Is it worth paying out for originals Windows software?

[Pat in Pattaya]

No doubt this has been covered before on here many times down the years, but anyway I have just purchased a new notebook just a HP 15 Notebook jobbie. When buying a new 'pc' in the past I have always just got copy windows circa Bt400 but this time I'm thinking about doing it properly and installing original windows (10) which I believe is around 4k baht?

 

But is it worth it? Apart from not having to keep seeing a pop up telling you that this isn't original software what are the other main benefits? Also, how long is the license for? And would I need to do anything in the future like renew or update, etc? Pardon my ignorance, I'm very raw with things like this.

 

Thanks for any help/advice.

 

PiP

[jenny2017]

Try eBay, please. You can buy W 10 Pro for 300- 700 baht, MS Office 2016 Pro for 250 baht, Kaspersky one year protection 200 baht, etc.

 

    All machines are genuine now and I don't like to deal with any copies that cause the blue screen, freezing in and more. The license doesn't expire, no pop-ups, etc.. 

 

You only have to check on the buyer's satisfaction, keys are usually sent only an hour after purchase. 

 

 

 

      

 

   

 

   

 

   

Edited April 10, 2018 by jenny2017

[Pat in Pattaya]

18 minutes ago, jenny2017 said:

Try eBay, please. You can buy W 10 Pro for 300- 700 baht, MS Office 2016 Pro for 250 baht, Kaspersky one year protection 200 baht, etc.

 

    All machines are genuine now and I don't like to deal with any copies that cause the blue screen, freezing in and more. The license doesn't expire, no pop-ups, etc.. 

 

You only have to check on the buyer's satisfaction, keys are usually sent only an hour after purchase. 

 

 

 

      

 

   

 

   

 

   

Ok, thanks. Thing is I have never bought anything from eBay before, don't have an account. Is it easy to install yourself?

[worgeordie]

Just the other day I bought 2 Win 10 Pro licenses of Ebay UK 

2.50 Sterling each,both registered ,no problem,why would anyone

want to spend 4,000 THB for a copy. 

regards Worgeordie

[Pat in Pattaya]

9 minutes ago, worgeordie said:

Just the other day I bought 2 Win 10 Pro licenses of Ebay UK 

2.50 Sterling each,both registered ,no problem,why would anyone

want to spend 4,000 THB for a copy. 

regards Worgeordie

Nobody would if there were other viable, previously unknown, options..

 

This is not a p!ssing contest!

[observer90210]

Get a Mac...you won't ever leave home without it !!©

[KhunBENQ]

36 minutes ago, Pat in Pattaya said:

Is it easy to install yourself?

More or less.

Those 5.99 offers are the license number only.

 

You find a basic description of what to do for a complete clean/new installation:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10

 

So either your laptop is currently connected to the internet or you have a 2nd device/friend to download the necessary stuff.

Download is big. About 4 GB total(?).

As described you also need an empty 8GB USB stick (assuming the laptop doesn't have DVD and burner anymore).

 

Edited April 10, 2018 by KhunBENQ

[worgeordie]

32 minutes ago, Pat in Pattaya said:

Nobody would if there were other viable, previously unknown, options..

 

This is not a p!ssing contest!

Just trying to help, now you know about other viable,previously unknown options.

regards Worgeordie

[Pat in Pattaya]

9 minutes ago, KhunBENQ said:

More or less.

Those 5.99 offers are the license number only.

 

You find a basic description of what to do for a complete clean/new installation:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10

 

So either your laptop is currently connected to the internet or you have a 2nd device/friend to download the necessary stuff.

Download is big. About 4 GB total(?).

As described you also need an empty 8GB USB stick (assuming the laptop doesn't have DVD and burner anymore).

 

Mmmm, But if I went to say Fortune they can do it all for me if I buy there?

[KhunBENQ]

1 minute ago, Pat in Pattaya said:

Mmmm, But if I went to say Fortune they can do it all for me if I buy there?

