On mySimon: An umbrella that glows in the dark
BNET Business Network:
BNET
TechRepublic
ZDNet

April 28th, 2008

XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest?

Posted by Adrian Kingsley-Hughes @ 4:22 am

Categories: Software, On the test bench

Tags: Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows Vista SP1, Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Microsoft Windows XP, Operating Systems, Microsoft Windows, Software, Adrian Kingsley-Hughes

In the TalkBack section on my post looking at SP3 benchmarks, _deitrich asked a really good question:

Adrian, how about a comparison of XP SP3 vs Vista SP1? Oui? C’est possible?

Good question! Fortunately I’ve already done a fair bit of the groundwork in that I used the Phenom 9700 system I have for benchmarking both XP SP3 and Vista SP1.

I benchmarked both operating systems using PassMark PerformanceTest 6.1 and bringing together the results from both tests allows me to answer _deitrich’s question.

Note: The hardware configuration of the Phenom 9700 remained unchanged between the two tests and similar optimizations steps were carried out for each OS.

XP Professional:

  • XP RTM
    PassMark rating: 1001.4
  • XP SP2
    PassMark rating: 891
  • XP SP3
    PassMark rating: 990.8

Vista 32-bit:

  • Vista RTM
    PassMark rating: 1002.4
  • Vista SP1
    PassMark rating: 972.3

Vista 64-bit:

  • Vista RTM
    PassMark rating: 1183.1
  • Vista SP1
    PassMark rating: 1128.8

Throughout the testing the hardware platform has remained unchanged. 

Graphs

The data speaks for itself. At the top of the list is Windows Vista 64-bit, while at the bottom is XP SP2. In the middle we have XP RTM, XP SP3, Vista 32-bit RTM and Vista 32-bit SP1 fighting it out. However, benchmarks scores such as Passmark don’t translate well into real world performance indicators. Later on today I’ll publish my gaming benchmark results which will pick up on a post I made in February. Stay tuned!

One system, one set of data points. Thoughts?

Want to get in touch? Feel free to drop me a note!

Right to Reply: Should any industry representatives wish to comment on any posts on Hardware 2.0, I will be happy to publish their reply verbatim on this blog.

Adrian is a technology journalist and author who has devoted over a decade to helping users get the most from technology. He also runs a popular blog called The PC Doctor. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.

