Comparison of Windows 10 Privacy tools

Windows 10 users can modify the operating system's privacy settings manually, for instance by disabling express setup during installation or upgrade, or by exploring the Privacy section of the new Settings application.
While it gives them full control over each setting, it requires prior knowledge of these settings and time to make the changes.
Privacy tools help users in this regard but may limit the control these users have over what is happening in the background depending on how the tool works.
The following comparison provides you with an overview of these privacy tools highlighting the good, the bad and the ugly for each of them.
Note: We update the listing regularly. Please let us know about any updates that we may have missed, and about new programs that you found that are not on it already.

Windows 10 Privacy Tools

The following programs are reviewed:

1. Destroy Windows 10 Spying (Open Source)
2. Disable Win Tracking (Open Source)
3. DoNotSpy 10
4. Windows 10 Privacy and Shit (Open Source)
5. Windows 10 Privacy Fixer (Open Source)
6. W10 Privacy
7. Shut Up 10
8. Spybot Anti-Beacon for Windows 10
9. Ashampoo AntiSpy for Windows 10
10. Windows Privacy Tweaker
11. Win10 Spy Disable
12. Win10 SpyStop
13. WinPurify
14. Windows 10 Lite (Open Source)
15. (new) Privacy Repairer
16. (new) Debloat Windows 10 (Open Source)
17. (new) Blackbird
18. (new) WPD

Please note that you need to run all programs with elevated privileges as the majority of tweaks are not applied otherwise. You do that with a right-click on the program executable and the selection of "run as administrator" from the options.


Overview of Windows 10 Privacy Tools

Name	Backup/Restore	Explanation	Privacy Tweaks	Misc	Update
Destroy Windows 10 Spying	No/No	No	disable services, remove apps, telemetry, tools	Command line support	2016
Disable Win Tracking	No/No	No	limit tracking, source		2017
DoNotSpy 10	Yes/No	Yes	disable services, apps access, telemetry		2017
Windows 10 Privacy and Shit	No/No	No	disable services, telemetry	Batch file	2015
Windows 10 Privacy Fixer	No/No	No	disable services, apps access, telemetry, remove apps, source code	additional system tweaks	2015
W10Privacy	Yes/Yes	Yes	disable services and tasks, apps access,telemetry, disable ads		2017
Shut Up 10	Yes/No	Yes	disable services, telemetry, access		2017
Spybot Anti-Beacon for Windows 10	No/No	No	disable services, telemetry, access, hosts		2016
Ashampoo AntiSpy for Windows 10	Yes/Yes	No	telemetry, apps access		2016
Windows Privacy Tweaker	No/No	No	Services, Task Scheduler, Registry, Telemetry		2016
Win10 Spy Disabler	Yes/No	No	Services, Task Scheduler, Telemetry, apps		2016
Win10 SpyStop	Yes/No	Yes	Telemetry, block hosts, Windows Update		2016
WinPurify	No/No	No	Telemetry, remove apps		2016
Windows 10 Lite	No/No	Yes	Remove apps, Task Scheduler,Telemetry	BlackViper Services support	2017
Privacy Repairer	No/No	Yes	Telemetry, apps access, remove ads	recommendations	2017
Debloat Windows 10	No/No	In code	disable services, remove apps, telemetry, privacy		2017
Blackbird	No/Yes	No	disable services, telemetry, apps, hosts,	supports Windows Vista and up	2016
WPD	No/No	Yes	disable services, Group Policy, telemetry, block IPs, tweaks		2017

Destroy Windows 10 Spying

Destroy Windows 10 Spying concentrates on a handful of privacy settings and tweaks only. You may use it to disable spyware tasks in the Task Scheduler, block Microsoft domains in the hosts file, to turn Windows Update on or off, and to remove select applications or all applications from the operating system.
The program does not support backup and restore functionality, and there are no explanations for the tweaks it offers.
While some are self-explanatory, others reveal nothing about the task that gets carried out when they are run. For instance, you don't know which tasks are disabled in the Task Scheduler when you select the tweak to disable spyware tasks in it.
You may run the program from the command line. All switches are explained in the readme file it ships with.

Disable Windows 10 Tracking

This is the smallest tool functionality-wise but the one that is the largest in size. It displays four options in its interface which all concentrate on disabling tracking.
Disable Windows 10 Tracking lacks a backup option and explanations of entries.

