The culmination of our Windows 7 coverage is upon us, today is the day Windows 7 is publicly available in retail stores and pre-installed on new computers. Microsoft is hoping Windows 7 will wash away all the prejudices consumers now have of the Windows operating system because of the Vista debacle. We've been lucky enough to have been playing with various builds of Windows 7 along its development since January 2009 and we really like what we've seen.

Microsoft promises that Windows 7 will provide a more stable and compatible experience for the end user and there will be less hardware and software conflicts. Even though much of the core of Windows 7 is the same as Windows Vista, Microsoft has tweaked and rewritten crucial parts and parts that proved to be troublesome in Vista. In our real world testing and use of Windows 7, we've concluded that Microsoft has done everything right with this release and it's definitely one to get for both Windows XP and Vista users, either by upgrading an existing PC or buying a new system.

Read the Reviews

Here at TechReviewSource, we've been reviewing each major build of Windows 7, from the first beta, to the RC, and finally with the RTM final version. These three articles, along with dozens of other reviews on the Internet, have the goal of telling you what's new in Windows 7 and our opinions on whether Windows 7 is worth your money (we do!)

Get the Advice

It's important to make the decision of whether or not to upgrade to Windows 7 and if you choose to do so, how should you go about it. If you do choose to upgrade to Windows 7, make sure you know the steps and what is required before doing the upgrade, especially if you're a Windows XP user as your choices are limited. If you want to know what previous version of Windows will convert to a specific edition of Windows 7, look at the upgrade chart. If you are upgrading, you'll also want to run Microsoft's compatibility adviser, which you can download for free from their Web site.

Doing the Shopping

If you haven't already pre-ordered your copy of Windows 7 and don't want to brave the crowds at the retail stores, use our TechMarketplace to find the best prices:

Windows 7 Home Edition Upgrade / Full

Windows 7 Professional Edition Upgrade / Full

Windows 7 Ultimate Edition Upgrade / Full

Also, if you're looking to install Windows 7 on multiple computers in a home setting, look into getting a Windows 7 Family Pack.

Learn the Features

As mentioned in our various reviews of Windows 7 done over its stages of development, Windows 7 has many features that are either completely new or slightly different from previous versions of Windows. When you do make your purchase, make sure you know what these features are and how to use them. We thoroughly detailed some of the more major features new to Windows 7, including HomeGroups, Libraries, and Netflix Instant Streaming, but we also highlighted on the various security features in place in Windows 7.

The Final Verdict

...we love Windows 7 for two reasons, it's functional and stable. This will definitely be a strong hitter for Microsoft and will give them a huge publicity boost and a confidence boost as well, both for themselves and for consumers. Windows 7 has proven to be in our real world use the strongest and most usable version of Windows we've ever used. It's so good that it pains us when we have to sit down at a computer not running Windows 7. If you're able to upgrade and are willing to, do it, if you're on the fence, see if you're current computer can handle it and if it can, do it, and if you want to buy a new computer, now is the time to do it.