  • Talkback
  • Most Recent of 180 Talkback(s)
I care a great deal as well
I agree with you completely. I know from inside a large corporation that Vista will never arrive, and XP will live as long as possible. Internal benchmarks have excluded Vista from consideration. Thos... (Read the rest)
Posted by: kc4rzw Posted on: 06/24/08 You are currently: Logged In | Log out
Most Excellent. Thanks Adrian! _dietrich   | 04/28/08
Gentoo fr0thy2   | 04/28/08
Troll binaryspiral   | 04/29/08
yes.. thanks for all the work you put into this... pcguy777   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? davidfrye@...   | 04/28/08
look again bmeacham98@...   | 04/28/08
Both can be used alaniane@...   | 04/29/08
OS's and Versions are NOT the SAME mustang_z   | 04/29/08
Message has been deleted. Chad_z   | 04/28/08
it's quite a bit about speed coffeeshark   | 04/28/08
Business re-image voska1   | 04/28/08
It's amazing how many people... jasonp@...   | 04/28/08
Not everywhere itpro_z   | 04/28/08
Custom Apps, and control... we tried it with OEM and socialism=nowhere   | 04/29/08
Pay now or pay more later voska1   | 04/29/08
I think wires are crossed Wallsy   | 04/29/08
To each his own... mustang_z   | 04/29/08
That's exactly right...~2500 machines here - nt socialism=nowhere   | 04/29/08
Poor Chad itpro_z   | 04/28/08
Ultimate is only $20 more than XP Professional ye   | 04/28/08
No Need To Answer This itanalyst2@...   | 04/28/08
No, the consumers do not all agree Vista is crap. ye   | 04/28/08
That's Why XP Is Still Around itanalyst2@...   | 04/28/08
I don't deny there are still people who want XP ye   | 04/28/08
Why are the older versions of Linux and Mac OS??? socialism=nowhere   | 04/29/08
Why are there older versions of Linux and Mac OS??? socialism=nowhere   | 04/29/08
@Basedonreality alaniane@...   | 04/29/08
@alaniane: The discussion is about acquisition cost. ye   | 04/29/08
@Ye true it would apply to other OSes alaniane@...   | 04/29/08
re:it "anal"yst2... what a bogus response socialism=nowhere   | 04/29/08
What Nonsense Cayble   | 04/29/08
You're Right ssalemi@...   | 05/08/08
Unless starcannon99022@...   | 04/29/08
No it isn't ajole   | 04/29/08
Poor Chad ... what about ... poor Wayne? wayne@...   | 04/29/08
RE : Lipstick marks055@...   | 04/28/08
Operating Systems have hit a brick wall... ye   | 04/28/08
Yup, monopolies stagnate fr0thy2   | 04/28/08
When did Linux and OS X obtain a monopoly? ye   | 04/29/08
yup, apple has JamesDoyle   | 04/29/08
What I find amusing is the ABMers continue to state... ye   | 04/29/08
yup JamesDoyle   | 04/29/08
Yes... and No Wallsy   | 04/29/08
I can speak for two of my clients... Wolfie2K3   | 04/29/08
I agree to a certain extent starcannon99022@...   | 04/29/08
RE: Vista performance enhancements. ye   | 04/29/08
Referring to Brickwall post starcannon99022@...   | 04/29/08
I guess I'm just not seeing it (nt) ye   | 04/29/08
Makes the most sense... joe@...   | 04/29/08
Killer apps DOSlover   | 05/08/08
Cool. I'll upgrade to XP SP3 bmeacham98@...   | 04/28/08
Stop it with XP already... Mike Cox   | 04/28/08
Drum roll... _dietrich   | 04/28/08
Perhaps a mistake has been made professordnm   | 04/28/08
Mike? From a fellow Mike! mikeholli   | 04/28/08
So your suggestion is... djchandler   | 04/28/08
Well put starcannon99022@...   | 04/29/08
uhm... do we have a winner yet? Four-Eyes   | 04/28/08
Uh huh, sure. MrCobra   | 04/29/08
8gb ram? tubr0   | 04/29/08
where did you get 8GB.... DCMann   | 04/29/08
I was replying to MrCobra tubr0   | 04/29/08
Has to be 64 bit CobraA1   | 04/29/08
Meh... DCMann   | 04/29/08
Hmmmmmmmmmm russsnow1@...   | 04/29/08
A 9.9 on the Cox benchmark.... mike.motes@...   | 04/29/08
Nah.... That's a solid 10.0... Wolfie2K3   | 04/29/08
wrong!!! rtk   | 04/29/08
I will happily wait DOSlover   | 05/08/08
unless I'm a high end gamer would this matter marks055@...   | 04/28/08
Vista wins! qmlscycrajg   | 04/28/08
One percent... jasonp@...   | 04/28/08
Hmmm, that's not what I see in my computing Kid Icarus   | 04/28/08
Mine doesn't have Vista slower Paul Fletcher   | 04/28/08
Adobe CS is... DCMann   | 04/29/08
Yeah its been an issue starcannon99022@...   | 04/29/08
and just what are you running it on?? bill.howey@...   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? consoleclassix   | 04/28/08
Diablo II LOD soonerproud   | 04/28/08
Ok consoleclassix   | 04/28/08
No RaA here Shayd   | 04/29/08
eh? JamesDoyle   | 04/29/08
what crack are you smoking? JamesDoyle   | 04/29/08
Games on Vista jmorgus@...   | 04/30/08
Man destroy Vista disc consoleclassix   | 04/28/08
I think is the most annoying Windows and still has limited support lorygirl_ro@...   | 04/29/08
hes an idiot JamesDoyle   | 04/29/08
Which is fastest? Who CARES? mikeholli   | 04/28/08
Hmm. Connecting Vista to XP netwwork works for me. ye   | 04/28/08
Not QUITE ye mikeholli   | 04/28/08
Sharing a folder is no different than sharing... ye   | 04/28/08
Once again Ye mikeholli   | 04/28/08
