Windows 10 now has been out for a few weeks, a free upgrade for people on Windows 7 and Windows 8 (Sorry Vista and XP Users). This will push the OS out to millions of people.

I have installed it via an OEM System Builder CD and here’s some of my favorite and not so favorite things so far:
1.) The OS is fast, seriously fast. On a moderate Quad Core system paired with a SSD, expect boot times less than 5 seconds. With minimal programs booting on startup, I’m getting under 4 seconds on my machine.
2.) Start Menu is back! Undoing the disaster of the “Modern Interface” of Windows 8, the start menu makes a return. However its a bit different. The Live Tiles are there and its been stripped down to only its most important functions.
3.) RIP Internet Explorer, say hello to Edge. Edge is the new default web browser replacing Internet Explorer. It is still based off the Trident rendering engine, though Edge is a lot faster and cleaner, sporting a minimalist interface and minimalist features. So far, its a great browser for casual reading or shopping. Anything else, however, is too much for it to handle.
4.) Gaming performance and compatibility hasn’t been an issue. I’m seeing a modest bump up in frames per second on most games +10-+15 and games (even old ones from the Windows XP era) have been working flawlessly.
5.) The UI is great. It makes OS X look dated and old hat. Its got a clean, easy to use and easy to learn interface but still retains the power that serious Windows users are after. Lots of customization options and everything you’d expect from Windows is there but in a much less cluttered and disorganized fashion.

Now, those are just some of the benefits, here are some of the things I’ve found that I didn’t quite like:
1.) Privacy issues. Thankfully, you can turn these particular features off but defaults like wifi password sharing and sending very detailed crash data back to Microsoft is something that was a bit of a turn off for me and probably many others with similar concerns.
2.) Support for TVs seems to be a bit buggy. I have my desktop Win10 machine hooked up to a TV and periodically the TV will lose the signal. It doesn’t happen to often and this could be a case of drivers for my GPU needing an update. It will take some time for hardware vendors to catch up to Win10.
3.) Mandatory updates. If you have the “Home” edition, and you likely will, this edition has Mandatory updates. While this is going to be great for most users, power and performance users (not to mention IT staff at companies) aren’t going to like it. I prefer to pick which updates I take on and when to take them for compatibility reasons.
Overall Windows 10 has been fantastic, even as an early adopter. The operating system is stable, solid, and fast. Its a good solid competitor to OS X and I find myself using it more and more and even sometimes preferring Win10 over OS X for certain tasks.
For those that hate Win8 (because let’s be honest – who doesn’t), the free upgrade is a no-brainer. For those on Win7, its free as well but you may want to stick around for a few months longer while drivers and compatibility issues get resolved. Especially if you are running older software on your Win7 box.
For Gamers, upgrading to Win10 is a must. Better power management, faster OS, better memory management, and DirectX12 support.

Have you switched over to the new Windows 10 OS yet? Let us know what you think and how it compares to other operating systems.