DoNotSyp 10

Note: The program ships with Open Candy adware offers which are displayed during installation. Make sure you block those if you are not interested in those offers.
You may create a system restore point on start of the program so that you can restore it should the need arise to do so.
The program displays all tweaks as checkboxes in its interface. A detailed description is provided on the right once you select a tweak from the list so that you know what it does and what impact it has on system operations.
You find the usual assortment of tweaks supported by DoNotSpy 10. This includes disabling application access to sensors or system features, disabling Cortana or handwriting data sharing.

Windows 10 Privacy and Shit

This is a batch file that you need to download from Pastebin. Create a new .bat file on your system and paste the contents of it into the newly created file.
When you run it afterwards, it will execute select privacy related tasks including disabling data logging services, uninstalling OneDrive and adding domains to the hosts file to block Telemetry data sending.

Windows 10 Privacy Fixer

The program ships with a compact interface to modify important privacy settings on Windows 10. You do need to click on check first to retrieve information about tweaks that are already set, but even if you do, some settings are listed as unchecked even though they are checked.
Windows 10 Privacy Fixer lets you disable four core services related to telemetry and feedback, block Telemetry hosts, disable application access to system features such as location or calendar, and make general privacy changes, for instance by disabling the unique advertising ID.
You may use it furthermore to uninstall all Windows apps.
A backup is not created and there is no restore option available as well because of it.
Lastly, there are no explanations provided for features. While most are self-explanatory, additional information about some tweaks are necessary to make sense of them or reveal what they actually do when run.

W10 Privacy

The program is
onlyavailable with a German and English interface
which makes it unusable for most Windows 10 users.
The application displays privacy settings and general tweaks in its interface on launch. The first tab, Datenschutz (German word for privacy), lists privacy-related tweaks you can make.
The tweaks are mostly self-explanatory but when you hover over an entry additional information about it and its impact are revealed by the app.
W10 Privacy offers no backup and restore functionality. This means that you need to create a System Restore point or other type of backup manually before you use it to modify system settings.
What you can do however is save the program's own configuration. If you do that you may load them again at a later point in time.

Shut Up 10

Shut Up 10 displays a list of tweaks in its interface on launch. A click on a tweak name displays a detailed description underneath it that explains what it does if the title on its own is not sufficient for that.
The program suggests to you to create a system restore point once you start modifying settings.
The settings concentrate mostly on privacy and security, but contain several important other settings such as controlling Windows Update or feedback.

Spybot Anti-Beacon for Windows 10

Anti-Beacon has been created by the authors of Spybot Search & Destroy, a popular anti-spyware program for Windows.
It enables you to block Telemetry data and hosts, the Steps Recorder, the use of advertising ID by applications, P2P Windows Updates and WiFi Sense.
The program checks the current settings of the system on start and displays its findings in the interface afterwards.
Select immunize to make all changes, or undo to restore defaults.

Read also:  Restore the Control Panel link in Windows 10's Win+X menu

Ashampoo AntiSpy for Windows 10

AntiSpy for Windows 10 is a free program that you can run from any location. It suggests to create a System Restore point on start, good.
The program lists all tweaks in list form on start. All privacy related settings are sorted into groups and changeable with a click on the switch displays in front of them.
The actions menu lists options to apply recommended tweaks right away which may be useful to some users as it turns off most features and permissions when applied.
AntiSpy lacks descriptions which is problematic especially for inexperienced users.

Windows Privacy Tweaker

This is another program that scans the settings on start and displays those as safe or unsafe right away so that you know which ones you have not modified yet.
It displays all tweaks in the four tabs Services, Task Scheduler, Registry and USB Security. The first three display tweaks that are directly related to privacy in Windows 10 while the last provides you with options to change the USB Mode.
It shares some tweaks with other applications listed here but also offers some that offers don't offer at all. Especially Services and Registry hold tweaks that you may not find listed in other privacy applications for the operating system.
One downside is that it won't create a system restore point or other form of backup by default so that you need to take care of that manually before you make any changes using it.