I doubt they will offer the service of a clean installation from a Windows download media using the serial nr. that you supply? And only the Windows installation!

You might end with one of the cracked clones with tons of additional cracked application SW which might lead to problems sooner or later.

I wouldn't do it, but if you are a complete newbie to Windows installation/setup then you might have little choice.

From your user name I assume you live in Pattaya.

Is there no community of expats where you could get help for a beer or two?

[jenny2017]

47 minutes ago, Pat in Pattaya said:

Ok, thanks. Thing is I have never bought anything from eBay before, don't have an account. Is it easy to install yourself?

You can easily buy from Ebay using PayPal, or your bank account. If your system says that the program isn't genuine, you could just insert the key you'll get when buying from Ebay. The rest will be done by MS.

 

   But it would make sense to do a clean install, deleting all the viruses from the shop your Windows was installed. They are using an installation disc and hard drives with plenty of viruses on. It's a straightforward installation that shouldn't be a problem for an experienced user.

 

  Please see: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/manufacture/desktop/install-windows-from-a-usb-flash-drive

[jenny2017]

28 minutes ago, observer90210 said:

Get a Mac...you won't ever leave home without it !!©

I do not like Macs at all and it's not about the money. 

[jenny2017]

9 minutes ago, Pat in Pattaya said:

Mmmm, But if I went to say Fortune they can do it all for me if I buy there?

No, I don't think so. Many Thai "technicians" are very poor in English. Please look for an experienced farang as already mentioned and let him/her do it. 

Edited April 10, 2018 by jenny2017

[jenny2017]

4 minutes ago, KhunBENQ said:

I doubt they will offer the service of a clean installation from a Windows download media using the serial nr. that you supply? And only the Windows installation!

You might end with one of the cracked clones with tons of additional cracked application SW which might lead to problems sooner or later.

I wouldn't do it, but if you are a complete newbie to Windows installation/setup then you might have little choice.

From your user name I assume you live in Pattaya.

Is there no community of expats where you could get help for a beer or two?

Yep, they've got their installation CD's Ghost and put all the unwanted shit on it, usually from an infected external drive. Then you'd be back to normal. 

[robblok]

Windows 10 really is not hard to install, normally it includes almost all drivers. There are not that many programs to install after windows 10.

[KhunBENQ]

I know this from PCs of the granddaughters.

Quite a packed mess.

And even if they switch Windows to English you might experience application SW popping up in Thai. Notorious is a deeply embedded download manager in Thai.

Took me quite some effort to pull it out.

[jenny2017]

21 hours ago, KhunBENQ said:

I know this from PCs of the granddaughters.

Quite a packed mess.

And even if they switch Windows to English you might experience application SW popping up in Thai. Notorious is a deeply embedded download manager in Thai.

Took me quite some effort to pull it out.

Have you ever tried to change the "system locale" too? I was sick and tired of stuff popping up in Thai, changing the system locale setting did it. 

 

   https://www.java.com/en/download/help/locale.xml

Edited April 11, 2018 by jenny2017

[Thailand J]

Before you go to Fortune, try Tukcom Pattaya. I don’t know if he is still doing the same but last year the tech in Wattana on the 3^rd floor of Pattaya Tukcom installed a clean legit Win 10 Pro on my new laptop for 400B , I did not pay 4K so I didn’t get a key to “ activate” the window.

Everything was fine .After 10 months a water mark appeared at the lower right corner and I am not able to change the back ground..just as it says here:https://www.howtogeek.com/244678/you-dont-need-a-product-key-to-install-and-use-windows-10/

I can put up with it,  goto eBay to buy  a product key for $15, or pay 4k in Pattaya. I am not sure. I am about to replace my HDD with a SSD.

[KittenKong]

Get a Mac...you won't ever leave home without it !!

So true.

Every time you leave home you will be taking it to an Apple dealer because no one else can make it work or provide parts or software for it. Same applies to all Apple products: guaranteed 100% incompatible with everything else known to mankind.

