Windows 7 RC Mini Review

I’ve been using Windows 7 RC for a whole week now. I generally pleased with its overall performance. Clean install from Windows XP, I had no problem with all the drivers requirements; smooth installation. Since I am not really a tech savvy, but somewhat know a little bit of this and that, let’s wrap it up.

First, Where to download it?

We’re still living in promotion period of Microsoft until June 1st 2010. You can download and install it for free LEGALLY here (3GB).

There are 32-bit and 64-bit version, and here are some points to remember:

1. Windows 7 only upgradable from Vista. So you need to do fresh install aka re-format your system.
2. You can not upgrade from 32-bit into 64-bit. You also need to do fresh install for this matter.

Keep rolling…

Overview

I was a little bit pessimist with this windows since I have been staying with Windows XP for like… forever.  I had a dissatisfaction with Vista as well back then for its performances, especially the speed. Later on I just heard so many reviews regarding Windows 7, which is fast, stable and just awesome. I gave it a try, and it put a smile on my face :D – it’s like riding a Windows XP into the new world.

Speed?

I could say it’s pretty much a pair with XP… but somewhat even faster. The loading time for each application, the “right click” response on each file, start up and shut down time, and the CPU load is fairly lower.

However, there’s one problem I encounter. The image viewer, for both Windows Photo Viewer and Windows Live Photo Gallery, is pretty slow in generating the images. The initial start up takes about 5 seconds, and you need to wait 3-5 seconds to preview the next image. I looked up on Google but no significant result on how to solve this.

Architecture?

Pretty much the same with Vista, except for the toolbar.

You can revert it to the old Windows style, but the new toolbar is very great if you like minimalist design. It uses Icon that combining the similar type of windows, and let you “peek” what’s inside by hovering your mouse on the icon. For the live documentary you can stumble it on Youtube.

Compatibility?

Put aside that I got BSOD twice this week for unknown reason, all software I used in XP 32-bit are running smoothly here.

Adobe Suite CS3, Microsoft Office 2007, Foobar, Miranda-IM, CCCP Video Codec, Media Player Classic, PangYa!, Cute FTP, Torrent, PowerISO, WinRAR, etc.

Even more, Windows 7 PRO and Ultimate offers the XP mode as well.

Price?

Until today, you can pre-order it for $50 (Home), $100 (Pro), $220 (Ultimate). That’s like half the price of Vista with twice of performance :)

MAC or PC?

I am Stovila, and I am a PC :)

This entry was posted on Friday, July 3rd, 2009 at 1:53 am and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.