Win10 Spy Disabler

The program is offered as a portable version and installer which, apart from the one requiring to be installed before it can be run are identical.
Win10 Spy Disabler displays the list of tweaks right on start in its interface. They are listed under the tabs privacy tweaks and system tweaks.
Unlike the majority of Windows 10 privacy tools, it is bundling tweaks together in single entries. Disable spying services, spying scheduled tasks or "remove default built-in Windows apps" perform multiple operations on the system.
While that is handy, no information are provided on the nature of what is being changed on the system giving you less control over the functionality.
The program prompts for the creation of a restore point before changes are applied.
System Tweaks are non-privacy tweaks only, and System Utilities, the third tab in the interface, links to core Windows tools. The last tab, VPN Service, is an ad for the Hide Your Ass service.

Win10 SpyStop

Win10 SpyStop checks privacy settings of Windows 10 on start and informs you whether your privacy is threatened or not by them.
The program offers only a couple of options when compared to other privacy apps for Windows 10. You may use it to disable telemetry, remote access and diagnostics, block hosts files used for that purpose by Microsoft, or disable the advertising ID.
It furthermore lets you disable automatic and/or manual Windows Updates, automatic web searches, and blocks application access to Windows Store account information.
The program creates a system restore point during installation.

WinPurify

WinPurify is a free program for Windows 10 that you can run right after download. It displays the options that it makes available on start, with most of them selected by default.
It allows you to remove universal apps or the Store app, disable Telemetry and Windows Update, and run some clean up operations to free up space as well.
Additionally, it wants to install a small helper app on the system that checks RAM and performance, and notifies you if usage is too high.

Windows 10 Lite (Better Privacy)

Windows 10 Lite is a command line script that is best run right after setup of Windows 10. It displays a couple of prompts to you on execution giving you some choice in regards to which tweaks you want applied and which you don't.
You may optimize Services using BlackViper's services listing, and let it handle the usual things like removing system apps, tweaking settings for privacy, or removing scheduled tasks used for Telemetry.
It comes without options to create a backup or restore it. So, make sure you create a backup first before you run it.

Privacy Repairer

Privacy Repairer ships with a total of 58 privacy tweaks for Windows 10 in the version that we reviewed. The program offers a recommendation on start on what to enable but without going into detail as to what will be enabled when you press the button.
Tweaks are listed in categories such as Telemetry and Diagnostics, Windows Defender, Edge and Internet Explorer, or Cortana and Start menu.
Each tweak is listed with its name, a toggle to enable or disable it, an option to display additional information, and information on whether it is recommended or not.
One interesting tidbit here is that the program lists Registry keys in the description for each of the tweaks.
Some tweaks are marked for experts only or dangerous, which is useful as it may prevent users from making certain changes without knowing what a change actually does to the system.
There is no system restore or backup option however.

Debloat Windows 10

Debloat windows 10 is a collection of Powershell scripts designed for specific tasks related to privacy and annoyances in regards to Windows 10.
There is a script to remove most of the default apps, another to block Telemetry hosts and services, and yet another to make dozens of privacy related adjustments to the operating system.
You can audit the scripts using a text editor so that you know exactly what they do. Downside to this is that you need some experience to understand what is going on, and that there is no backup or restore option.

Blackbird

Blackbird is a program for Windows Vista and up that supports two modes of operation. You can run it right away to apply all of its tweaks and changes to the Windows machine, or run it from the command line with parameters that provide you with control in regards to the changes that are made.
The list of tweaks is very extensive; changes range from removing apps, blocking telemetry and ad servers, and disabling Windows services and tasks, to apply network tweaks, and blocking automatic updates.

WPD

WPD is a free portable program for Windows 10 to make adjustments to privacy related settings and features of the operating system.
The program divides all options into four different groups:

• Privacy -- Lets you make tweaks to privacy related Group Policy settings, manage Windows Services, and Windows Tasks.
• Firewall -- Add Telemetry, Windows Update, and third-party application IP addresses to Windows Firewall for communication blocking.
• Apps -- Remove applications that ship with Windows 10 by default.
• Tweaks -- Configure application access to certain data sets and hardware such as the camera or contacts.

The application is easy to use, and descriptions are provided for all options that you have. These are helpful if you require more information before you make a decision on whether to keep a feature enabled, or to disable it.


Closing Words
All tools discussed in the comparison provide you with options to modify settings of Windows 10 systems to improve privacy. Some offer more tweaks than others, and only one suggests to create a system restore point before making any changes to the underlying system.
It comes down to your personal preference in the end and what you want to achieve. All tools disable most of the phone home functionality of the operating system while others go further and let you uninstall apps or make other tweaks that are not necessarily privacy related.

