Bottom line question: Is there a way to remove Windows 8 from an Acer Aspire One Netbook and return it to its factory-installed state with Windows XP? Or would Windows 7 run better than Windows 8 on this netbook? More details below...
I have an Acer Aspire One Netbook. I've had it for a few years, (maybe 3 or so). Not really sure. Maybe 4? It ran on XP and was a nice little computer for lightweight wb browsing and basic Word and Excel usage when away from my main desktop or laptop. Several months ago there was an offer from Microsoft to install Windows 8 for a pretty low price. Before installing it, I read some articles online and even talked to someone at Microsoft Support and they said Windows 8 should run acceptably on this little Atom-based processor. I ran the compatibility checker and it passed, so I decided to go ahead and do it.
Big mistake. Unfortunately, running Windows 8 on this machine renders this machine next to unusable, meaning so slow that it's completely impractical to use. I really regret trusting the recommendation to go ahead and install Windows 8. After making several attempts to get by with it, since that time, this little netbook has been sitting in a corner gathering dust for the past maybe six months.
If I could get XP back on it, I could use it again. It actually peformed quite decently when it was new (running XP). For the kind of lightweight Internet browsing and notetaking I'd like to do with it, this little netbook should still have a few years left in it.
I am wondering how I can get rid of Windows 8 and restore it back to Windows XP. (Or would Windows 7 perform better than Windows 8 on this computer?) Is there a way to restore XP and return this computer to its factory-installed state? There was not a Restore CD that came with it when I got it new. I guess the restore software was on the hard disk maybe? But I reformatted the hard drive when I installed Windows 8. Here are the specs from the user guide:
OS: Genuine Windows XP
Platform: Intel Atom processor
Mobile INtet US15W Express Chipset
Memory: Single channel with one soDIMM slot
- The system supports DDR2 533/667/800 MHz SDRAM, however due to chipset memory will only operate at 533 MHz
- soDIMM slot: Supports 512 Mb/ 1GB / 2 GB soDIMMs for total system memory of up to 2GB
Display: 11.6 HD WXGA high-brightness Acer CrystaBrite FTF LCD, 1366 X 768 pixel resolution
Storage: 2.5" 9.5 mm 160 GB or larger hard disk drive, Mult-in card reader
I don't want to give up on this little computer. Any suggestions on how I can breathe some Windows 7 or Windox XP life back into it?
