What features stand out of Windows 8?

Turtleboyfitz

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Hey guys, I am deciding of should I get Windows 8 or not, and I want to know what features are standing out most. What do you think?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows XP and Windows 7 Home Primimum
Speed. Boot, shutdown, and general speed. Everything is faster, substantially so in some places. That and the fact that focus will now be on 8 and not 7 as the months roll by.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Self built
    CPU
    Intel i3 3220 @ 3.3Ghz
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte H77M-D3H
    Memory
    Kingston Value RAM - 8GB DDR3 1333MHz CAS 9
    Graphics Card(s)
    Onboard Intel 2500
    Sound Card
    Onboard VIA 2021
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq G2420 24" LCD
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    1 x Samsung 256GB 830 SSD
    1 x Seagate 7200.12 500GB
    1 x Western Digital 3TB EZRX
    PSU
    Corsair CX 430 v2
    Case
    HAF 912 Advanced
    Cooling
    Stock - 1 x 12cm, 2 x 20cm
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Basic Wired 600
    Mouse
    Combo with keyboard
Speed. Boot, shutdown, and general speed. Everything is faster, substantially so in some places. That and the fact that focus will now be on 8 and not 7 as the months roll by.

Speed? On boot up I'm yet to see that. In Win 7 my best is 45 seconds, just tested in Win 8, a miserable 80 seconds, that's 77% longer than Win 7! :mad: Maybe it's because I have to click to go to desktop but still, very slow and especially with a SSD.

Greg
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Alienware Area 51
    CPU
    Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-5820K (6-cores, 15MB Cache, Overclocked to 3.8 GHz w/ Turbo Boost)
    Motherboard
    Alienware Area 51
    Memory
    16GB Quad Channel DDR4 at 2133MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    4GB GDDR5 NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) GTX 980
    Sound Card
    Sound Blaster Recon3Di
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Asus PB287Q 28"
    Screen Resolution
    3840 x 2160
    Hard Drives
    Samsung PM851 128GB SSD 6Gb/s Main + 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s
    PSU
    875 Watt
    Case
    Triad Black case
    Cooling
    Alienware High-Performance Liquid Cooling
    Keyboard
    Alienware
    Mouse
    Alienware
    Internet Speed
    100/5MB Service
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Norton Internet Security
    Other Info
    Logitech Z-5500 THX-Certified 505-Watt 5.1 Digital Surround Sound Speaker System
Speed? On boot up I'm yet to see that. In Win 7 my best is 45 seconds, just tested in Win 8, a miserable 80 seconds, that's 77% longer than Win 7! :mad: Maybe it's because I have to click to go to desktop but still, very slow and especially with a SSD.

That's strange. My PC boots to the login screen in 7 seconds flat. That's including the POST. But then again, I have a modern motherboard with UEFI bios. Even with my old board it was less than 15 seconds though. I too have an SSD. And, unlike XP, the OS is very usable as soon as you log in.

But boot speed is only part of what makes 8 special. It also:

* Uses less resources than Windows 7
* Executes apps faster (in most cases, this is minimal, but there is a measurable difference in benchmarks)
* Utilizes multiple CPU cores better
* Utilizes SSD's better (native TRIM, among other things)
* Has tons of new features, such as
* File History
* Storage Spaces
* Native USB 3.0 support
* Lock Screen Widgets
* Improved Multi-Monitor support
* IE 10 (7 will get this eventually as well though)
* Redesigned Task Manager
* Built-in Anti-virus (and yes, it's really good)
* DirectX improvements and other Graphics improvements (such as 3D support)
* Client Hyper-V (it's like getting VMware for free)
* And of course the controversial Metro apps.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    CPU
    Intel i7 3770K
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte Z77X-UD4 TH
    Memory
    16GB DDR3 1600
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia GTX 650
    Sound Card
    Onboard Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Auria 27" IPS + 2x Samsung 23"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440 + 2x 2048x1152
    Hard Drives
    Corsair m4 256GB, 2 WD 2TB drives
    Case
    Antec SOLO II
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000
    Mouse
    Logitech MX
Where can you get it for 15$..?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro 64 Bit
    CPU
    Processor AMD Athlon(tm) II X4 635 Processor, 2800 Mhz, 4 Core(s), 4 Logical Processor(s)
    Memory
    8gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia GTX 460
I don't notice any improvement in speed or responsiveness over win7.