Source: https://www.ghacks.net/2015/08/14/comparison-of-windows-10-privacy-tools/

How To Add Gmail To Windows 10/8 Mail

Photos, People, SkyDrive, Maps, Calendar, and Mail are some of the modern apps that ship with Windows 8 and Windows 10. Obviously, the Mail app lets you see all your email accounts in one place. The Mail app supports all popular webmail services like Outlook.com, Hotmail, Gmail, and Yahoo mail.

Even though the Mail app is not as powerful as Outlook or Windows Live Mail, it does the job very well. There are some basic features missing from this version of the Mail app. For instance, you can’t directly print a mail from the app and you can’t even add an account using POP or IMAP. To print an email, you need to copy the contents of the mail to your Notepad, Office or any other other applications and then use print feature of the application to print your email. Microsoft will definitely improve this app in coming months.

Add Gmail to Windows 10/8 Mail app

If you have a Gmail account and would like to add your account to Mail app, follow the steps given below.

Step 1: Switch to Start screen and then click on Mail app to launch the app.

Step 2: You should now see the Hotmail account that you have previously configured during Windows installation. To add a new account, move the mouse cursor to the upper right corner of the screen to view charms with system commands.

Step 3: Click on Settings to view setting for Mail app. Click on Accounts and then click Add an account to see options add Gmail or Hotmail or Exchange account.

Step 4: Click on Google. You will be asked to enter your email address and password. Once done, click on Connect button to synching the account. You are done! Within a few seconds, you should be be able view all your mails.

Also to see how to install Metro-apps and update Metro apps.


Source: http://www.intowindows.com/how-to-add-gmail-to-windows-8-mail/

How To Add Yahoo! Mail Account To Windows 10 Mail

Yahoo! no longer supports the official Yahoo! Mail app for Windows 10. In fact, the Yahoo! Mail app has been removed from Windows Store. Users who have already installed Yahoo! Mail app on Windows 10 cannot check their emails using the discontinued Yahoo! Mail app for Windows 10.
Yahoo! mail account users who are using a Windows 10 PC need to use either a web browser or an unofficial email client to check emails. Luckily, the default Windows 10 Mail app supports Yahoo! Mail as well. One can add Yahoo! Mail account to Windows 10 Mail app with a few clicks.

Follow the given below directions to add your Yahoo! Mail account to Windows 10 Mail app.

Add Yahoo! Mail to Windows 10 Mail app

Step 1: Launch the Mail app. Click the Settings (gear) icon in the lower left-pane to open Settings.



Step 2: Click Manage Accounts.



Step 3: Click Add account. This action will open a page with all top webmail providers, including Yahoo!.



Step 4: Click Yahoo! option. You should now see the Yahoo! Mail sign in page.



Step 5: Type in your Yahoo! Mail email address. Click Next button.



Step 6: Next, enter your Yahoo! Mail account password. Click Sign in button.

Step 7: If you have enabled two-step verification for your Yahoo! account, you will see the following screen where you can select a method to verify your account. Select one of the methods, click Verify to receive the verification code. Enter the code you received on your phone or email to complete the verification.


Step 8: When you see the following page, click Agree button to allow the Mail app to access your Yahoo! account contacts, profiles, and calendar.



Step 9: If you see the following screen with “Let Windows remember your sign-in name and password so you don’t have to” message, click Yes button. That’s it!





You should now see “All done! Your account was set up successfully” message. Click Done button.



The Mail app will start syncing your emails.
Also check out how to add Gmail account to Windows 10 Mail app.

Source: http://www.intowindows.com/how-to-add-yahoo-mail-account-to-windows-10-mail/

Windows 10 vs Windows 8.1 vs Windows 7 - Microsoft OS head-to-head

Mike Passingham Vs,17 Aug, 2016, This is an old article but still worthwhile discussion today...

Redmond operating system smack-down

Windows 10 has been out for over a year and has just recently seen the Anniversary Update land on users' desktops. The free upgrade offer has all but finished (there are still some ways to get it free if you have accessibility issues). Windows 10 is great, especially when compared to its two immediate predecessors, Windows 8.1 and 7, as our blow-by-blow head-to-head comparison shows.

