Benchmarks: Windows 7 RTM versus Vista, XP

[bekdik]

http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=22006

Now that the final version of Windows 7 has been released to manufacturing, it’s time to find out how much of an improvement or not it will make over its predecessors, Windows XP and Windows Vista. Kai Schmerer of ZDNet Germany put all three operating systems under the microscope and here’s what he discovered:

Windows Vista’s less than stellar reputation and poor uptake are due in large part to the heavy demands it makes on system hardware. When Vista appeared in the autumn of 2006, PCs and notebooks were less powerful than today’s machines. But even with modern hardware, anyone using a Vista-based system soon senses that this is an operating system suffering from the software equivalent of having the handbrake left on.

Microsoft cannot afford a repetition with Windows 7, and so has optimized all of the OS’s major system components. From startup to login, everything in Windows 7 is faster.

 

[killadoob]

Windows 7 is by far the best OS ever made by microsoft in my opinion.

 

[howardb]

Windows 7 is by far the best OS ever made by microsoft in my opinion.

+1
So far, all my testing of Win 7 has gone without problems - very stable, accepts most versions of drivers you throw at it, runs fast, etc...

For the first time in a very long time, I think MS has a winner, and I'd certainly by retail when it's launched.

 

[Abe]

Windows 7 is by far the best OS ever made by microsoft in my opinion.

Probably because it's the first time they listened to their clients.

 

[Abe]

This benchmark is a bit misleading when relating to XP. They don't run any of the real world applications under XP on page 4 which is a pity. From what I understand W7 is significantly slower then XP when it comes to multi threaded background stuff such as a small DB server but faster for everything else but it would have been nice to see some real evidence of this.

 

[ponder]

This benchmark is a bit misleading when relating to XP. They don't run any of the real world applications under XP on page 4 which is a pity.

+1 You can't just benchmark products and then decide to leave out one of the contenders for certain tests.

 

[killadoob]

I run real world application under xp and windows 7 like corel photoshop etc and they all run far better on windows 7.

they open in about 1/3 less time as well than xp

 

[I am Penguin]

Windows 7 shines with multi-GPU

Windows 7 shines with multi-GPU

Ever since the first information on Windows 7 leaked there have been intense discussion surrounding the performance of the operating system. The current Windows Vista was anything but fast when it arrived and especially gamers avoided it at any cost. The development has improved things with Windows Vista but many are hoping that Windows 7 will become Microsoft's "performance OS" and now that the system has gone gold the labor bears fruit.

At Firingsquad they have published a triple shoot-out between Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP where gaming performance is the focal point.

The performance with one graphics card is often pretty much the same between the three system, but in a few games (ARMA II) we witness how Windows XP takes a bit lead.

Overall though, Windows 7 is ready to take over as the performance OS and the greatest difference comes when you use multiple graphics cards. With NVIDIA SLI or ATI CrossFire there are several games that both Windows Vista, and especially Windows XP gets whipped pretty badly.

The performance speedups are even more dramatic when you scale from one to two cards running SLI. Windows 7 64-bit ran a whopping 21% faster than Windows XP x86 at 1600x1200 at 19% faster at 1920x1200. Windows 7 was faster than Vista too. SLI performance was 9% greater with Windows 7 when comparing the 64-bit operating systems at 1600x1200 and 5% at 1920x1200.

Windows 7 looks like a stable gaming operating system and those with multi-GPU should should definitely upgrade to get the most from their hardware

Gaming Performance Compared: Windows 7 vs Vista vs Windows XP.

While there were a couple of cases where WinXP outran Windows 7 and Vista, for the most part Windows 7 wins more than it loses, especially when you factor in multi-GPU technologies like SLI and CrossFire. In fact, if you’re a Windows XP gamer with SLI or CrossFire, I’d definitely urge you to upgrade to Windows 7 as soon as possible.

So is Windows 7 the best OS for gaming? Based on the results we’ve just looked at, I’d have to say “yes”. Windows 7 delivers the best combination of features and game performance of any OS tested today. From what I’ve seen so far, it’s also just as stable as Windows XP and Vista and seems more responsive. The addition of gestures and the new taskbar really push Windows 7 over the top.

Windows 7 is the genuine article though. This time the final product does live up to the hype. By taking the features of Vista, improving the interface, and combining the best attributes of Windows XP, namely its performance and stability, Microsoft has put together a solid OS that should please the most discriminating hardware enthusiast or gamer. In some ways, this may just be Microsoft's best OS yet.

 

[ponder]

Windows 7 shines with multi-GPU

But that only affects graphics related stuff, useless for other stuff.

 

[I am Penguin]

But that only affects graphics related stuff, useless for other stuff.

Why would you say that?

 

[DJNgoma]

Why would you say that?

He's just jealous that he can't see anything and that Windows 7 hasn't enhanced his use of braille.