Talk me into/out of upgrading to Windows 10 from Windows 7

[dpk33]

I've been on Windows 7 ever since it came out and I have had absolutely no problems/qualms with it whatsoever. Now that Windows 10 is out, I'm debating switching to it.

What are the reasons why I should? Are there some must have brand new features? If not must haves, are there some cool or interesting features that I might like?

And what are the reasons why I shouldn't? Are there features/additions that make it inferior to Windows 7 (in your opinion)?

Key factors I'm looking for are performance and features - actually, those are probably the only things people actually care about haha. I know features are all very individual, but I've heard mixed reviews about Windows 10, especially with the privacy settings.

 

[squirrel dog]

legacy hardware , like my dell colorlaser cn3200 printer is the reason I have one pc still on win 7 . Dell has no windows 10 drivers for it and has no plans to ever update it . If you have no reason to stay with 7 , I would update to 10 , you have 30 days to revert back to 7 if you don't like 10 . No os is perfect,but 7x64 is damn good . I let the rest of my pc's update to 10 , I changed most to look like 7 and remove all of the tiles . 10 in all it's glory looks like a tablet /phone os to me .

 

[dpk33]

legacy hardware , like my dell colorlaser cn3200 printer is the reason I have one pc still on win 7 . Dell has no windows 10 drivers for it and has no plans to ever update it . If you have no reason to stay with 7 , I would update to 10 , you have 30 days to revert back to 7 if you don't like 10 . No os is perfect,but 7x64 is damn good . I let the rest of my pc's update to 10 , I changed most to look like 7 and remove all of the tiles . 10 in all it's glory looks like a tablet /phone os to me .

I'm on the fence about going to Windows 10. It's not that I don't have a reason to stay with 7, I mean it has all the familiarity and compatibility and whatnot. But if it's worth it to make the switch, then I will.

I should mention that I do have some experience with Windows 10. It's installed on my laptop. One thing I've noticed is that it actually feels slower than 8.1. Maybe I'm just not optimizing then settings correctly?

 

[Underclocked]

Stick with Windows 7. I can think of nothing in 10 that you need and several things you do not. 10 does not qualify to be called an upgrade in my mind. You are running the best MS OS at present. You might want to look into removing some of the recent telemetry upgrades from 7 if that is a concern to you.

 

[TheELF]

I should mention that I do have some experience with Windows 10. It's installed on my laptop. One thing I've noticed is that it actually feels slower than 8.1. Maybe I'm just not optimizing then settings correctly?

Maybe your laptop is just slower than your desktop....
There is no earth shattering reason to go to 10 but there is no good reason not to either.

 

[dpk33]

Maybe your laptop is just slower than your desktop....
There is no earth shattering reason to go to 10 but there is no good reason not to either.

Sorry, I meant to say 10 on the laptop felt slower than 8.1 on the same laptop. Alright, I guess I'll give it a few more weeks or debate then and see what others have to say.

 

[Mem]

Stick with Windows 7. I can think of nothing in 10 that you need and several things you do not. 10 does not qualify to be called an upgrade in my mind. You are running the best MS OS at present. You might want to look into removing some of the recent telemetry upgrades from 7 if that is a concern to you.

I have to strongly disagree, some users get too attached to an old OS like Win7 and think its the best when truth told no Windows OS is the best, some would argue a few Linux distros run rings around any Window OS, however getting back to the real topic ie 7 or 10 I would go with 10 for reasons below.

Win10 is what all developers will be concentrating on and game developers already have DX12 game support more or less here and some in Feb, so 10 for gaming is a no brainer, better security and longer life support are other reasons plus features like refresh and reset options in Win10, plenty more features I won't bore you with.

Win7 is already past its mainstream support(ended last Jan 2015) and now on its last extended support until Jan 2020 when it can join WinXP in that big RIP OS heaven.

Fact is you have to upgrade to a more modern OS at some point and even thinking that in your opinion Win7 is the best OS will not change its EOL date.
Personally having used and owned XP, Vista, Win7, Win8 etc and now Win10 which I think is very stable and no real issues in my usage including gaming and hardware/drivers.
Also a big update coming for Win10 within the next few weeks I hear.

 

[thesmokingman]

I'd never willingly go back to win 7, no way.

 

[itakey]

So is Windows 10 ready for prime time, and in the work environment? My main machine runs windows 7, and I skipped over Windows 8 and 8.1, but I have Windows 10 on a personal computer and it seems solid.

Go 10 in the work environment or wait for the first major update?

 

[Magic Carpet]

I've been on Windows 7 ever since it came out and I have had absolutely no problems/qualms with it whatsoever. Now that Windows 10 is out, I'm debating switching to it.

What are the reasons why I should? Are there some must have brand new features? If not must haves, are there some cool or interesting features that I might like?

And what are the reasons why I shouldn't? Are there features/additions that make it inferior to Windows 7 (in your opinion)?