Once again Mike: It's the same method of connecting. ye   | 04/28/08
Lovely mikeholli   | 04/28/08
Also of note mikeholli   | 04/28/08
@mikeholli: Your issue has nothing to do with... ye   | 04/28/08
I'm shocked voska1   | 04/29/08
@voska1: Just another example of ignorance. ye   | 04/29/08
Please tell us rtk   | 04/29/08
Vista and XP Connecting pweegar@...   | 04/29/08
Well actually, I care jorjitop   | 04/28/08
Vista and laptops pweegar@...   | 04/29/08
I care a great deal as well kc4rzw   | 06/24/08
Wow... DCMann   | 04/29/08
Thats pretty odd Crestview   | 04/29/08
Vista Lame Duck!!!!!!!!!!!! chaz15   | 04/28/08
No more Windows XP for me. cnfrisch   | 04/28/08
A hot rod or a hybrid - Which is fastest? tonymcs@...   | 04/28/08
Vista x64 should have been the ONLY Vista released... pixolut   | 04/28/08
Do you seriously think.... DCMann   | 04/29/08
Why only Vista x64? pweegar@...   | 04/29/08
actually JamesDoyle   | 04/29/08
I agree with James Doyle maxtheitpro   | 04/30/08
Agreed starcannon99022@...   | 04/29/08
This test is flawed. kraterz   | 04/28/08
Not only flawed, but bug makes test meaningless Drakaran   | 05/01/08
Oh no it's not Adrian Kingsley-Hughes  ZDNet | 05/01/08
Comparing Apples to Oranges... weasler7   | 04/28/08
the true hurts: Vista rocks! qmlscycrajg   | 04/29/08
Not necessarily the truth... weasler7   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? kwacka   | 04/29/08
Be interested to see ... johnfenjackson@...   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? Dennis.Keeling@...   | 04/29/08
Vista faster by far - in converting users to Macs walton@...   | 04/29/08
wha huh? rtk   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? johnblaisdell@...   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? orchard17@...   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? seannj427   | 04/29/08
not necessarily macaw68@...   | 04/29/08
Agree... weasler7   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? Joedogood   | 04/29/08
Cost of 2 GB ILoveMicrosoft   | 04/29/08
The price of RAM could be dirt alaniane@...   | 04/29/08
XP SP2 rtk   | 04/29/08
Great, Mike! You've hooked more than your last post! mike.motes@...   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? sefairken@...   | 04/29/08
Polemic magallanes   | 04/29/08
32 64 bit realcestmoi@...   | 04/29/08
The system specs are known... weasler7   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? Gyorgy Kenez   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? pweegar@...   | 04/29/08
I bet Windows 3.11 is even faster (nt) CobraA1   | 04/29/08
How about a real test? karihouse   | 04/29/08
it's amazing how many people generalize coffeeshark   | 04/29/08
There are 2 XPs, as well - How About XP64? prfesser   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? jonpolliard   | 04/29/08
Longer is better? dfreeman@...   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? slickjesus   | 04/29/08
Speed is a false parameter! archetuthus   | 04/29/08
I agree starcannon99022@...   | 04/29/08
Stability - Security - Speed EJHonda   | 04/29/08
Who crashes any more? EJHonda   | 04/29/08
So sad! judgesinel@...   | 04/29/08
Passmark 6.1: XP SP3 698.4 / Vista SP1 645.4 Uber Dweeb   | 04/29/08
YES, tha's more realistic test results ChazzMatt   | 04/29/08
Superfetch in stead of ready boost Multivac   | 05/07/08
No more! CreepinJesus   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? bearlyworking   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? Artymonn   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? elliottxp   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? mustang_z   | 04/29/08
Evidence there's no benefit in moving to Vista efe@...   | 04/29/08
Windows 95 kicks XP's butt... roetcisoenderbumbalough5779@...   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? DABaker1956   | 04/29/08
so Vista SP1 degrades performance? ChazzMatt   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? rod@...   | 04/29/08
Be Fair Mobilepc   | 04/29/08
Vista SP1 a Performance Dud Ole Man   | 04/29/08
SP1 is the sum of all the intervening system upgrades since last year jlafitte   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? jlafitte   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? liljim@...   | 04/29/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? dave1944barker@...   | 04/30/08
Vista was built to address Piracy & Malware binarycheese   | 04/30/08
Can we have a genuine test? anthony_hunt   | 04/30/08
Meant to reply to Anthony's post above. (NT) Uber Dweeb   | 04/30/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? Uber Dweeb   | 04/30/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? ianbsnelling@...   | 05/07/08
Vista isn't junk without the Crapplets jgwinner   | 05/10/08
Yep, people blame MS for their own ignorance and laziness jgwinner   | 05/10/08
RE: XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? CrHasher   | 05/29/08