The low price certainly stands out - they announced a knockdown sale evn before it was released.

Clearly they are very worried by the huge negative reaction to the preview versions.

You can get it for $15 bucks if you bought a new pc since June. Get a promo code here : Windows 8 upgrade offer - Windows 8 special offer

If you didn't buy a new pc - then they are knocking them out at $40 - including media centre - here : Microsoft Store United Kingdom Online Store - Buy and download Windows 7 Professional, home file sharing, network connectivity, Home Premium

If you sre buying from a different country e.g. India, it is lot cheaper still.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    7/8/ubuntu/Linux Deepin
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
You can get it for $15 as well. So, I guess that's something that stands out.
If you buy a new PC right now with 7 already on it, it's 15 dollars and usually the OEM will cover the cost for you on certain models. Otherwise, it's 40 dollars until January 31st.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS
    CPU
    AMD FX 8320
    Motherboard
    Crosshair V Formula-Z
    Memory
    16 gig DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS R9 270
    Screen Resolution
    1440x900
    Hard Drives
    1 TB Seagate Barracuda (starting to hate Seagate)
    x2 3 TB Toshibas
    Windows 8.1 is installed on a SanDisk Ultra Plus 256 GB
    PSU
    OCZ 500 watt
    Case
    A current work in progres as I'll be building the physical case myself. It shall be fantastic.
    Cooling
    Arctic Cooler with 3 heatpipes
    Keyboard
    Logitech K750 wireless solar powered keyboard
    Mouse
    Microsoft Touch Mouse
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender, but I might go back on KIS 2014
One of the knockout features is obviously, the Start Screen. Love it, hate it, it's quite something. It's probably THE most flexible UI I've used in Windows. You want Windows 8 to focus on the Desktop only? You can do that. Want a mix of metro apps and Desktop apps? Sure. Want ALL of the Start Screen to be metro apps? Yep! You can customize it, group tiles, see new updates at a glance, switch around apps, start apps, and more. Plus, it's visual, so your configuration becomes almost second nature quite honestly.

THAT, and the new hardware efficiencies and a decent feature set, Windows 8 is great! :D
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS
    CPU
    AMD FX 8320
    Motherboard
    Crosshair V Formula-Z
    Memory
    16 gig DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS R9 270
    Screen Resolution
    1440x900
    Hard Drives
    1 TB Seagate Barracuda (starting to hate Seagate)
    x2 3 TB Toshibas
    Windows 8.1 is installed on a SanDisk Ultra Plus 256 GB
    PSU
    OCZ 500 watt
    Case
    A current work in progres as I'll be building the physical case myself. It shall be fantastic.
    Cooling
    Arctic Cooler with 3 heatpipes
    Keyboard
    Logitech K750 wireless solar powered keyboard
    Mouse
    Microsoft Touch Mouse
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender, but I might go back on KIS 2014
So how do I focus on the desktop only and get rid of Metro?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Self built
    CPU
    Intel I7 980
    Motherboard
    Asus Rampage III Extreme
    Memory
    12 Gb Geil Ultra Series
    Graphics Card(s)
    KFA2 Nvidia GTX 670
    Sound Card
    Creative X-Fi Titanium HD
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Acer G24
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1200
    Hard Drives
    Crucial M4 128 Gb + 512 Gb SSDs
    2 x Samsung 2 Tb HDDs
    PSU
    Tagan BZ-1100
    Case
    Antec P182
    Cooling
    Phanteks ph-tc14pe
    Keyboard
    Microsoft sidewinder X4
    Mouse
    Gigabyte M8000X
    Internet Speed
    7.2 Mbps HSDPA
So how do I focus on the desktop only and get rid of Metro?

