14 DAY TRIAL // Hundreds of tested systems later U.S. computer manufacturer Dell applauded the evolution of the next iteration of the Windows client over its precursor. Dell did not disclose the exact number of machines used to test drive Beta Build 7000, but the OEM did conclude that Windows 7 was superior to Windows Vista. The Round Rock, Texas-based computer maker touted Windows 7 in comparison to Vista, pointing out that it was able to observe boosted performance as well as a higher level of hardware support and software compatibility. This, even though the comparison involved the Beta of Windows 7, as opposed to Vista, which was finalized over two years ago.
“I thought you might be interested in hearing about our experiences with the Beta Code. Here’s a peek into what we are seeing when testing: on many systems we are seeing noticeable improvements in boot to desktop times (versus Vista); almost all existing Vista drivers are working – great sign in terms of compatibility; Vista Application compatibility is promising as well (including the IE 8 compatibility mode); Transcoding (ripping) media files is faster than Vista,” revealed Daniel Judd, Dell's product group specialist.
Dell plans to continue testing Windows 7 as the operating system progresses along the development process. The Redmond company has reportedly passed the Build 7070 development milestone with Windows 7 on the way to the first and only Release Candidate of the platform. Windows 7 RC is expected to drop in May 2009, with an RC-Escrow Build planned by the end of this month. Microsoft has yet to confirm officially any details related to the RC of Win 7. The latest testing release of the platform which was leaked into wild is Build 7068. The Redmond company did not discuss any of the leaked milestones of Windows 7, and Build 7068 makes no exception to this rule.
However, the software giant did confirm that, from the earliest stages of Win7's development, it has been hard at work together with hardware manufacturers and OEMs in order to ensure that the next version of the Windows client delivers a superior performance to Windows Vista. Back in January 2009, Intel also praised Windows 7 Beta for delivering a superior experience to Vista.