› Windows 7 – Is it worth it?

Did you buy a new PC this past summer with the promise of a free upgrade to Windows 7 when it launched?  Unfortunately, upgrades are never completely free.

While the license for the Windows 7 upgrade itself may not cost anything- delivery of the new disc typically comes with a small charge of between $10-20, depending on the manufacturer and model of your system.   What’s more, there is also the cost of installing the new operating system.

The real question remains: is it worth any cost?  Several GGGroup employees have been using Windows 7 internally and are pleased to report that the generally positive reviews on Windows 7 are justified. Microsoft has made improvements in key areas such as: installation and compatibility, performance, stability, networking, and search – to name a few.

Installation:

While the in-place upgrade worked – we recommend a fresh installation whenever possible because it is a good opportunity to do ’spring cleaning’.

Compatibility:

An operating system install is never fun, but unlike Vista, Windows 7 recognizes a surprising amount of hardware.  This is the result of many manufacturers having released drivers in time to be bundled with the release.

Stability:

What’s been the nicest discovery is that Windows 7 appears to be the most stable Microsoft operating system in recent memory- and in some cases moreso than XP.

Wireless Networking:

Windows XP was created before wireless networking was standard and it showed. Vista had wireless networking issues that were a combination of poor interface design and wireless driver problems. Windows 7 fixes all this with a revamped networking control panel that simplifies networking management.

Search:

Search in Windows 7 is vastly superior to the Windows Search add-on in Windows XP and Vista. The search interface is responsive and results come up promptly. The indexing process working behind the scenes does not appear to have a noticeable impact on performance.

Final considerations:

As with all technology investments, planning is important.  It always makes sense to do some preliminary research on hardware and business application compatibility before taking the plunge.  One must also consider the cost of transition.  Many times, the best strategy is to plan for Operating System upgrades to take place ‘organically’ in conjunction with your hardware lifecycle management plan.

Posted at 11/8/09 by jchiang in Industry Trends, News & Views, Newsletters, Tech Tips for the Office, Tech Tips for the Small & Home Office, Uncategorized Tags: Hardware Lifecycle, PC, Upgrade, Windows 7, Wireless Networking | No Comments »