[KhunBENQ]

A short report.

Last week my old desktop PC gave up (third time and I thought after 10 years it's time to say goodbye).

 

Bought a new one at the local JIB shop (i5, 3 Ghz, on board graphics, 8 GB, 1 TB, DVD,  14300 Baht). They build to order in 30 minutes.

I ordered bare HW only, no SW at all.

 

Beforehand I had downloaded Win10 Pro (German) using my laptop to an 8 GB USB stick using Windows Media Creation Tool (original download from MS).

 

Installed from USB (without having license key).

Details omitted.

 

Downloaded and installed basic freeware that I use, browsers etc.

 

Then being stuck when trying to create a second user account and other settings.

Can be only be done after registering/activation.

So the "30 day use without key" is not the whole truth!

 

Friday I ordered a key at a German dealer (Win10 Pro) for 11,99 Euro.

Got it today, entered it and activated it without any glitch.

Positive activation message and also shown in the control panel.

 

Subject to some late surprise/problem this looks good.

Edited April 23, 2018 by KhunBENQ

[jenny2017]

7 minutes ago, KhunBENQ said:

A short report.

Last week my old desktop PC gave up (third time and I thought after 10 years it's time to say goodbye).

 

Bought a new one at the local JIB shop (i5, 3 Ghz, on board graphics, 8 GB, 1 TB, DVD,  14300 Baht). They build to order in 30 minutes.

I ordered bare HW only, no SW at all.

 

Beforehand I had downloaded Win10 Pro (German) using my laptop to an 8 GB USB stick using Windows Media Creation Tool (original download from MS).

 

Installed from USB (without having license key).

Details omitted.

 

Downloaded and installed basic freeware that I use, browsers etc.

 

Then being stuck when trying to create a second user account and other settings.

Can be only be done after registering/activation.

So the "30 day use without key" is not the whole truth!

 

Friday I ordered a key at a German dealer (Win10 Pro) for 11,99 Euro.

Got it today, entered it and activated it without any glitch.

Positive activation message and also shown in the control panel.

 

Subject to some late surprise/problem this looks good.

Once you've got a digital license with a Windows account, you'd have gotten your old key back with MS's help. I've got no time to look for the link, please check it. 

[ravip]

Would these activation keys (bought from the eBay) work if you change computers?

 

[KneeDeep]

On 22/04/2018 at 4:01 AM, Thailand J said:

Before you go to Fortune, try Tukcom Pattaya. I don’t know if he is still doing the same but last year the tech in Wattana on the 3^rd floor of Pattaya Tukcom installed a clean legit Win 10 Pro on my new laptop for 400B , I did not pay 4K so I didn’t get a key to “ activate” the window.

 

Everything was fine .After 10 months a water mark appeared at the lower right corner and I am not able to change the back ground..just as it says here:https://www.howtogeek.com/244678/you-dont-need-a-product-key-to-install-and-use-windows-10/

 

I can put up with it,  goto eBay to buy  a product key for $15, or pay 4k in Pattaya. I am not sure. I am about to replace my HDD with a SSD.

 

 

If so, why did the watermark appear?

 

I think they used a well known tool to activate, which either timed out after six months or was discovered by Defender.

[NanLaew]

On 23/04/2018 at 8:28 AM, KhunBENQ said:

A short report.

Last week my old desktop PC gave up (third time and I thought after 10 years it's time to say goodbye).

 

Bought a new one at the local JIB shop (i5, 3 Ghz, on board graphics, 8 GB, 1 TB, DVD,  14300 Baht). They build to order in 30 minutes.

I ordered bare HW only, no SW at all.

 

Beforehand I had downloaded Win10 Pro (German) using my laptop to an 8 GB USB stick using Windows Media Creation Tool (original download from MS).

 

Installed from USB (without having license key).

Details omitted.

 

Downloaded and installed basic freeware that I use, browsers etc.

