First thoughts on Windows 7 Starter

I recently purchased a Samsung N150 Netbookso I could do college and work on the road easier.  Desktops aren’t very portable, and smartphones aren’t enough for everything (think 1000 word essays or blog posts), so a netbook seemed like a great way to fill the gap.  I plan to review the netbook soon, but wanted first to put down my initial impressions of Windows 7 Starter.

I have been running Windows 7 as my main OS since the beta release over a year ago, and upgraded to the release candidate and then the final version as soon as they were released.  During the beta and RC I was (obviously) using Windows 7 Ultimate, but then purchased 7 Professional as soon as it was publically available (thanks to the Win741 student offer!).  There has been a lot of discussion about the features (or the lack thereof) in Windows 7 Starter, but until now I hadn’t experienced them firsthand.  Here’s my impression of Windows 7 Starter after a day of use:

Good:

• The speed is amazing considering the hardware.  Ok, so this isn’t exactly a 7 Starter feature, but still … My netbook has 1Gb of ram and a 1.6Ghz Atom N450, and it really run quite nice.  It booted in around 30 seconds (I need to time it more precisely), and then it was fairly responsive with opening programs and such.
• Video playback is fair; YouTube videos stuttered when I had several tabs open in IE8 in addition to several other programs, but if you only have the video going, it’s quite smooth.  And the sample videos play nicely in Media Player even at full screen, but once again seem to be the smoothest if its the only thing running.
• Aero Snap still works great, though on a 10 inch screen most programs will work best maximized
• The Aero basic theme actually looks better than I thought it would
• Windows Backup still allows full image backups, so I made a system image on DVDs with a USB DVD drive
• Includes the excellent “Restore Previous Versions” feature … this is the overlooked gem in Windows Vista and 7 in my opinion
• Actually, Starter still includes a lot of Windows features, including ReadyBoost, PowerShell and (strangely) Internet Information Services!  So there’s enough to even keep IT pros happy!
• Starter still includes the new media codecs for Apple formats including MOV and AAC … very nice!
• Some customization options are still present, such as Screensaver, Sound Schemes, and older Windows themes (if you want to use the Classic Windows theme).  They’re hidden, but a quick start menu search brings them up.  I’ll go over this more in my full review.
• Thankfully there’s no limit to the number of programs you can run at once like there was in older versions of Windows Starter.  Of course, your netbook will still impose its own ram and speed limits, but…
• And the best Windows programs, including Live Essentials, Security Essentials, and Office, run great!

Bad:

• The worst and strangest limitation in Windows 7 Starter is that you cannot change your desktop background.  There are some limited workarounds, but still, this is definitely a limitation for many users.  I personally like the default background and would be likely to use it anyhow, but this is something that will frustrate many users.  One easy way around this is to add the Slideshow gadget to the center of your desktop … not the same, but still, on a 10 inch screen, not bad either.  Hey Microsoft, it’d be a nice bonus to your users if you’d change this in Service Pack 1 … that’d be a great way to win a lot of favor from your users!
• Along with that, the other customization options are not available either hidden.  You can change your screensaver, sounds, and more, but it’s not directly available from the desktop.
• No Aero, so that also means no window preview on the taskbar and in Alt-Tab.  And Windows Snap isn’t as flashy.  But, on a netbook, this isn’t really a great feature.  In fact, it would more likely be a killer feature – that is, a battery killer feature!
• Starter is 32-bit only.  The new Atom N450 is actually an x64 chip, so it would be nice to run a 64-bit OS, but then again, I’m not sure you’d see much difference with 1-2Gb of ram.
• No DVD codec, though many DVD drives will come with one, and, well, there’s always VLC…   And, Starter does still include all the other standard codecs including MP3, AAC, MP4, WMV/WMA, MOV, and more
• No Snipping Tool or Sticky Notes … those are both very missed.  You can import the Vista Notes gadget, though, if you have a Vista computer handy.
• You can’t create a new HomeGroup in Starter, but you can join an existing one.  If you’re using your netbook as a secondary computer, this shouldn’t be a problem.

In all, Starter seemed less limited than I had feared it would.  I think it will work great as a companion to my full-featured 7 Pro on my desktop.  I plan to write a more thorough review of Windows 7 Starter soon, but for now, I’m presently surprised with it.  Microsoft has done a great job with Windows 7, and even the cheapest version has a lot of exciting features.

Check back for a full review of both Windows 7 Starter and the Samsung N150 Netbooknetbook soon!