Windows Vista SP1 review
For most home users, the new features will have little or no effect on the day-to-day use of their systems.
PerformanceIn general, CNET Labs found that Windows Vista SP1 offered a mixed bag of improvements. For example, Microsoft says that reading and writing files will be much faster within Windows Vista SP1. Tests performed by CNET Labs on a Dell XPS M1530 laptop showed that performance did improve in one scenario, remained steady in another, and even deteriorated in a third scenario. When transferring files from one folder to another on the same drive volume, the transfer time did somewhat improve. However, when reading those same files from an external drive, or writing them to the external drive performance was the same or worse.File copy times (in seconds)
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
Windows Vista Home Premium SP1
75
52
61
Windows Vista Home Premium
52
51
65
Adobe Photoshop CS3 image-processing test (in seconds)
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
Windows Vista Home Premium SP1
217
Windows Vista Home Premium
273
Apple iTunes encoding test (in seconds)
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
Windows Vista Home Premium SP1
183
Windows Vista Home Premium
186
Boot and shutdown times (in seconds)
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
Windows Vista Home Premium SP1
43
30
Windows Vista Home Premium
40
30
Those looking for enhanced battery life under Windows Vista SP1 will be disappointed. Although Microsoft touts its own internal study showing that in 14 out of 16 randomly chosen laptops, battery life did improve, CNET Labs was unable to support that in its own testing. DVD battery drain test (in minutes)
(Longer bars indicate better performance)
Windows Vista Home Premium SP1
130
Windows Vista Home Premium
129
SupportWe found that Microsoft offers a reasonable amount of support for the SP1 upgrade. For example, before you start there is a link to a Read Me page called "What you should know before installing Service Pack 1", which covers what to do before installing, during, and after installation. Also, Microsoft has improved the upgrade process itself so that if the installation of one update fails, it tries another while preparing to rerun the failed update. This should speed installation for most users. But if users do run into trouble, they can always uninstall the upgrade.ConclusionDo you need Windows Vista SP1? Yes and no. It's always good to install the latest (read: Patched) code for any operating system. But downloading and installing the update will take some users a few hours without any visible or tangible improvements to their systems.
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