Very simple, right click on the metro apps, and hit Uninstall. Go into File Explorer and any Libraries, folders, hard or network drives or even Control Panel items, right click on them and hit Pin to Start. A new tile is made, and you can group them, arrange them and do what you please with them. So basically, you will have a visual start menu made up of your Desktop apps you use frequently or infrequently along with your custom Desktop items. It makes up to be like the menu, but it's a full visual screen that holds more and is WAY better to use to get access to something faster since you not only have the left hand side of the screen with the traditional lower left hand corner to get to Start.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS
    CPU
    AMD FX 8320
    Motherboard
    Crosshair V Formula-Z
    Memory
    16 gig DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS R9 270
    Screen Resolution
    1440x900
    Hard Drives
    1 TB Seagate Barracuda (starting to hate Seagate)
    x2 3 TB Toshibas
    Windows 8.1 is installed on a SanDisk Ultra Plus 256 GB
    PSU
    OCZ 500 watt
    Case
    A current work in progres as I'll be building the physical case myself. It shall be fantastic.
    Cooling
    Arctic Cooler with 3 heatpipes
    Keyboard
    Logitech K750 wireless solar powered keyboard
    Mouse
    Microsoft Touch Mouse
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender, but I might go back on KIS 2014
Speed. Boot, shutdown, and general speed. Everything is faster, substantially so in some places. That and the fact that focus will now be on 8 and not 7 as the months roll by.

Speed? On boot up I'm yet to see that. In Win 7 my best is 45 seconds, just tested in Win 8, a miserable 80 seconds, that's 77% longer than Win 7! :mad: Maybe it's because I have to click to go to desktop but still, very slow and especially with a SSD.

Greg

System boots in 10sec from cold boot, 7 took at least double that, shuts down in 3sec, 7 took at least 10. Then again this is a modern SSD, not an older model, and its less than a few months old too. The desktop also feels liquid compared to 7. On a HDD though, the differences are less noticeable. Then again, I've been spoiled by SSD's.:p
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Self built
    CPU
    Intel i3 3220 @ 3.3Ghz
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte H77M-D3H
    Memory
    Kingston Value RAM - 8GB DDR3 1333MHz CAS 9
    Graphics Card(s)
    Onboard Intel 2500
    Sound Card
    Onboard VIA 2021
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq G2420 24" LCD
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    1 x Samsung 256GB 830 SSD
    1 x Seagate 7200.12 500GB
    1 x Western Digital 3TB EZRX
    PSU
    Corsair CX 430 v2
    Case
    HAF 912 Advanced
    Cooling
    Stock - 1 x 12cm, 2 x 20cm
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Basic Wired 600
    Mouse
    Combo with keyboard
I also don't find 8 faster at much of anything outside of boot and shutdown.

- Trim is native to w7 also, not sure what your point is...
- I guess being able to show the same pic on two screens and have a taskbar on both is considered an upgrade...
- Nice task manager but I hardly ever use it, would never be a selling point for me...
- I have found no direct x improvements, in fact I cannot beat any w7 gpu bench's of my own with w8, none...
- and yes of course the metro, of which I have zero use for
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    W7
TRIM had a lot of limitations on Windows 7. For instance, if you had a RAID array of SSD's, TRIM wasn't supported. This is supported in Windows 8.

USB 3 is available through more than just 7 series chipsets. There are third party USB 3 chips and IO cards, for instance. The point is that Windows 8 supports USB 3 natively. Windows 7 did not include support for this, and it had to be added on. This meant that Windows 7 treated USB 3 devices as if they were USB 2 devices, and the driver did the translation. This was problematic because USB 3 added a number of new features that Windows 7 did not know about, thus could not support, such as the improved power management features of USB 3.

Microsoft to provide USB 3.0 support for better battery life in Windows 8 | ZDNet

The multi-monitor support does a number of things. First, it allows you to have *different* wallpapers on each monitor. Second, the taskbar has been added to each monitor, and it can be configured to only show icons for apps that are on that screen, or it can be configured for the main screen and the screen the apps are on, or it can be configured to show apps on all 3 screens. This is a nice feature.

The improvements to DirectX are largely with new added features, which won't show up when benchmarking existing apps. You need apps that take advantage of those things. However, even so... there seems to be some performance problems with the built-in NVidia driver. Radeon's actually get better performance in Windows 8 than in Windows 7.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    CPU
    Intel i7 3770K
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte Z77X-UD4 TH
    Memory
    16GB DDR3 1600
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia GTX 650
    Sound Card
    Onboard Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Auria 27" IPS + 2x Samsung 23"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440 + 2x 2048x1152
    Hard Drives
    Corsair m4 256GB, 2 WD 2TB drives
    Case
    Antec SOLO II
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000
    Mouse
    Logitech MX
Where can you get it for 15$..?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro 64 Bit
    CPU
    Processor AMD Athlon(tm) II X4 635 Processor, 2800 Mhz, 4 Core(s), 4 Logical Processor(s)
    Memory
    8gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia GTX 460
TRIM had a lot of limitations on Windows 7. For instance, if you had a RAID array of SSD's, TRIM wasn't supported. This is supported in Windows 8.