 

Then being stuck when trying to create a second user account and other settings.

Can be only be done after registering/activation.

So the "30 day use without key" is not the whole truth!

 

Friday I ordered a key at a German dealer (Win10 Pro) for 11,99 Euro.

Got it today, entered it and activated it without any glitch.

Positive activation message and also shown in the control panel.

 

Subject to some late surprise/problem this looks good.

Good info there, especially the price for the i5 build. That's about the same price I paid for each of the the last couple of i5's that I home-assembled after shopping around at Pantip about 5 and 6 years ago. Both still going good but one is showing it's age running Win7 32-bit. The Win 7 64-bit machine gets used less but seems faster with the kids gaming and the like.

 

This year will see me plunging into the Win10 pool since my Win7 64-bit 7-year-old laptop hardware is rapidly falling apart. Been delaying as a lot of the contractors I supervise haven't migrated from 7. However, the one I worked with late last year had and the learning curve for me on the work station they provided wasn't too bad.

[KittenKong]

Bought a new one at the local JIB shop (i5, 3 Ghz, on board graphics, 8 GB, 1 TB, DVD, 14300 Baht). They build to order in 30 minutes.

I like JIB and buy nearly all my parts there.

However, why did you not get an SSD for the operating system? That would make a massive improvement to the general speed of the PC. I'm amazed that they didnt suggest it. Price would be around 1500-4000 depending on size and quality, and a 120Gb drive would be large enough for most users, assuming that you only put the OS and programmes on it and leave all data on the other drive. A 240Gb drive would be luxury. Installing it would not take long as most free drive imaging tools will move the operating system to the new drive automatically for you. Obviously it would have been neater to install Windows fresh to the SSD at the time of building it, but no big deal to have to move it now.

[KhunBENQ]

Thanks for the hint on SSD.

I will wait until this new fresh systems gets slow

[janclaes47]

I bought a Windows 7 key from Reddit a few years ago.

 

It installed and registered fine, but after a few months it became invalid out of the dark. I contacted the seller and he gave me a new key free of charge, but same story.

 

After a few months it became invalid, and I got a replacement again.

 

That one lasted 1 year before it became invalid.

 

I ran the command prompts on each license and it showed a positive activation and how many reactivations were left.

[KhunBENQ]

12 minutes ago, janclaes47 said:

After a few months it became invalid, and I got a replacement again.

That's what I meant with "Subject to some late surprise".

I had this with the granddaughter's Win7 which was activated via some crack.

Let's wait.

 

"slmgr" says it's permanently activated.

Edited April 25, 2018 by KhunBENQ

[jenny2017]

4 minutes ago, KhunBENQ said:

That's what I meant with "Subject to some late surprise".

Let's wait.

Not with W 10. Your license will turn into a digital one and if linked to an MS account your license will always be valid. Of course not if it's an organisation's key.

 

  

 

  

[KneeDeep]

20 hours ago, NanLaew said:

Good info there, especially the price for the i5 build. That's about the same price I paid for each of the the last couple of i5's that I home-assembled after shopping around at Pantip about 5 and 6 years ago. Both still going good but one is showing it's age running Win7 32-bit. The Win 7 64-bit machine gets used less but seems faster with the kids gaming and the like.

 

This year will see me plunging into the Win10 pool since my Win7 64-bit 7-year-old laptop hardware is rapidly falling apart. Been delaying as a lot of the contractors I supervise haven't migrated from 7. However, the one I worked with late last year had and the learning curve for me on the work station they provided wasn't too bad.

 

You can install 64 bit on the 32 bit machine if it's 64 bit capable. The licence isn't limited to 32 bit. You can them move it to Windows 10 if you wish.

 

If you've anyone coming in from the UK, ask them to pick you up a couple of these; https://www.mymemory.co.uk/integral-120gb-p-series-5-sata-iii-2-5-ssd-drive-560mb-s.html  at 1100 baht a piece and fit them as Boot drives.