Review of Microsoft’s Windows XP Plus,
Cost $25.99
Star Rating: 1 Star
Well the box looks grate and some of the features of the package sounds grate, but this isn’t so much the case. After installing it you get an idea of what your money has bought, Windows XP Plus include features such as Themes, Screen Savers, Games, A personal DJ, MP3 Converter, Speaker enhancement, More Skins for Windows Media Player, CD Label maker. And Voice Commands for windows Media player. Sounds like allot for your money, and maybe yes, but I would disagree. First off the games Microsoft’s Windows XP Plus comes with 3 Games - HyperBowl Plus! Edition, Russian Square Plus! Edition and The Labyrinth Plus! Edition. Well First of HyperBowl looks grate and if your waiting for a file to download it’s a grate game to mess about in for a while. But its more like a free demo of the game you could probably get off the net than the real game. It allows you to use only 2 of the 6 available lanes, If you want to use the other 4 you have to go to HyperBowl the makers of the game and buy the game, fair you might say how ells are HyperBowl going to make money on it, But you have just pain $26 why do you have to pay for something you should already have, Well Microsoft don’t make it so they just give you a demo of it really. Then to the other games Russian Squares are ok its not grate the idea is you have a square and have to make it smaller and smaller by matching a line of colours after you understand what your doing its ok, but after the first level I was already getting board and thinking what ells do I get for my money, leading us on to Labyrinth This is probably the best game that you get for your money. Taken from that game where you have to navigate a ball around a maze by tilting a table trying to miss the holes, the game awards you points for picking up items along the way. You also have a time of 10 minutes to get around the maze. This is an ok game granted its not the sort of thing I would go out and buy but its part of the XP Plus experience.
So Now themes and screen savers, for your money you get 4 themes, and you would expect them to be the best as you only get 4. Well you would be wrong the aqua theme uses the original blue appearance and just ads a nice looking wallpaper a few sound effects, a different screensaver and mouse cursors oh and not forgetting changing the skin in windows media player. So no dynamic look or change to the looks just anything you could download from the net and do yourself, the other 3 skins are the same, just using the same looks that you already have and just changing the sounds and backgrounds a bit. The worst part is that even though you get the popular internet screen saver aquarium it only comes with 3 fish. On the full version you can have up to 7 fish at one time with a choice of 15 different fish.
Then we come to the features such as personal DJ and CD Cover maker. The personal DJ only creates a list of song that are already on your computer using a wizard program a feature built into Microsoft windows Media Player 9. And the CD Cover maker is ok but its all in a wizard all you do is enter the text you want and if you want it to be a front or back cover or anything els. Things that programs on the net can do allot better. MP3 Converter may come in handy but its not something that Windows Media Player cant already do for you. The only real program that makes up the price of the title is the voice commands, if trained properly it boasts to be able to pick up 95% of words said, after I trained it and tried to use it. I got fed up or setting in a room talking to my self, well to a computer. It started to seem very sad but to be fare to the program I was using my laptops build in microphone instead of a hard set. But anyway the program isn’t grate on picking up what you say and its not that easy to use.
So in all a poor effort by Microsoft the only really good things a few of there screen savers other than that not worth the money you will pay for it. That’s why I can only give it 1 star.
