diff --git a/src/msw/textentry.cpp b/src/msw/textentry.cpp
index 3577581ce2..d8a411ebc4 100644
--- a/src/msw/textentry.cpp
+++ b/src/msw/textentry.cpp
@@ -916,7 +916,7 @@ void wxTextEntry::SetMaxLength(unsigned long len)
 
 bool wxTextEntry::SetHint(const wxString& hint)
 {
-    if ( wxUxThemeEngine::GetIfActive() )
+    if ( wxGetWinVersion() >= wxWinVersion_Vista && wxUxThemeEngine::GetIfActive() )
     {
         // notice that this message always works with Unicode strings
         //