Is it worth getting Windows 8?

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Primas

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Aug 25, 2012
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Many people are saying that its not better than Windows 7 x64. Is Windows 8 x64 better than Windows 7 x64 Ultimate?
 
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pauls3743

pauls3743

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Dec 24, 2011
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To say that Windows 8 is "not better" than Windows 7 would actually be quite a compliment. Windows 8 does boot faster and the general subsystem has been improved. However, Microsoft made the massive mistake of replacing the Start Menu with a second screen (formerly known as Metro) which is primarily designed for tablets and other touchscreen devices, not mouse and keyboard desktop computers. This resulted in an abomination of switching screens and hidden menus to try and get some kind of user usabiility out of the computer. It short, get Windows 7 while you still can, skip Windows 8 and hope their following OS learns the massive mistakes of this one.
 
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vinylb

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Aug 24, 2012
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I guess it all depends on what you want or what features you need or use. For me, everything I need is in Windows 7 and I do not plan to upgrade to 8 for as long as I can help it. I never did find any value in purchasing Professional let alone Ultimate. I have not seen a direct comparison yet between the two but it would be interesting.
 
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mactronix

mactronix

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Sep 17, 2006
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These many people do not exist in the same circles I frequent, which are many and varied. Everyone I know hates W8 with a passion. I have recently read a review of the gaming performance compared to W7 and the difference is Zero. From that view point its not worth even considering.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Microsoft/Windows_8_Graphics_Performance/23.html

Mactronix :)
 
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tassietim

tassietim

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didn't i read somewhere about win8 having a "kill Program " built into the O.s for apps brought from its store which with asking the user it changes or just removes something by it self at Microsofts request
 
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aicom

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Mar 29, 2012
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It really depends on your personal opinion. If you give it a fair chance, you might actually like it. I had to start pinning things to my taskbar aggressively but once I had everything there I hardly entered Metro. Win8 in generally seems snappier and uses significantly less power on my laptop than Win7 did. For me, the tradeoff makes sense on the mobile side since you have nothing without good battery life. I also use it on my desktop (my sig has the specs) and it runs quite well there too. Same general snappiness and same comment about pinning things to taskbar for ease. I haven't had any significant issues with drivers on Windows 8 besides an Intel Bluetooth driver which won't install (MS ships a generic one already in Win8 which works).

I generally like upgrading to be on the cutting edge (despite the problems it can bring). What really surprised me was what my parents thought when I showed them Metro. They actually liked it and preferred it to Win7. They liked the live updating tiles and having simpler apps for email, calendar, etc. So maybe there is something to this Metro thing.


PS: Keyboard shortcuts are definitely useful in Metro.
 
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Guest

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I would say stick with what you find comfortable. Windows 8 may be the next best thing but from reading reviews of it not every<ones happy. Microsoft did a good job with 7, and tried to integrate new features in windows 8 that don't really work with a mouse and keyboard. Save some money and get windows 7.
 
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pixc1987

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Mar 10, 2012
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From what I've heard Win8 is going to be cheaper, it boots faster, requires less memory, so what it comes down to for me is can you deal with the interface change? Also it is still in its early stages, it might fail or get better. I like Windows 8, I find Ableton(music software runs ok with it) I have heard Steam has no problems, it really isn't better or worse, its just different, give it a try first?
 
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spartanmk2

spartanmk2

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May 11, 2012
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For me, Windows 8 does not offer anything that is worth upgrading from windows 7. I'll continue to use windows 7 until future games require a new Direct X that win7 wont support (which is why i went from XP-->win7, lack of DX10/11 support)
 
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johhny-marshal

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Aug 27, 2012
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Well..Windows 7 is better than Windows 8 only for the users with Desktops and Laptops (devices with mouse). As Microsoft has replaced start button in the interface with a second screen called metro screen which has specially built for touchscreen gadgets. So for desktop and laptop users it is not much a good choice.
 
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ojas

ojas

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Yeah only problem with win 8 is that metro interface. Otherwise it's an okayish upgrade. They've changed a lot of stuff "under the hood" as well, though it's not Win NT 7.0.

I won't be upgrading however, too expensive to keep doing this every 2 years when win 7 works fine.

As far as gaming perf, i think there's a <5% diff b/w them.
 
