OK , so i have installed Win7 on a low-end laptop (1ghz atom cpu, 2gb Ram) which is a similar specs available at Win7 release , and since many many people claimed that Win10 is crappy compared to Win7 ; let me compared Win7 to Win10 ... i will even use Win7 Ultimate vs Win10 Home
this will be a real-time comparison made like Average Joe would.
please don't mention about privacy , it is not the purpose here.
Installation (Win10 win)
both OS are in the latest ISO from USB using Rufus
Win7 : the installation was properly made, nothing special there
Win10: same as Win7, did customized setting , etc...
Then there the first expected fail of Win7 ; it doesn't have the proper drivers for my machine; which was released for Win8. So basically i ended up with no network, so i can't have Windows Updates...
I was expected it so i have them downloaded prior to the installation, but Average Joe won't think of it and if he doesn't have another PC under hands, he is done...
Post Installation (no winner)
Win7: user account creation is classic , nothing to complain here.
Win10: MS push you to use a MS account for various purposes, but a local account is permitted ; so here nothing to complain too.
Windows Updates (Win10 win)
when i install an OS , the first thing i do is Windows Update to get latest compatible drivers and security fixes.
Win7: Windows update hang and download nothing, if i didn't have a network traffic monitoring tool i could wait for hours. so i started wasting my time looking for fixes and finally find one here Windows 7 - Windows Updates hanging and not downloading?
Win10: clicked "check updates, after less than a minute , all are displayed, downloaded , installed without issues. I heard that some users had problems with it and some updates smashed their system, but i did dozen of Win10 installs and never get one.
If you worry, you can force Win10 to download only fixes and not drivers. ( PC > Hardware > Device Installation Settings)
Installation of updates in Win10 is smoother and less subject to errors/crash , not saying than on Win7 the display of the updates is very bad , you don't know if it is installing or hanging...
Post installation Cleaning/Tweaking/Backup (Not for Average Joe) (Win7 win)
After updating the OS, i always clean it and do various tweaks and modifications to make it "faster" , safer, and easier to use. Among those tweaks are services customization, security tweaks via registry/group policies, etc...Then finish by a backup using Windows Backup.
Win7: all options are in the same place (control panel ), they are easy to get.
Win10: i dont know why they decided to split the settings in 2 places , it make it harder to do since you have to navigate in "Settings" which may redirect to Control Panel...
In term of customization and control Win7 is better than Win10, (Win10 removing many of the control you had in Win7).
It is the main reason why Geeks and other advanced users stick to Win7.
For the backup no difference because Win10 uses Win7 system
I will post my Customized Win7 theme, im sure you will love it
there the screenshot : Desktops Show Off!
Built-in Security (Win10 win)
when the OS is totally installed, cleaned, tweaked, it is time to check the security.
Win7: unless you have a version of Win7 with Applocker, Win7 barely give you anything to protect yourself, you must look for a 3rd party application.
Win10: MS did its best to give to the customers a secure OS , so many security implementations were made (kernel enhanced protection, secureboot, integrated AV, system wide reputation feature, new integrity level, etc...) , as a common user , you barely need anything else; security geeks however...
3rd Party security softs (Win7 Win)
Now that we knows the security features of the OS, it is up to the user to add its favored security soft.
Win7: All the actual security softs works on Win7 , so there is no problem.
Win10: due to some restrictive adjustments made to the kernel, some softs can't run anymore on Win10 and some can't use or lost some of their features/protection (KIS, Webroot, Zemana, etc...).
Performance (Win10 win)
now all is set , we can start enjoy the OS...as i said earlier , both OS were tested on a machine with the technology available at their release. There is no point on comparing a new OS on a machine made to run on a older OS. the older OS will always perform better.
Win7: Quite fast and if you disable Aero and sounds, Win7 is even faster.
Win10: Win7 has a huge advantage on Win7 , it is the Hybrid Boot (aka Fast Boot) that really increase the boot time of the machine. However Win10 has many feature that eat resources and honesty not really needed and those can be disabled (as you can do for Win7)
Usability (Win7 win)
What is important is usability, you won't spend too much time looking for something.
This comparison was made on laptops not a tablets , so i judged it accordingly.
Win7: all is at the same place, easily accessible.
Win10: Win8/10 were made for tablet first (and desktop after) , so the usability is quite different.
Luckily MS improved the desktop experience of Win 10 with the lastest Anniversaty Update. but in a overall point of view ,Win7 is better on desktop/laptop machines.
Conclusion:
the Winner is Win10 because its security and core enhancements and optimization, however Win7 keep the leadership in term of customization/control and usability.
