Best Windows OS for a *very* low-spec laptop?

[Euphonium]

What's the best version of Windows to run on an old Samsung NC10 netbook, Win7 or Win10?
(1.6GHz Atom, 2GB RAM, 160GB HDD)

All it needs to do is run office apps and browse the net

[Orin J.]

go with 7. i'm using 10 on a somewhat outdated laptop and it's been a nightmare. it updates itself in spite of everything i do, wastes upwards of 8 gigs of memory on an "needed update" for programs i keep uninstalling and feels the need to fight with me about my choices of programs for everything while chewing up battery life on some background monitoring stuff i can't shut off.

10's advantages are only really for using on a phone, i think.

[dgorsman]

Definitely Win7 (x32, of course), although pretty much anything will struggle on that.  If you can see if you can at least double the RAM.

[Daryk]

I'd also recommend Win 7.  The Win 10 machine I use requires me to disable Cortana and re-install software after every darned update.

[Feenix74]

I still have an eeePC as a back-up machine that runs similar specs. I upgraded it from WinXP to Win7 32-bit. If you can max out the RAM and replace the HDD with a similar sized SDD (both of these upgrades are reasonably inexpensive). You will find you have a machine that can handle MS Office and basic web-surfing without noticeable lag.

[Kidd]

I loved the eeePC.

Definitely go with the Win7, but do they even sell that any more? Aren't we all forced to upgrade to Windows whatever nowadays?

[Daryk]

I have an Ubuntu load on my eeePC, and it surfs just fine.  And it can run Open Office if I ever need it to.

[Euphonium]

I was given the netbook with Win10 installed recently enough that I can revert back to 7. It sounds like that's the best idea.

If you can see if you can at least double the RAM.

If you can max out the RAM and replace the HDD with a similar sized SDD (both of these upgrades are reasonably inexpensive).

The RAM is maxed out at 2GB (1GB soldered & a single SODIMM)
I've got a 240GB SSD that I was thinking of putting in it.

I have an Ubuntu load on my eeePC, and it surfs just fine.  And it can run Open Office if I ever need it to.

Unfortunately this is to be used for school work (highschool level) and they won't allow non-windows machines.

[Kidd]

Waste of an SSD imho, but you can try.

How slow does it run now?

[glitterboy2098]

where can you get a copy of Win7 cheap? i have an old laptop from the Windows Vista age that i'd like to try and update to usefulness.

[guardiandashi]

where can you get a copy of Win7 cheap? i have an old laptop from the Windows Vista age that i'd like to try and update to usefulness.

if you already have a license key, you can download the install from Microsoft.
I believe you can still buy license keys, possibly even from Microsoft but I can't tell you where to get a legal license.

[Nightlord01]

if you already have a license key, you can download the install from Microsoft.
I believe you can still buy license keys, possibly even from Microsoft but I can't tell you where to get a legal license.

You can, google Windows 7 cd key and a plethora of sites show up.

Whenever you are purchasing from these sites ensure you use PayPal, since that guarantees you at least half your money back if you run into a dodgy one.

[BrittanyFord]

"Although my answer might be a bit late, I thought I'd share some  thoughts for others who might have the same question. When it comes to  running Windows on a low-spec laptop like the Samsung NC10 netbook, I'd  recommend going with Windows 7. Given its lower system requirements  compared to Windows 10, it should provide a smoother experience on your  machine."

[elf25s]

if yo go for ssd and increase the page sys file you should be fine but you will have to get rid of all the bloat ware you can of going win 10
120gb ssd should be less than 40 usd

[pheonixstorm]

"Although my answer might be a bit late, I thought I'd share some  thoughts for others who might have the same question. When it comes to  running Windows on a low-spec laptop like the Samsung NC10 netbook, I'd  recommend going with Windows 7. Given its lower system requirements  compared to Windows 10, it should provide a smoother experience on your  machine."

A bit late? Yeah, maybe a little. Not like 4 years is that long of a time when asking questions about computer hardware  ::)

[Giovanni Blasini]

I'm going to be contrarian and suggest that maybe Windows XP would be a better fit than Windows 7.  it's what the netbook shipped with, has a bit less overhead, and a machine with specs this slim is a machine you're probably not going to want to mainline it anyway, making it a good candidate for a "retro" XP gaming machine.

[ANS Kamas P81]

It's a bot, it's not a real user.  These accounts have been showing up lately and making a single post with recommendations like that to other necro'ed threads.

[Giovanni Blasini]

It's a bot, it's not a real user.  These accounts have been showing up lately and making a single post with recommendations like that to other necro'ed threads.

Yeah, I hadn't even noticed that - I'd been on from my phone at the time, and hadn't noticed the timestamps.  Wow.

[Prospernia]

I still have an eeePC . . .

I still have my eeePC Mini-laptop I got, brand-new back in 2010.  I have 1Gig-Ram and like 120Gigs memory, I think.  I run Windows XP and it runs, um, ok.  The downside is if Macaffee is running, it takes ten-minutes to open up a page.  I haven't used Open-Office on there for about ten-years and it used to run Youtube just fine, and then, it didn't.  Sometimes while using Firefox, I get, (Not Responding), and I have to wait a minute for the  webpage to unfreeze.  The battery is toast so I have to pick it plugged in and I can't get a new battery or new ram because they don't make parts for it anymore.

[elf25s]

I still have my eeePC Mini-laptop I got, brand-new back in 2010.  I have 1Gig-Ram and like 120Gigs memory, I think.  I run Windows XP and it runs, um, ok.  The downside is if Macaffee is running, it takes ten-minutes to open up a page.  I haven't used Open-Office on there for about ten-years and it used to run Youtube just fine, and then, it didn't.  Sometimes while using Firefox, I get, (Not Responding), and I have to wait a minute for the  webpage to unfreeze.  The battery is toast so I have to pick it plugged in and I can't get a new battery or new ram because they don't make parts for it anymore.

go to electronic scrapper you will find the ram battery not so much
i actually upped mie while back with a ssd sata and 4 gb of ram still slow but not as slow as before and i got it to choke down win 10

[Prospernia]

go to electronic scrapper you will find the ram battery not so much
i actually upped mie while back with a ssd sata and 4 gb of ram still slow but not as slow as before and i got it to choke down win 10

I had a guy in a shop that could hook me up, but he sold his shop and opened up a restaurant and the new people were kinda clueless. I can go to an electric-store and maybe order a battery, but it's old and so slow, it's not worth it; now, I used it to go to questionable websites (which may be the reason it's so slow).

[Daryk]

I'm running Mint on mine... it seems to be doing ok.

[BATTLEMASTER]

I'm running Mint on mine... it seems to be doing ok.

For older laptops, I'd go Linux Mint over Windows 7.  At least Mint is still being updated to meet current security threats, unlike Windows 7.  My oldest laptop here can't run Windows 10, and none of my portable computers can run Windows 11, so it looks like I'll be doing some used computer shopping in the next year or two :(

[Daryk]

I gave up on Ubuntu because it filled the old SSD with updates in no time flat.

[BATTLEMASTER]

I gave up on Ubuntu because it filled the old SSD with updates in no time flat.

I dual-booted Windows 10 and Linux Mint on my daily PC for a year and decided that Windows 10 was more convenient to use than Mint.  In my experience, Mint made program installations a chore.  I do miss the EXT4 file system though - that's the cat's whiskers!

I'll be doing a hardware upgrade just before service ends for Windows 10 just to get Windows 11.

[Daryk]

I only use my eeePC for web surfing and pdf reading, so the basic install works for me.