Hardware Requirements for Vista Announced

Microsoft is once again forcing people to upgrade their PCs.

Hardware requirements for Windows Vista is officially announced.

Minimum Requirements (Vista-Capable PCs):

* 800 MHz Intel-compatible processor
* 512MB of RAM
* DirectX 9.0-Capable Graphics Processor
* 20GB HD

Recommended Requirements (Premium-Ready PCs):

* 1 GHz Intel-compatible processor
* 1GB RAM
* DirectX 9.0-Capable Graphics Processor, with 128MB graphics memory. (64MB of graphics memory to support a single monitor less than 1,310,720 pixels [no more than 1440×900]; 128MB of graphics memory to support a single monitor at resolutions from 1,310,720 to 2,304,000 pixels [no more than 1920×1200]; 256MB of graphics memory to support a single monitor at resolutions higher than 2,304,000 pixels [more than 1920×1200]).
* 40GB HD with at least 15GB “free space”

800MHz - 1Ghz processor requirement sounds pretty reasonable to me.
512MB RAM as minimum requirement is, IMO, a little too much to ask for, I wonder how much RAM would the OS take up. 256MB would sound a little more reasonable to me as a minimum memory requirement.
128MB of GPU RAM for Premium Vista experience is, IMO, a little too much to ask for as well. Why would an OS need so much graphics processing power? A graphically-stunning Warcraft III would only ask for 32MB to run optimally at XGA reslolution.
20GB for an OS! This is just crazy. That means most computer which are purchased between the last 1-3 years that has their harddisk capacity at 40GB would have half of it designated for OS.

I’m really disappointed at the minimum specifications for Vista. An OS which needs more resource than most apps today is simply ridiculous.

I can imagine Microsoft having a secret pact with Dell. “You keep bundling your PCs with Windows and provide no exceptions, we’ll make sure to help you make more PCs outdated.”