BleepingComputer.com: Should I Downgrade To Xp?

I have a Toshiba Satellite A215-S4747 with Vista Home Premium SP1. I keep hearing about how Vista is bad and how XP is faster and more compatible. Assuming that I have a copy of XP lying around, would it be a wise move to downgrade? I haven't had any major problems with vista besides a few software compatibility issues, but if XP is faster and better... I'm just wondering if this is a good idea and what kind of performance changes I can expect. One specific question, though not of huge importance, is will XP improve 3D game performance on my laptop?

Here are my specs to help you figure out what to recommend:

AMD Turion 64 X2 Mobile Technology TL-56 1.80 Ghz
2 GB RAM
200 GB Hard Drive
ATI Radeon X1200

Downgrading to XP will likely improve performance a bit - but only you can tell if it's worth it. Luckily the Toshiba Restore DVD's come with everything needed to setup the machine with Vista on it (so, reverting to Vista if you're unhappy with XP won't take a lot of effort).

Downgrading to XP isn't as simple as just putting the XP CD in and installing it. You'll also have to search out and install the hardware drivers for your system. That's a bit frustrating as not all devices have easily located drivers for XP (for example, when upgrading my old Toshiba laptop from XP to Vista, I had to use an HP driver in order to get my SD card reader to work)

But the real issue here is the XP vs Vista thing - and that's a matter of personal preference. Laptop's can work faster with older operating systems - but the tradeoff is compatibility. If you've got a lot of older stuff that you need to keep working - then XP is probably best. But if you want access to the latest technology - then Vista is for you.

I'm running both OS on separate hard drives and I know my Vista Ultimate sp1 is faster than my XP Pro sp3 , both are retail versions . I mean Vista boots a little quicker and loads IE 7 faster

This post has been edited by snooker: 05 July 2008 - 08:02 AM