Rafael Mestdag :
Is it just me and my pc or is Windows 10 a lot slower on mechanical drives than Windows 7 and 8.1 and even Vista?
YOU ARE RIGHT.
I have an old HP laptop with only 1,5 gb RAM and a mechanical drive, and I can tell you that Windows 10 is using the hard disk at a rate that makes the operating system unusable. I had disabled services like windows search, defender, updates... and it keeps using the hard disk as a virus... The ram is 60% free when I'm testing this, but the problem is disk access.
I have tried almost three times to make a NEW install OF Windows 10 in this laptop, and every time I've tried I get the same frustrating experience. Avoid Windows 10 on old pcs as hell.
The difference with Windows 8.1 is inmense; Windows 8.1 works very well, no hard disk abuse. Everything smooth if you keep the system with the basic software like Office (latest), Chrome and a few more things.
I repeat, I recommend keeping Windows 8.1. Even faster than Windows 7, take it for sure.
Forget all those websites recommending installing windows 10 on low-end pcs because it's 'optimized' and all that. They lie or did not made proper testing; Don't waste the time of your life.