Note that this review is based around upgrading from Windows 7 to Windows 10. I do not know of features that were introduced in Windows 8, I've never really used Windows 8 so I don't know if I reference to a not specifically Windows 10 feature.
Also note that this review is based on the final release version of Windows 10, and much of the bad press it has been getting is based off of the Insider Preview, which was the development version that was used for many reviews before Windows 10 was officially released.
Finally, note that this is not a comprehensive review. I am actually trying to avoid talking about all the features that everyone is talking about, and focusing on some of smaller details.
The upgrade process went as smooth as butter, and everything was migrated very nicely, even from Windows 7. My wallpaper, taskbar position, taskbar pinned items, multi-monitor configuration, desktop icons, startup items, and personal files were all exactly as they were on Windows 7. The only thing I lost was the programs I had pinned to my start menu, they were not converted to tiles or otherwise preserved. It was ready to go right away, that is, right after switching off all the options in the panel of evils.
The panel of evils? That's what I decided to call the Windows 10 privacy options. Each switch ensures a different part of your soul is signed away and sent off to Microsoft. Now, it's not actually that bad, and a few of the options can be left on based on personal preference, but you can't go wrong flipping them all off. These options are presented to you during the initial set up, but can be changed at any time in the Windows settings. Now I'm no conspiracy theorist, and I have no tinfoil hat, but some of these options really do sound quite all-encompassing and sinister.
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| This isn't even all of them, some are in other sections |
While we are discussing privacy and evil switches, now is a good time to talk about Cortana. Oh Cortana. I haven't even activated her yet due to the many layers of accepting legally binding agreements. Cortana's setup procedure basically holds your hand and has you flip all the privacy options that you just switched off back on, and Cortana won't even activate unless almost all of them are on. Is a Siri / Google Now style voice control system really worth sending everything you ever type, do, or say non-confidentially off to Microsoft? Not for me. If Cortana is really worth it to you, you can flip all those switches back on and agree to all the legal contracts, just be sure to actually read them.
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| They couldn't make it more creepy sounding if they tried |
The new start menu is very stylish. I like the ability to scale it vertically and horizontally. The tiles integrate very nicely, working like pinned programs in Windows 7, but with the inclusion of apps and information at a glance with smart tiles. Luckily the cheesy default category names "Life at a Glance" and "Play and Explore" can be easily renamed, and categories are easily added and removed.
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| I used special characters to make my categories look fancy |
Overall performance of Windows 10 is good. Significantly more quick, or at least consistently average than Windows 7. Some have reported amazingly greater gaming performance on Windows 10, but I see very little change, with some games encountering strange fps slowdowns as the OS does something in the background, of which I have yet to find out what. The overall UI definitely is noticeably faster and some programs such as Firefox launch much quicker now. All the menus and panels animations are very smooth work well every time.
A nice feature that was lacking in Windows 7 is actual multi monitor support. I have two monitors and in Windows 10 each monitor is given a its own taskbar, which can be individually positioned and sized. A start button, search button, pinned tasks, and open tasks are present on both, but only the main screen gets the clock, action center button, and system tray.
As far as customization goes you get to select a wallpaper, accent color, lock screen image, and customize a few small things on the start menu. Overall the personalization settings menu looks very nice, but is lacking many features. First and foremost the window borders and menus are white, no options, no themes. There is a themes panel, but it is just a stripped down version of the windows 7 one and doesn't seem to do anything. It honestly looks like it's not supposed to be there and the dev team forgot to remove it before release. The interface looks very nice, and I don't feel a need to customize it like windows 7 and XP, where they were so ugly that it was almost unbearable. Microsoft definitely hired an actual design team to design Windows 10, and I have to say, they did a damn good job. Interestingly, the screensaver settings are still there but have been hidden away, with the same selection of screen savers from Windows 7. I suppose this make sense, with display technology getting so good, the only reason to turn your screen off is to save power.
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| Somewhat limited personalization panel |
The lock screen seems like it would just be a leftover from "tablet mode", but it is actually quite nice, because it switches off the displays much quicker than just leaving your pc. Less power efficient than switching off each display manually, but much more convenient.
I am very impressed with the several preinstalled programs that come together to take the place of Windows Media Player. Groove music player makes a great music playing app with plenty of functionality, without trying to sell you something like iTunes and the Android Music app tend to do. The recently added DVD player seems to work alright, however might have some stuttering issues running older DVDs. The Movies and TV app works to play videos, however its main function is unfortunately, as the name implies, to sell you movies and TV shows. I will definitely be using Groove as my main music player from now on.
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| Groove music player: music library first, then the store, the way it should be |
Now for the glitches. You'll be happy to hear there really aren't many. So far this is the most stable version of Windows I've ever used. At first USB 3.0 did not work, but it turns out that was my fault, all I had to do was update my motherboard BIOS. Another little bug I found is that when you drag a program to the start button, and it says "pin to start menu" dropping it there does nothing. You have to right click the program and click "pin to start menu". I did find a massive bug, I had clicked the connect button under the action center to figure out what it did, and once it said searching for devices I clicked away from it and the entire UI crashed, I had to restart the pc to get system functionality back. However, Microsoft does have a feedback app built in, that they use to make sure that Windows 10 works smoothly on the myriad of hardware configurations there are.
Now I'm sure that you've already heard of the whole mandatory updates shenanigan that Microsoft is trying to pull. I wasn't even going to discuss it, but people need to know. For those of you who haven't heard, Microsoft has made Windows updates automatically download, install and restart your pc when it thinks you aren't using it. There is no option to turn this off, unless you have windows 10 pro which allows you to "defer updates". My real issue with this is not the automatic updates, but the automatic restart. This could end up being a huge issue in the future, although it is hard to tell because I haven't received many updates yet. I don't know why they have decided to make it that way, but it hasn't gotten in my way... yet.
Overall I am incredibly impressed with how well Windows 10 works, and how well Microsoft is managing the whole thing. Should you get Windows 10? Well if you want it, go get it, you can always revert. If not, well then that's up to you.
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