Ok so it is finish now, so you are welcome to comment; i tried to do this comparison as fair as possible for both OS.
this will be a real-time comparison made like Average Joe would.
please don't mention about privacy , it is not the purpose here.
Installation (Win10 win)
both OS are in the latest ISO from USB using Rufus
Win7 : the installation was properly made, nothing special there
Win10: same as Win7, did customized setting , etc...
Then there the first expected fail of Win7 ; it doesn't have the proper drivers for my machine; which was released for Win8. So basically i ended up with no network, so i can't have Windows Updates...
I was expected it so i have them downloaded prior to the installation, but Average Joe won't think of it and if he doesn't have another PC under hands, he is done...
Post Installation (no winner)
Win7: user account creation is classic , nothing to complain here.
Win10: MS push you to use a MS account for various purposes, but a local account is permitted ; so here nothing to complain too.
Windows Updates (Win10 win)
when i install an OS , the first thing i do is Windows Update to get latest compatible drivers and security fixes.
Win7: Windows update hang and download nothing, if i didn't have a network traffic monitoring tool i could wait for hours. so i started wasting my time looking for fixes and finally find one here Windows 7 - Windows Updates hanging and not downloading?
Win10: clicked "check updates, after less than a minute , all are displayed, downloaded , installed without issues. I heard that some users had problems with it and some updates smashed their system, but i did dozen of Win10 installs and never get one.
If you worry, you can force Win10 to download only fixes and not drivers. ( PC > Hardware > Device Installation Settings)
Installation of updates in Win10 is smoother and less subject to errors/crash , not saying than on Win7 the display of the updates is very bad , you don't know if it is installing or hanging...
Post installation Cleaning/Tweaking/Backup (Not for Average Joe) (Win7 win)
After updating the OS, i always clean it and do various tweaks and modifications to make it "faster" , safer, and easier to use. Among those tweaks are services customization, security tweaks via registry/group policies, etc...Then finish by a backup using Windows Backup.
Win7: all options are in the same place (control panel ), they are easy to get.
Win10: i dont know why they decided to split the settings in 2 places , it make it harder to do since you have to navigate in "Settings" which may redirect to Control Panel...
In term of customization and control Win7 is better than Win10, (Win10 removing many of the control you had in Win7).
It is the main reason why Geeks and other advanced users stick to Win7.
For the backup no difference because Win10 uses Win7 system
I will post my Customized Win7 theme, im sure you will love it
there the screenshot : Desktops Show Off!
Built-in Security (Win10 win)
when the OS is totally installed, cleaned, tweaked, it is time to check the security.
Win7: unless you have a version of Win7 with Applocker, Win7 barely give you anything to protect yourself, you must look for a 3rd party application.
Win10: MS did its best to give to the customers a secure OS , so many security implementations were made (kernel enhanced protection, secureboot, integrated AV, system wide reputation feature, new integrity level, etc...) , as a common user , you barely need anything else; security geeks however...
3rd Party security softs (Win7 Win)
Now that we knows the security features of the OS, it is up to the user to add its favored security soft.
Win7: All the actual security softs works on Win7 , so there is no problem.
Win10: due to some restrictive adjustments made to the kernel, some softs can't run anymore on Win10 and some can't use or lost some of their features/protection (KIS, Webroot, Zemana, etc...).
Performance (Win10 win)
now all is set , we can start enjoy the OS...as i said earlier , both OS were tested on a machine with the technology available at their release. There is no point on comparing a new OS on a machine made to run on a older OS. the older OS will always perform better.
Win7: Quite fast and if you disable Aero and sounds, Win7 is even faster.
Win10: Win7 has a huge advantage on Win7 , it is the Hybrid Boot (aka Fast Boot) that really increase the boot time of the machine. However Win10 has many feature that eat resources and honesty not really needed and those can be disabled (as you can do for Win7)
Usability (Win7 win)
What is important is usability, you won't spend too much time looking for something.
This comparison was made on laptops not a tablets , so i judged it accordingly.
Win7: all is at the same place, easily accessible.
Win10: Win8/10 were made for tablet first (and desktop after) , so the usability is quite different.
Luckily MS improved the desktop experience of Win 10 with the lastest Anniversaty Update. but in a overall point of view ,Win7 is better on desktop/laptop machines.
Conclusion:
the Winner is Win10 because its security and core enhancements and optimization, however Win7 keep the leadership in term of customization/control and usability.
Ok so it is finish now, so you are welcome to comment; i tried to do this comparison as fair as possible for both OS.
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