Original Equipment Manufacturer Preinstallation Kits
Published: October 30, 2009
This page provides information about Windows Vista Starter and Windows 7 Starter (EM) hardware requirements. It provides guidelines so that OEMs can choose the correct hardware.
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Hardware Requirements for Windows Vista® Starter
This document contains the system and hardware requirements for the Windows Vista® Starter operating system. Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) must follow the guidelines in this document to ensure that Windows Vista Starter is fully functional and provides an optimal experience.
System Requirements
Processor speed
| • | Minimum: 800 megahertz (MHz) |
| • | Recommended: 1 gigahertz (GHz) or higher |
RAM
| • | Minimum: 384 megabytes (MB) |
| • | Recommended: 512 megabytes (MB) or higher |
| • | Maximum (by region): |
2 GB RAM | 2 GB RAM | 2 GB RAM | 2 GB RAM | 2 GB RAM | 2 GB RAM |
Disk space
| • | Minimum: 15 gigabytes (GB) of available disk space |
| • | Maximum (by region): |
320 GB disk space | 320 GB disk space | 320 GB disk space | 320 GB disk space | 320 GB disk space | 320 GB disk space |
Video Resolution
| • | Minimum: Super VGA 800x600 resolution video adapter |
Additional Recommendations
| • | Monitor |
| • | Keyboard |
| • | Mouse or compatible pointing device |
| • | CD-ROM or DVD drive |
| • | Support for DirectX 9 graphics and 32 MB of graphics memory |
| • | Audio output capability |
| • | Internet access (fees may apply) |
Processor type
Windows Vista Starter is licensed to be distributed in the indicated regions on PCs running with these processors:
Desktop Processors: | 
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Intel Atom 230, 330, D410 and D510 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Celeron series, Celeron D series, Celeron Dual Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Pentium Dual Core E2XXX series and E5XXX series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Core 2 Duo E4XXX series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Core 2 Duo E7XXX series | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |
AMD Geode, Sempron, Athlon, and Athlon II Single-Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AMD Athlon 64 and Athlon 64 X2 Dual-Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AMD Athlon X2 Dual-Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AMD Athlon II X2 2XX Dual-Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Mobile Processors: |
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Intel Atom N270, N280 , N450, and N470 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Atom Z500, Z510, Z520, Z530, and Z540 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Celeron series, Celeron M series, Celeron Dual Core series, and Celeron ULV SU2300 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Pentium Dual Core T3XXX series and T4XXX series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Core Duo series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Core 2 Duo T5XXX series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AMD Athlon Neo MV40 and Athlon Neo X2 L325 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AMD Geode, Sempron, and Athlon Single-Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AMD Athlon X2 Dual-Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AMD Athlon II M3XX Dual-Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Additionally, PCs running similar value processors to those listed above are allowed in the indicated regions.
Hardware Requirements for Windows 7 Starter (EM)
System Requirements
Processor speed
| • | Minimum: 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster |
RAM
| • | Minimum: 1 gigabyte (GB) RAM |
| • | Maximum (by region): |
2 GB RAM | 2 GB RAM | 2 GB RAM | 2 GB RAM | 2 GB RAM | 2 GB RAM |
Disk space
| • | Minimum: 16 gigabytes (GB) of available disk space |
| • | Maximum (by region): |
320 GB disk space | 320 GB disk space | 320 GB disk space | 320 GB disk space | 320 GB disk space | 320 GB disk space |
Video Resolution
| • | Minimum: DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver |
Additional Recommendations
| • | Internet access (fees may apply) |
| • | Depending on resolution, video playback may require additional memory and advanced graphics hardware |
| • | DVD/CD authoring requires a compatible optical drive |
| • | Music and sound require audio output |
Processor type
Windows 7 Starter (EM) is licensed to be distributed in all Windows Starter countries in the indicated regions on PCs running with these processors:
Desktop Processors: |
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Intel Atom 230, 330, D410 and D510 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Celeron series, Celeron D series, Celeron Dual Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Pentium Dual Core E2XXX series and E5XXX series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Core 2 Duo E4XXX series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Core 2 Duo E7XXX series | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |
AMD Geode, Sempron, Athlon, and Athlon II Single-Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AMD Athlon 64 and Athlon 64 X2 Dual-Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AMD Athlon X2 Dual-Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AMD Athlon II X2 2XX Dual-Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Mobile Processors: |
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Intel Atom N270, N280 , N450, and N470 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Atom Z500, Z510, Z520, Z530, and Z540 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Celeron series, Celeron M series, Celeron Dual Core series, and Celeron ULV SU2300 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Pentium Dual Core T3XXX series and T4XXX series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Core Duo series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Intel Core 2 Duo T5XXX series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AMD Athlon Neo MV40 and Athlon Neo X2 L325 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AMD Geode, Sempron, and Athlon Single-Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AMD Athlon X2 Dual-Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AMD Athlon II M3XX Dual-Core series | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
In addition, PCs running similar value processors to those listed above are allowed in the indicated regions.
Regional Definitions for Windows Vista Starter and Windows 7 Starter (EM) Products
1. The Latin America region includes the following countries/regions:
Antigua | Argentina | Barbados |
Barbuda | Belize | Bolivia |
Chile | Columbia | Costa Rica |
Dominican Republic | Ecuador | El Salvador |
Grenada | Guatemala | Guyana |
Haiti | Honduras | Jamaica |
Mexico | Nicaragua | Panama |
Paraguay | Peru | St. Kitts and Nevis |
St. Lucia | St. Vincent and the Grenadines | Suriname |
Trinidad and Tobago | Uruguay | Venezuela |
2. The Eastern Europe region includes the following countries/regions:
Albania | Armenia | Azerbaijan |
Belarus | Bosnia and Herzegovina | Georgia |
Kazakhstan | Republic of Kosovo | Kyrgyz Republic |
Macedonia (FYROM) | Republic of Moldova | Mongolia |
Montenegro | Russian Federation | Serbia |
Tajikistan | Turkmenistan | Ukraine |
Uzbekistan |
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3. The Middle East and Africa region includes the following countries/regions:
Afghanistan | Algeria | Angola |
Benin | Botswana | Burkina Faso |
Burundi | Cameroon | Cape Verde |
Central African Republic | Chad | Comoros |
Côte d'Ivoire | Democratic Republic of Congo | Djibouti |
Egypt | Equatorial Guinea | Eritrea |
Ethiopia | Gabon | Gambia |
Ghana | Guinea | Guinea-Bissau |
Iraq | Jordan | Kenya |
Lebanon | Lesotho | Liberia |
Libya | Madagascar | Malawi |
Mali | Mauritania | Mauritius |
Mayotte | Morocco | Mozambique |
Namibia | Niger | Nigeria |
Oman | Pakistan | Republic of Congo |
Rwanda | São Tomé and Príncipe | Senegal |
Seychelles | Sierra Leone | Somalia |
South Africa | Swaziland | Tanzania |
Togo | Tunisia | Turkey |
Uganda | West Bank and Gaza | Yemen |
Zambia | Zimbabwe |
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4. The Southeast Asia region includes the following countries/regions:
Bangladesh | Bhutan | Cambodia |
Fiji | Indonesia | Kiribati |
Lao PDR | Malaysia | Maldives |
Marshall Islands | Micronesia | Myanmar |
Nepal | Northern Mariana Islands | Palau |
Papua New Guinea | People’s Republic of China | Philippines |
Samoa | Solomon Islands | Sri Lanka |
Thailand | Timor-Leste | Tonga |
Vanuatu | Vietnam |
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