Reasons... will come in time when Microsoft begins neglecting software on anything older than Windows 10, give it a couple of years. If Windows 7 works fine for you, keep it. You will actually feel yourself when you need to change it. Only difference, some people do it today, and some will do it later.

For example, I have one computer that is still running Windows Vista SP2 without any issues. I am not planning to change anything on it, as it is absolutely fine for what I use it for. No need to fix what ain't broken, unless you need additional functionality and/or features.

You see, I have many computers and mobile devices, I like variety. Obviously, if you have only one machine and want to keep yourself updated, then it's better to stay with newer tech. Makes sense?

Obviously, this free upgrade is turning out to be a joke. Microsoft is really desperate. I hope Microsoft will soon realize that it's not a clever idea to push it so hard to people, what is really a Phone/Tablet optimized OS running in a desktop environment with traditional inputs. Apple is waaaay smarter.

Windows 10 LTSB is somewhat more interesting, in my opinion, but it is not available in retail.

 

[Executioner]

If you go the 10 route, make sure to perform a clean install. The update may work or it may not work. I did the upgrade on my laptop from 7, and it was slower so I went back to 7. I think a fresh install is always best.

 

[MustISO]

I've seen way too many issue with Windows 10 to do it any of my main computers. I would certainly try it for testing on a VM or a test system but I've disabled the updates on my relatives PC's as well as all of mine. There's no features in Windows 10 that I want or care about. Windows 7 does exactly what I want an OS to do.

 

[PliotronX]

If you go the 10 route, make sure to perform a clean install. The update may work or it may not work. I did the upgrade on my laptop from 7, and it was slower so I went back to 7. I think a fresh install is always best.

Sound advice :thumbsup:

 

[Underclocked]

Mem, I respect your opinion but have to ask why would one abandon a perfectly fine operating system when there is still roughly 5 years of support remaining? Even XP is hardly in the cemetery at this point.

The fact that Microsoft is pushing Windows 10 so hard (they CAN'T give it away fast enough to suit them) and has even tricked people into blindly installing it should be enough to cause folks to balk. Aside from touch screen support, Cortana???, and DX12 for future gamers, exactly what about 10 is a real upgrade? None of those things have appeal so far as I'm concerned. It also sacrifices a few things that many will miss. You can't even say with assurance that Microsoft's definition of "life of the device" is a definite time period, or that it will exceed 2020 without cost.

Windows 7 (without all the telemetry) is the finest Windows operating system for desktop computers to date, IMHO. If you must have apps, buy a phone.

I'll admit to installing Windows 10 on laptop yesterday after a nightmare of trying to get 7 or 8/8.1 to run properly on it. The laptop had a complete hard drive failure and I FINALLY discovered it had used 8.1 with Bing. I never realized what an important distinction that "with Bing" was until that laptop hit my door. When I realized the embedded key wouldn't work with anything else, I found a legit iso of that version after considerable searching. Installed it and it activated immediately. When it repeatedly failed to install one of the major update rollups, I gave up on that OS and upgraded it to 10 Home. It's running 10 Home just fine and I made it look and act so much like 7 that I don't think the owner will really notice the difference (except for no Media Center).

 

[ArisVer]

A good reason to go for 10 is the free upgrade.

 

[Ham n' Eggs]

No feature of any home PC OS justifies the type of spying that Microsoft is doing on people with Windows 10.

Sure you can hack the hell out of the OS by following various guides on the internet but since you can't opt-out of updates you can NEVER even pretend to trust that you have control over your data.

When microsoft takes a copy, the govt takes a copy. There is absolutely no reason to give a corporation that kind of power over you when you have a perfectly fine OS with Windows 7.

This spying is going to hurt people, and is probably already hurting people in some countries where civil protections from govt. are more or less non-existent.

I've been a die-hard microsoft loyalist and defender ever since I left DOS behind and I've lost all trust and respect for them after this. They're even covertly buggin win 7 with BS telemetry. They have no shame, and my slow migration to linux has begun... 3 computers thus far to Linux Mint (surprisingly easy to change over and software installation is a pure delight... soooo easy.)

 

[nickbits]

No MPEG2 decoder in 10. That is keeping me on 8.1. I couldn't find a 3rd party one that actually works for what I need.

 

[Magic Carpet]

No MPEG2 decoder in 10. That is keeping me on 8.1. I couldn't find a 3rd party one that actually works for what I need.

and if I am going to nitpick... no Titan Chess! They took all the entertainment away. And I actually enjoyed things like Windows Mail and Windows Photo Gallery in Vista. Yeah, looks like Windows 7 was the last OS with actually good features.

 

[vailr]

I recommend a fresh install on a bootable external USB 3.0 drive, to gain familiarity before nuking the Windows 7 installation.
After that, use "O&O ShutUp10" to deal with any unwanted spying from Redmond.
And "ClassicShell" for an improved Start Menu.
Both are free programs which can be found at MajorGeeks.com.

