Mailbag: October 3, 2012

In this edition of the Mailbag: Which Windows Phone 8 handset I’ll choose, Windows 8 and BIOS, whether you can revert to Windows 7 after installing Windows 8, photo editing and collection management, evaluating the final version of Windows 8 before it ships, when Media Center will ship for Windows 8, whether Microsoft plans a Surface tablet with a Retina display, whether Windows Server 2012 Standard and Datacenter support centralized PC backup, and when the final version of Windows Server 2012 Essentials will ship.

If you have questions, please email me.

Which Windows Phone 8 handset will you choose?

A number of readers are curious which Windows Phone 8 handset I’ll be choosing. Many make specific arguments for the phone they perceive to be superior, such as the camera in the Lumia 920.

I’ll need to compare these phones head-to-head to be sure, though the front-runner, for now, is the HTC Windows Phone 8X. But I’ll review each and see. Remember that this kind of decision is very personal: I have a pet-peeve about camera quality, but maybe the storage or screen size (or whatever) is a bigger issue for you.

Windows 8 and BIOS

Ronald M. asks:

Modern, Windows 8-logoed PCs will use UEFI type firmware, but Windows 8 still supports BIOS for legacy PCs.

Returning to Windows 7 after using web-based Setup to install Windows 8

Ron L. asks:

Not through some Windows 8 facility. But if you created an image backup of your Windows 7 install before upgrading to Windows 8, you can use a Windows 7 repair disc to restore your PC to that install again. (This would work with any Windows 7 install type.)

Photo editing and collection management

John A. asks:

I use Windows Photo Gallery to acquire pictures from the camera and do some editing. But I don't "manage" photos with it, per se. I store them on a home server and manage them in the file system. There's no reason not to keep a couple of tools on hand for photo editing. Both Windows Photo Gallery and Picasa are free and work well.

Best way to evaluate Windows 8 before the launch?

Tim P. asks:

If you’re interested in learning about Windows 8 by using it, and don’t want to wait until the launch on October 26, I can recommend two approaches:

1. Windows 8 Enterprise evaluation. The problem with this version is that you can’t upgrade it to a non-time-bombed version of Windows 8.

2. TechNet Standard. If you don't mind paying, you can also get Windows 8 through TechNet Standard, which costs $199, but gives you access to two Windows 8 Pro product keys, each of which can be used for up to 10 installs. (These are designed for evaluation purposes, of course, but are the full retail versions.)

Media Center for Windows 8

Thomas J. asks:

I sort of assumed it would hit on or right before October 26, but Microsoft has never commented on this, sorry.

Will Microsoft release a version of Surface with a Retina display?

Dennis B. asks:

Microsoft has announced two Surface models, one with HD (1366 x 768) resolution running Windows RT and one with full HD (1920 x 1080) resolution running Windows 8. That's what they're going to market with.

But I'm a bit confused why this one qualifier would help you decide between two completely different platforms. You either want the power of a full PC or you want an iPad. Seems like that would be the first decider. And if the Surface resolution wasn't high enough for some reason I admittedly don't understand, that it would be time to research RT-based alternatives, and not an iPad.

Centralized PC backup on Windows Server 2012 Standard or Datacenter?

Chris H. asks:

No, this functionality is unique to the "Colorado" servers (WHS 2011, Essentials 2012, and Storage Server 2008 R2) and to Essentials 2012.

Windows Server 2012 Essentials availability?

Ryan K. asks:

Essentials hasn't RTMd yet. It will before the end of the year, according to Microsoft. But I expect it to happen much more quickly than that.