Struggling to find an XP PC? Consider these options

Here’s a frustration we can all expect to see increase in the next three months: A reader, Brent Smithline, was trying to get a Windows XP-based PC before the June 30 date after which Microsoft will no longer provide new licenses to retailers and PC makers (white-box system builders have till Jan. 31, 2009 to offer XP). Let him tell the story:

“Well we were informed by HP that we can no longer purchase systems with Windows XP Professional preinstalled. We must use the ‘downgrade’ process from Windows Vista Business. Once again Microsoft is using its monopoly power to make people move to Vista.

“It was stated that ‘Microsoft is extending availability of Windows XP editions among original equipment manufacturers (OEM) and retail channels for an additional five months to June 30, 2008.’ Well it is not July 1, 2008 and HP an (OEM) has stopped offering Windows XP preinstalled. Why do you think they did this? More than likely the strong arm monopoly power of Microsoft again.

“It is bad enough the amount of time it takes to set up a new system. Setup via the downgrade process is going to be a royal pain.

“Thank you sir, may I have another…..”

Like most OEMs, HP took XP off its consumer products a year ago, and kept it available for a select number of business PCs. After June 30, your options for getting XP are limited, with the downgrade option the only practicable one — assuming your new PC doesn’t come with XP-incompatible hardware, as some already are.

Dell began advertising XP as a choice earlier this year, though those choices remain limited.

So what do you do?

I had a similar dilemma in getting a new PC for my home office. I didn’t want Vista — I see no need to learn the new interface or have any of my apps stop working — so my choices were limited. And I didn’t want to play the downgrade game. To make it that much harder, I wanted a small-size PC, since my home-office workspace is cramped. But my needs are your garden-variety business uses — e-mail, Office, the Web, and some limited Acrobat, Dreamweaver, Photoshop, and InDesign work — so I didn’t need a fancy system that couldn’t realistically be delivered in a small box.

My specs: moderate-speed Intel Core Duo (E4500 to E5300 series) or equivalent AMD chip, 2GB RAM, 160GB hard drive, DVD burner, four USB ports, the usual audio jacks, wired Ethernet and 802.11g wireless, with preference for DVI video. I’ll supply the 19-inch LCD monitor. Nothing crazy.

I found four “slimline” PCs that met my need. Here’s the story for each:

Apple Mac Mini: It’s small, perfectly capable, runs Windows — and costs too much. The price tag: $1,317 — $1,047 before the price of an XP Pro license. I like Macs — my MacBook Pro is a gem — but as just a PC, they’re too costly.

Hewlett-Packard Compaq dc7800: A slim tower, this unit had what I needed, with a choice of Vista or XP Pro, as long as I bought it from the small-business part of the HP Web site. The price: $1,115. Yikes — almost as much as a Mac, but without Mac OS X. Next!

Dell Vostro 200: Nice-looking case and a good price: $768. But, hey! What do you mean the 802.11b/g wireless card requires Windows Vista? That’s dumb. After all, this is old-school wireless technology, nothing that requires Vista. Sure, I could have added my own, but at this point I was offended by Dell’s pretend support for XP.

Acer Veriton VL460-UD6421P: Ugly name, beautiful computer. Nicely designed, with everything I wanted. The price: $659 to $699 depending on where I chose to buy it. It’s not customizable as the Apple, HP, and Dell systems were, so I was fortunate the out-of-the-box model fit my needs to a T. The only thing that was annoying was that I had to create my own system recovery DVD, though the utility to do so is simple and lets you create a recovery CD that includes all your apps, not just the original OEM setup.

I went with the Veriton. Happy me.

But as with Smithline’s experience, I felt my options were limited due to the steady erosion of XP options.