as is always the case with new operating systems, there will be plenty of perfectly good hardware that will never be supported under Vista.

The entry-level Home Basic edition omits many of the more obvious new features of Windows Vista: notably the new 3D-accelerated desktop, along with all its transparency and live thumbnail effects.

It’s likely to be a disappointment for those who have been eagerly awaiting a swanky new desktop. It’s also a clever move by Microsoft. While most users would struggle to tell the difference between the Home and Professional editions of XP, Vista Home Basic is conspicuously inferior to its Premium sibling, tempting users into spending more for their operating systems.

A breakdown, by edition, of Vista’s features can be found in our previous Introduction to Vista series. You can also take a closer look at the interface in our Vista image gallery.

If you're thinking of upgrading your current PC to Vista, you can download and run Mic rosoft's Upgrade Advisor - a small application that scans your hardware, advises you as to which version your PC will run, and indentifies those areas that might need upgrading.

Current pricing at retail (inc VAT) is £179.99 for Home Basic, £219.99 for Home Premium, £289.99 for Business and a whopping £369.99 for Ultimate. Of course, Ultimate is the version everyone will want, but it costs more than a new budget PC – expect furious attempts at piracy.

Upgrade pricing is more reasonable at £99.99, £149.99, £189.99 and £249.99 respectively, but by far the cheapest way to get hold of vista is to obtain an OEM version seen on sale at £64.61, £72.84, £91.64 and £129.24. Unfortunately, some vendors such as PC World have quietly dropped OEM editions from their price lists.

We’ve discussed Vista’s new features at length throughout our review of Vista Beta, and and our Vista Background Series.

Probably the most talked about feature is the new flashy Aero desktop, but there’s a lot more to Vista than window dressing.

The new Start menu and integrated desktop search will have a big impact on how you work, while the radically improved search capabilities are designed to cope with sifting through huge amounts of data without slowing desktop responsiveness.