Windows 7: Review roundup

Engadget maintains a Windows 7 upgrade guide, but in their review they say that "anything we found to work in Vista seemed to work just fine (in some cases better!) in Windows 7. That goes for hardware and software, but of course the real test will be when this OS is unleashed upon the masses -- your mom's brother's 25 year old printer might not make the cut, and we'll be sure to pour out a 40 upon its behalf. In truth, Microsoft does a very good job with keeping a truly insane quantity of hardware and drivers and vendors happy, but we still think they could do better."

Where are the programs?

"Out of fear of antitrust headaches, Microsoft has stripped Windows 7 of some important accessory programs," writes the NYTimes. "Believe it or not, software for managing photos, editing videos, reading PDF documents, maintaining a calendar, managing addresses, chatting online or writing e-mail doesn’t come with Windows 7.... Instead, you’re supposed to download these free apps yourself from a Microsoft Web site. It’s not a huge deal; some companies, including Dell, plan to preinstall them on new computers. But a lot of people will be in for some serious confusion — especially when they discover that the Windows 7 installer has deleted their existing Vista copies of Windows Mail, Movie Maker, Calendar, Contacts and Photo Gallery. (Mercifully, it preserves your data.)"

The final word

"Windows XP was a great OS in its day. Windows Vista, once it found its feet several months in, was a good OS. With Windows 7, the OS is great again," concludes Gizmodo. "It's what people said they wanted out of Windows: Solid, more nimble and the easiest, prettiest Windows yet. There's always a chance this won't be a huge hit come October, given the economy and the state of the PC industry, but it's exactly what Microsoft needs right now. Something people can grab without fear."

Humorous (worrisome?) sidebar

Reuters reminds us that, "Like Windows 7, Vista got good reviews too: As Microsoft Corp's Windows 7 release approaches, early reviews are generally positive. But so were reviews for Windows Vista just before its launch.... Vista got high marks before its release as well, with writers back then praising a new visual design -- and glossing over quirks that later became common gripes."

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