Note: there are work-arounds for copying over & enable using Win7's in-built games onto Windows 10.

 

[postmortemIA]

The PCs that I did upgrade on are messed on in a subtle ways. Yet is very hard to fix them without the fresh install. Now I have other user accounts on some, so clean install is not always an option.

The Microsoft nagware and some uninstallable metro apps really annoy me. You really have no (full) control over your PC anymore. The Store decides on its own what to install and when. Same goes for Windows update.

Although Windows 10 is faster in some ways, I see that start screen seems to be slower because it seems that they are using 3D rendering engine for it.

If you must do it, clone your disk before you start installation.

I'd think that majority of people doesn't worry too much about these "little" details, and that Windows 10 generally works OK. After all, up to billion people use Android that has similar "privacy".

 

[jkauff]

No MPEG2 decoder in 10. That is keeping me on 8.1. I couldn't find a 3rd party one that actually works for what I need.

What media player are you using? Most non-Microsoft players these days use the LAV filters suite, which does a great job on MPEG2.

 

[Mem]

Mem, I respect your opinion but have to ask why would one abandon a perfectly fine operating system when there is still roughly 5 years of support remaining? Even XP is hardly in the cemetery at this point.

The fact that Microsoft is pushing Windows 10 so hard (they CAN'T give it away fast enough to suit them) and has even tricked people into blindly installing it should be enough to cause folks to balk. Aside from touch screen support, Cortana???, and DX12 for future gamers, exactly what about 10 is a real upgrade? None of those things have appeal so far as I'm concerned. It also sacrifices a few things that many will miss. You can't even say with assurance that Microsoft's definition of "life of the device" is a definite time period, or that it will exceed 2020 without cost.

Windows 7 (without all the telemetry) is the finest Windows operating system for desktop computers to date, IMHO. If you must have apps, buy a phone.

I'll admit to installing Windows 10 on laptop yesterday after a nightmare of trying to get 7 or 8/8.1 to run properly on it. The laptop had a complete hard drive failure and I FINALLY discovered it had used 8.1 with Bing. I never realized what an important distinction that "with Bing" was until that laptop hit my door. When I realized the embedded key wouldn't work with anything else, I found a legit iso of that version after considerable searching. Installed it and it activated immediately. When it repeatedly failed to install one of the major update rollups, I gave up on that OS and upgraded it to 10 Home. It's running 10 Home just fine and I made it look and act so much like 7 that I don't think the owner will really notice the difference (except for no Media Center).

I abandoned Win7 back in 2012 after using it for three years, one to Win8 and the other to good old Linux. Fact is, there's nothing special about Win7.
I've had ALL my Windows Operating Systems very stable, same goes for Linux.

I'm a gamer so DX12 is important to me and only path for that is Win10, now if I could have Linux and DX12 in one OS I would be one very happy gamer and ditch Windows for good, however having said that I have had no issues with Win10 in gaming or general use and to be honest last time I had serious issues was way back in the early days of WinXP with the dreaded Via 4 in 1 drivers, I bet old folks here remember that.

Bottom line Win7 is really a tweaked Vista(I liked Vista so not saying that is a bad thing) but offers nothing special ,you can argue about stability etc but as I've stated, I've had too many Operating Systems that were all solid and served me well over the years, even good old DOS 6.22 lol..

As to real upgrade well what did Win7 offer over Vista SP2 as a real upgrade, yep hardly anything, at least Win8.1 and Win10 offer a lot more.

Anyway I stated why, four good reasons, improved security, longer life span, DX12 for gamers, free upgrade.

Btw my brother upgraded his six years old HP laptop from 7 to 10 without issues( ie no driver or software/stability issues).
I'm well aware no OS can guarantee a perfect upgrade, but that goes for Win7 or any OS you care to name as well.



Win10 is very easy to use and works fine as a desktop PC if that is your preference, remember end of the day you have to move forward sooner or later.
Right, back to my Win10 online gaming .

 

[Ham n' Eggs]

One reason that many people will be hesitant to leave windows 7 behind is that sometimes they're running software that is more expensive than their OS + Computer combined... (CAD software, 3D Modeling, Adobe etc.) and the chances of compatibility clashes between a new OS and a slightly outdated but still excellent (and expensive $$$$) software are enough of a discouragement to not even consider an upgrade.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Windows 7 is probably the best MS desktop OS at the moment. 8.x is a disaster to use, and 10 is still too new and has some privacy issues.

Unless you are trying to do something that specifically wont work in 7, there is no reason to upgrade.

 

[MongGrel]

Been running X fine here since it came out myself, the main I still even do the betas.

Have had a few issues ow and then, using it over time helps me learn to correct them.

Have it on another in the main bedroom, but haven't left updates on it.

If I were about software issues, Like CAD programs, I would be hesitant.