I need to buy a new laptop, but I don't know whether I should get one with Vista 32 bit or 64 bit. What, if any, are the advantages of 64 bit? What are the disadvantages? I would appreciate any insights from the tecnho-wizards among you. I should add that I am going to grad school and this is the reason for the new laptop.
Well, 64 bit allows for more memory.. 32bit only allows a max of 4 gigs including the video card memory. I use xp64 with 8 gigs of system memory and two graphics cards with 1gig each. Also some games only work in vista/dx10 but if you aren't an intense gamer its irrelevant to you.
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Well, 64 bit allows for more memory.. 32bit only allows a max of 4 gigs including the video card memory. I use xp64 with 8 gigs of system memory and two graphics cards with 1gig each. Also some games only work in vista/dx10 but if you aren't an intense gamer its irrelevant to you.
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Thanks for the reply. I mainly need the laptop for school. I don't really play PC games (I have a PS3 for that). I really just need to know if I will have problems with drivers and such if I buy a 64 bit. I have been searching online, but the most up-to-date info I can find comes from Microsoft. Not exactly objective info.
Well, I will use Outlook for syncing my BB, iTunes for my iPod Touch, and probably Open Office. Those will be the main programs I use. I am sure Outlook will be fine. Not so sure about iTunes and Open Office.
I've got Vista 64bit and the avaliable software is limited (compared to the 32 bit). There are a few apps I'd like to install (like mBackup for my iPod Touch) and it's not available for Vista 64 bit. Outlook and iTunes work fine.
I've got Vista 64bit and the avaliable software is limited (compared to the 32 bit). There are a few apps I'd like to install (like mBackup for my iPod Touch) and it's not available for Vista 64 bit. Outlook and iTunes work fine.
Thanks Bob. Do you guys know anything about Open Office?
It seems that alot of the laptops I am looking at only come with the 32 installed. I am going to keep an eye on this thread since I will be buying a new laptop soon.
It seems that alot of the laptops I am looking at only come with the 32 installed. I am going to keep an eye on this thread since I will be buying a new laptop soon.
After reading this reply I realized that the OP was taliking about a laptop. To clarify, the Vista 64 bit is on my desktop. The version on my laptop is 32 bit.
Thanks Bob. Do you guys know anything about Open Office?
Open Office runs fine under x64. I haven't had any issues with it. As for drivers, well if the laptop is shipping with x64 it is pretty safe to assume all the drivers will work with it then. The one big difference between the 32 and 64 bit driver model in Vista is that x64 requires signed drivers. There are ways around this, but they are hacks.
I run Vista x64 on my primary PC at home (which doubles as an HTPC) and haven't had any real issues with software compatibility or lack of drivers for my system. In fact most of the time I completely forget Im running x64.
Open Office runs fine under x64. I haven't had any issues with it. As for drivers, well if the laptop is shipping with x64 it is pretty safe to assume all the drivers will work with it then. The one big difference between the 32 and 64 bit driver model in Vista is that x64 requires signed drivers. There are ways around this, but they are hacks.
I run Vista x64 on my primary PC at home (which doubles as an HTPC) and haven't had any real issues with software compatibility or lack of drivers for my system. In fact most of the time I completely forget Im running x64.
Thanks Shao. Pretty much made my decision based on the ideas here. I will go ahead and get 64 bit Vista. Now, one more question, if I may; Is Asus a good brand?
It depends who you ask. My current PC is built around an ASUS motherboard as is another spare PC I dont use very much. I personally haven't had any issues with ASUS, but I have heard other people have. I've never used an ASUS laptop so I can't really comment on them.
I have Vista 64 on my laptop. The only thing that would work is the Cisco VPN client for work, which is 32 bit only. Since it's $1,300 to get a new and different VPN that works on Vista 64, I'm stuck using the VPN on my XP desktop. My wife ran into the same issue with another VPN client on her laptop (also Vista 64).
I just picked up a new Dell XPS One 24" and I removed Vista and dropped Windows 7 on it, I can not believe how much of an improvement over Vista this OS is. Simply amazing.
To clarify, the Vista 64 bit is on my desktop. The version on my laptop is 32 bit.