Support cut-off date

Every operating system has its life cycle and will one day be cut off from updates entirely, left abandoned and open to security vulnerabilities that won't be fixed unless you're on a bespoke support contract. As we saw with Windows XP last year, the support deadline comes up quickly and it's important to have your affairs in order and a plan to switch ready to go. Luckily for all three of our operating systems here, you have several years before you'll even need to think about switching away from them. The extended support cut-off dates for Windows are as follows:

Windows 7 Service Pack 1: January 14th, 2020
Windows 8.1: January 10th, 2023
Windows 10: October 14th, 2025

Winner: Windows 10

This comes as no surprise - Windows 10 makes the most sense if you want the most cost-effective way of receiving free updates for the next decade.

User interface for desktops and laptops

Windows 7 certainly set the benchmark for a relatively consistent and understandable user interface, although its key strength now is its familiarity. You know where to find things, you know what sort of results you're going to get from the Start Menu search bar and you understand the oddities of Windows Explorer, Task Manager and Control Panel.

This familiarity is an asset compared to Windows 8.1. Microsoft's huge push for touchscreen devices and tablets left desktop users feeling not only abandoned, but hugely confused. Hitting the Start button to search for an app or file left you with a massive full-screen Start screen that made little sense when it was first introduced in Windows 8 in 2012 and it still feels jarring today.

Windows 10 strikes a better balance here, with its Continuum mode neatly morphing the compact Start menu into a bigger, touch-friendly Start screen as needed. The Start menu’s links to the newly tweaked File Explorer as well as lists of recently used apps and your pinned folders are all huge plus points.
The Start menu in Windows 10 has undergone a few changes since its own release. With the advent of the Anniversary update, it has three columns in the Start Menu with All Apps always visible.

Windows 10 holds a small advantage up to this point, then, and that's before you even consider the hugely improved window management system. If you're someone who likes to multitask, Windows 10 has you covered.
Windows 8.1 has better multi-monitor support than Windows 7. Unlike 7, 8.1 has a taskbar on each screen showing only those  apps  running on that screen. Plus each monitor can have its own distinct wallpaper. and each screen given its own customisable wallpaper.
Windows 10 builds on this foundation, adding an improved version of Windows Snap so you can easily organise your windows in just a couple of clicks. Answering the prayers of those of us with multiple monitors running at different resolutions, there are now settings for scaling text and the UI on a per-monitor basis.

Even if you only have one display, such as when you're using a laptop on the move, Windows 10 now has built-in multiple desktops (like Ubuntu and Mac OS X), so juggling lots of windows and tasks is still easier than ever.

Winner: Windows 10

There's no question Windows 10 needed to make some serious improvements for desktop and laptop users, and Microsoft has delivered. Multitasking has never been easier, meaning it's by far the best choice.

User interface for tablets

Windows 7 only has the most basic interface elements and optimisations for touchscreens, which allowed the iPad and iOS to dominate the market for tablets. This led to the radically improved touchscreen interface in Windows 8, but it alienated a lot of people as it had so few accommodations for keyboard and mouse users.
Windows 8.1 added a few tweaks, nips and tucks, such as the ability to run Modern UI apps in a resizable window, but its display scaling problems made usable high-resolution Windows 8.1 tablets a near impossibility.

Windows 10, while not perfect, is a big improvement. An improved touchscreen gesture allows you to flick between applications quickly and easily than before. If you have a hybrid device and dock it to a keyboard, Windows 10 should recognise this change of state and switch back to its touchpad-friendly desktop mode thanks to Continuum mode, although whether this will work on your device will depend on whether its manufacturers has released drivers that support this.
Windows 10 Anniversary Update features a new Ink Workspace that puts pen-based apps in their own panel at the bottom-right corner. The new apps boast Screen Sketch, Sketchpad and Sticky Notes. The latter integrating with its cloud services. Pen devices should work well with Windows 10 with great Ink support.

Winner: Windows 10

If you have a tablet or a tablet/laptop hybrid, Windows 10 is your best bet. With features catering well for both, you'll work more efficiently that you could on Windows 8.1 or Windows 7.