USB 3 is available through more than just 7 series chipsets. There are third party USB 3 chips and IO cards, for instance. The point is that Windows 8 supports USB 3 natively. Windows 7 did not include support for this, and it had to be added on. This meant that Windows 7 treated USB 3 devices as if they were USB 2 devices, and the driver did the translation. This was problematic because USB 3 added a number of new features that Windows 7 did not know about, thus could not support, such as the improved power management features of USB 3.

Microsoft to provide USB 3.0 support for better battery life in Windows 8 | ZDNet

The multi-monitor support does a number of things. First, it allows you to have *different* wallpapers on each monitor. Second, the taskbar has been added to each monitor, and it can be configured to only show icons for apps that are on that screen, or it can be configured for the main screen and the screen the apps are on, or it can be configured to show apps on all 3 screens. This is a nice feature.

The improvements to DirectX are largely with new added features, which won't show up when benchmarking existing apps. You need apps that take advantage of those things. However, even so... there seems to be some performance problems with the built-in NVidia driver. Radeon's actually get better performance in Windows 8 than in Windows 7.


It is correct that windows 8 has native USB 3 support, but at a price. USB 3 is utterly slow compared to windows 7, with present driver anyway. It might be fixed with a forthcomming driver, but for now it is only 15-25% faster than USB2 in Windows 8.

About Nvidia-driver, the build in has NO support for Physx, but easy to fix. go to nvivia.com and grab their newest driver for Windows 8, and then all is OK.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 64bit Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 3570K @4,4Ghz
    Motherboard
    MSI Z77A GD65
    Memory
    16Gbyte DDR3 1866Mhz
    Graphics Card(s)
    GTX770 lightning
    Sound Card
    Auzentech X-Fi Forte 7.1
    Monitor(s) Displays
    BenQ BL2411
    Screen Resolution
    1920*1200
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 840EVO 240Gbyte, Samsung 830 256Gbyte SSD, Seagate 4TB , Western Digital black edition 1,5Tbyte
    PSU
    Zalman ZM850 HP
    Case
    Corsair Carbide 500R
    Cooling
    air
    Keyboard
    Logitech G15
    Mouse
    Logitech G5
    Internet Speed
    60/60mbit fiber
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    BitDefender total security
1. Aggressive memory usage. Frequently used memory intensive apps are preloaded into memory so they are ready to go. A real tangible difference in startup time as compared to Windows 7.

2. Kind of times into 1 but everything is pretty responsive and snappy.

3. Search: I hate the way search is handled now. It just complicates things and requires more input to get the results you want. If you start typing away in the new Start screen it defaults to searching in Apps only. Seriously, give a medal to the UI expert that thought that was a good idea although I suspect this was largely driven by MS app centric approach they've taken in W8. I'm almost irrationally pissed off by the way they implemented search. Why not aggregate the results? Instead it renders typing in the start screen useless and you have to press Win+F or Win+W.

If they had to default to one section, why not files? You can pin all the apps you want anyways, makes zero sense.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
It is correct that windows 8 has native USB 3 support, but at a price. USB 3 is utterly slow compared to windows 7, with present driver anyway. It might be fixed with a forthcomming driver, but for now it is only 15-25% faster than USB2 in Windows 8.

Don't presume that your results are everyones. USB 3 works fine for me, and I have a similar system. Your problem is likely related to your BIOS, which seems like it's still buggy, as you have seen.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    CPU
    Intel i7 3770K
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte Z77X-UD4 TH
    Memory
    16GB DDR3 1600
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia GTX 650
    Sound Card
    Onboard Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Auria 27" IPS + 2x Samsung 23"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440 + 2x 2048x1152
    Hard Drives
    Corsair m4 256GB, 2 WD 2TB drives
    Case
    Antec SOLO II
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000
    Mouse
    Logitech MX
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