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sameronline

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Mar 22, 2012
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I don't know about you guys. Everyone has an opinion. But for me, I have been using Windows 8 Enterprise (x64) since about 2 weeks and I can conclusively say that it is absolutely the BEST OS that I have ever used from Microsoft products (I have been using Windows since: Windows 2.0).

It is booting SUPER FAST, Shutting Down SUPER FAST, and processing SUPER FAST.

Finally with Windows 8 we're getting rid of the ugly Start menu and enjoy the wonderful UX that Windows 8 has.
 
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aramisathei

aramisathei

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I've been using Windows 8 for a little while now, and really I haven't had many issues other than learning the hot keys/charms and a few program incompatibilities / workarounds.
For example, I had to install a workaround with Windows Live to get Dark Souls to run via Steam, but it runs just fine now with no performance degradation (or noticeable increase).

The hardest part for me was getting used to using the keyboard a lot more, as a non-touch interface requires the use of hot keys a lot more rather than the mouse.
Once you get used to them though, they're actually pretty convenient.
As far as the metro ui, it isn't necessarily intuitive, but the more you use it the more you get used to it. It actually is easier for several things after a while.

The biggest thing I've seen is that fuss over the start button being gone.
It was hard to adjust to at first, but if you press Windows key + Q, there are all the same features, and the desktop remains less cluttered.
From what I've seen, it's just getting used to the new OS (much like the changes from XP to Vista, albeit those were more subtle, and well... Vista).

I think Windows 8 is a good choice if you plan on buying a Windows 8 Tablet or Phone due to the Windows Live account integration, but time will tell how useful that'll end up being.

BLUF: Stick with what you're comfortable with--they both work well.

Personally, I think Windows 7 is better for a desktop environment without touch screens, but Windows 8 does feel more responsive and doesn't have any real issues in the desktop (except the learning curve and using the keyboard a bit more--both generally negligible).
 
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shafe88

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I'd rather have an ugly slow start menu than a fast boring tetris ui any day ;). I've tried windows 8 and didn't notice any difference in boot/shutdown performance between WinHate(8) and vista SP2. The only performance difference I noticed between WinHate(8) and vista SP2 is that I was able to get more done on vista than on WinHate(8). It's too much of a hassle switching between Metro and Desktop mode.
 
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JamesSneed

JamesSneed

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Oct 26, 2009
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No compelling reason to upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 8. I personally plan to skip over Windows 8 on my home PC that is running Windows 7 64 bit. Most of the upsides of Windows 8 like faster boot/shutdown are already taken care of by installing a SSD drive along with using Windows 7.
 
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ohiou_grad_06

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Dec 19, 2006
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I tried Windows 8, and as a PC technician with a Bachelor's Degree and a few years experience, I personally hope Windows 8 bounces higher than a rubber ball.

I think the idea of Metro, is a good idea, but I think Microsoft needed to give users a choice of their experience, IE Windows 8 with Metro(I think they call it Modern UI right?), or a classic Windows 7 style experience.

However Microsoft seems to think they can control the PC market and tell users what they are to use, whereas the user should have the choice in my opinion. For this reason, I hope Windows 8 is such a flop that Microsoft gets that idea through their minds. That said, I personally will likely buy a copy of Windows 8 because I know that I have to learn it and will have to support it, does not mean that I may not be using classic shell or Start8 to bring back my Start menu though.
 
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randomninjaatk

randomninjaatk

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Aug 16, 2012
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LIES! You obviously don't use short cut keys or the keyboard much becuase from a power users standpoint, they enable a user to work much more effectively and quickly.

Good examples of the biggest uses happen to be games like Starcraft. The pro players would never be as good as they are with just a mouse, selecting items and etc is way way to slow and unproductive using a mouse versus using a keyboard.

This also applies to opening programs and OS functions. It's much faster to press the Win key and type the name of the application and press enter then clicking, waiting for the menu to load, clicking to the folder, and then clicking the icon to open it.


Edit: As for general productivity, it really shouldn't have much of an effect at all because people who need to be productive will primarily be using desktop apps, which don't use the metro interface and will allow multiple windows on single/multiple screens for normal usage. But this is subjective to what the user needs to do, and the true effects can't be really determined until the general population has the OS + using it regularly.
 
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