MCE Features http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/mediacenter/evaluation/features.mspx
1) Windows XP Media Center (MCE) is a super-set of Windows XP Professional Edition (PRO) that provides support to wide range of media functionalities.
2) Media Center lacks support for domain controllers. (If you search online there are ways to edit registry entries to enable active domain support. But if you enable domain support you could loose the media functionalities)
3) Read in various places that the Media Center support will expire in 2yrs or when Vista is released, whereas XP Pro edition support will continue for 7 years as they are used by businesses.
4) Currently you cannot buy MCE software in the market, it comes pre-installed with the new machines.
5) MCE is slightly cheaper than PRO edition. According to HP website the difference in price is around $80 more for the professional edition.
Personally, if you are looking to buy a computer and you are planning to use your computer for more than just the regular email and media services, then I would recommend going for the Professional (PRO) as it is much stable (compared to other windows OS) and it is widely adopted by businesses and widely available in the market.
I was wondering if I bought a laptop with MCE installed on it, can I still do all the things I do on Pro? Then if Vista comes out will I be able to upgrade?
neophyte : You will be able to do everything with MCE other than connecting to Active Domain.
As long as your laptop have the required memory and processor speed, you will be able to upgrade to Vista.
Vista Capable PC – Requirements
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsvista/getready/capable.mspx
Check Windows Vista blog maintained by Microsoft’s Windows division for insider updates and latest news.
http://windowsvistablog.com/
Free upgrade to Windows Vista, when you buy new Windows XP
my computer HP Media center PC m8090d using windows MCE. if i change to windows XP professional, is there any problem??
I run Pro on my work desktop and Media Center on my work laptop. They aren’t networked but I do tranfer files back and forth via email. Is there a good reason to have the same operating system on both? I am running 2002 versions of both and am looking at the best upgrades to get for each.
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