32bit or 64bit

ive got vista hp 32bit installed on my laptop atm

spec: core2duo t6500 2.1ghz
4gb ram
ati 4570
250gb hdd

im going for the student offer windows 7 for 30

shall i get 32bit or 64 bit

whats the performance advantages and is it worth gettign 64 bit as its the same price.

how much better will it be on my machine

 

At this point in time, the only reason IMO to stick with 32bit is if you're using applications which aren't 64bit capable.

Other than that, there really isn't that much reason not to switch. It's the new architecture and more and more softwares are moving towards it so it's going to become standard soon enough.

If you want more specific differences, you can search here on NBR, there are numerous threads on 32bit vs 64bit.

 

Right off the bat, you won't be able to utilize all 4GB with a 32-bit OS.

 

RAM is the generic reason we give, but really not to most compelling reason I'd suggest(not like most average users even get close to using 3-3.5Gb anyways); it is however true that a 32bit OS cannot fully address 4Gbs of RAM.

 

I always found the "convoluted stipulation" approach to just be more confusing. Anyone who can't Google this stuff doesn't fully grasp the idea of the limited but important features of a 64-bit OS, as well as the general industry move in that direction.

The direct "you won't get the full use of what you paid for" approach tends to be more easy to digest.

 

i generally dont inatall much on my laptop as i have a main pc for that
its generally only for uni work so i only have like steam(dont play gamesmuch anymore). photoshop cs4, office 07 and maybe few other programs like vlc player, utorrent, itunes...all programs i belive to be 64 bit compatible

how much difference will it really make...in real world use terms not statistically?

 

I've been 64-bit exclusive since early 2007.

Office 2007 works.

Photoshop CS4 x64: http://www.start64.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2931&Itemid=72

 

Ok in real world use, it's really subjective. Some users notice a difference and others don't. Point of the matter is: in real world use, you're not really getting that different a product from the point of view that you can really notice.

64bit is a computer architecture(for lack of a better term) so it deals with computer protocols(such as memory address, indexing and stuff like that). All these things are more or less invisible to the common user so you won't really appreciate the benefits of 64bit as much as say a programmer or developer.

64bit is supposed to be faster, more stable and allow you to address more(and in a better fashion I'm told) memory.

So here's my take, most users don't really notice a difference(when comparing to their older 32bit) so why NOT get 64bit if you're not having compatibility issues?

 

thanks im going for 64bit then.

p.s does it have faster boot/shut down times than 32bit?

 

Any difference in boot times or shutdown times will be unnoticeable, and more influenced by startup apps or apps that close on shutdown.

 

ah ok thanks