Security

Windows 7 and 8.1 are by no means insecure operating systems; but Windows 10 has moved both home and enterprise security along significantly, both in terms of local device security and the security of your online services, too.
First of all, there's Windows Hello, which lets you log-in using a fingerprint, face or iris scan instead of a password. While computers with the necessary biometric scanning hardware built-in are currently uncommon, we’re helpful that more will become available quickly given that Hello is built into Windows 10 from the very start.
There's also Passport, a single sign-in service for consumers that allows Windows to authenticate with websites on your behalf without you having to type in a password. This service hooks into Windows Hello, using your biometric scan or a PIN code to verify that you are the person you claim to be. This means you'll use your password less, meaning it'll become much more difficult for hackers to compromise online accounts with stolen passwords. It's not currently supported that widely, but if it takes off, Passport could massively boost security on your online services. As yet, though, Passport and Hello are unproven and very much fledgling technologies.
IT managers will appreciate the ability to organise Enterprise-licenced PCs into circles and choose when updates are applied - great for making sure you don't disrupt your users' work. This also means that Microsoft's new strategy of releasing frequent, individual updates instead of bundling them into Patch Tuesdays or Service Packs won't have a big impact on your office's productivity, as you can delay non-critical updates for up to 90 days if you're on Microsoft's Current Business Branch of support.
You also get Enterprise Data Protection, the ability to sign in with an Azure ID and the ability to set up a company-wide app store.

Winner: Windows 10

Unsurprisingly, Microsoft's latest operating system has the most advanced security features of the operating systems here. It’s good for both consumers and IT managers.

Performance

While anecdotally we have heard of PCs running a lot quicker having been upgraded from Windows 8.1 to Windows 10, actual performance benchmarks on our test PC with 8GB of memory and an Intel Core i5 4690K processor show no difference.
More important is the addition of DirectX 12 support, a low-level graphics API designed to increase 3D graphics performance with lower overheads while giving developers more control over how hardware is used. This is most important for gamers though as most professional 3D graphics software relies on the competing OpenGL API instead. Although it’s still very early days for DirectX 12 with few titles currently taking advantage of it, if you're looking for the best 3D gaming performance available the Windows 10 is likely your best bet as DirectX 12 won’t be available for Windows 8.1 or 7.

Winner: Windows 10

Again, no surprises here; with no penalty in performance and DirectX 12, Windows 10 is an easy choice

Search

Search has become ever more important in operating systems, as file and folder hierarchies have become less important and searching for a specific filename has become a popular way of finding important files – especially amidst messy desktops and haphazardly organised Documents folders.
Windows 7 had a terrific search function built in the Start Menu, finding files and folders on network shares as well as those stored locally. It wasn’t perfect, especially if you needed to refine your search results, but it was useful enough that we were surprised that Windows 8 abandoned this simultaneous search ability. It also adopted a more fiddly Start screen-based search interface and integrated web search results from Bing and app store suggestions. These superfluous additions were far of an annoyance than a convenience.

Windows 10 searches still hook into the Bing search engine and also look for apps in the Windows Store. Even more annoyingly these results are placed ahead of search results for installed apps, files and folders with no option to change this order. Amazingly, the ability to search your computer and network shares simultaneously is still missing.
However, you can at least easily perform more advanced searches from the Start Menu by clicking on the My Stuff button. This lets you filter by relevance or date, and can also narrow down your search to specific file types including documents, photos, music and settings.
Windows 10 also includes Cortana, the personal assistant feature from Windows Phone. This has become a major part of Windows 10 doing double duty as a web search and a Start Menu/Windows search. Plus the ability to search by voice is both impressive in its accurate transcription and in its usefulness for the differently abled.

Winner: Tie

The improved advanced search features in Windows 10 are very welcome, but its insistence on prioritising web search and app store results isn’t. Windows 7 still holds a place in our hearts for its quick, simple search results and network integration.

Verdict - which version of Windows is right for you?

Windows 8 had the unintended side effect of making people significantly more attached to Windows 7 than ever before. It was a happy medium sitting between the Vista mess and the Windows 8 Start screen nightmare.
However, the time is right to move on. If you're still on Windows 7, you can safely upgrade without fear of losing the things you loved most about that OS and Windows 10 is certainly an improvement over Windows 8.1.

Source: http://www.itpro.co.uk/operating-systems/25101/windows-10-vs-windows-81-vs-windows-7-microsoft-os-head-to-head-1

Footnote: Drivers
One area not mentioned is the number of drivers Windows 10 offers. From my experience, Windows 10 has better and a more comprehensive library of drivers than either Win7 or Win8.1. In prior windows versions I had to search for motherboard discs to find the correct video, sound, and networking drivers. Installing Windows 10, I did not have these issues.


Source: http://www.itpro.co.uk/operating-systems/25101/windows-10-vs-windows-81-vs-windows-7-microsoft-os-head-to-head-1