What do you think?

11 Trackbacks

The URI to TrackBack this entry is:
http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/wp-trackback.php?p=1772

  • XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest?
    OK another benchmark test, just one system, but allways nice to look at the scores: The data speaks for itself. At the top of the list is Windows Vista 64-bit, while at the bottom is XP SP2. In the middle we have XP RTM, XP SP3, ...

    Trackback by The Hotfix Forum News — April 29, 2008 @ 1:30 am

  • Finally Some More Proof on Vista Speed..
    by Don Burnett. Over at Adrian-Kingsley Hughes' ZDNET blog, he's been benchmarking some OS speeds, which again shows some folks still running XP and some SYSADMINs have the wrong idea about Vista.. Check out this graph over on Adrian's ...

    Trackback by Don.Net's WPF Design Blog — April 29, 2008 @ 4:49 am

  • [vr-zone] XP SP3 vs Vista SP1 - Which is faster?
    Quote:. Source Other Source.

    Trackback by Overclock.net - Overclocking.net — April 29, 2008 @ 9:22 am

  • Windows XP SP3 now available via Windows Update
    I just saw this posted on Neowin.net:. Windows XP SP3 is finally here for those that use Windows Update, and here is a direct link to the stand-alone version of SP3 for x86 XP systems (32 bit). Here is an interesting article regarding ...

    Trackback by Sbytes — April 29, 2008 @ 12:32 pm

  • XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest?
    Down and dirty comparison and I was a bit surprised at the winner. Now I want this guy to throw Windows 2008 Server into the mix and see what we get. More over on blogs.zdnet.com.

    Trackback by Windows Central Forums — April 29, 2008 @ 12:37 pm

  • Windows XP SP3 now available via Windows Update
    Windows XP SP3 is finally here for those that use Windows Update, and here is a direct link to the stand-alone version of SP3 for x86 XP systems (32 bit). Thanks Bink! I can't confirm if the 64bit version of SP3 is available from today, ...

    Trackback by keznews.com - News - neowin.net — April 29, 2008 @ 3:25 pm

  • Windows XP SP3 now available via Windows Update
    digg_url = "http://www.neowin.net/news/main/08/04/29/windows-xp-sp3-now-available-via-windows-update";Windows XP SP3 is finally here for those that use Windows Update, and here is a direct link to the stand-alone version of SP3 for x86 ...

    Trackback by chatsusa — April 29, 2008 @ 8:50 pm

  • Adrian Kingsley-Hughes of ZDNet Shows XP\SP3 Benchmarks
    April 28th, 2008. XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest? In the TalkBack section on my post looking at SP3 benchmarks, _deitrich asked a really good question:. Adrian, how about a comparison of XP SP3 vs Vista SP1? Oui? ...

    Trackback by TECH NOTES — April 29, 2008 @ 10:26 pm

  • XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest?
    Adrian Kingsley-Hughes on Zdnet benchmarked both operating systems using PassMark PerformanceTest 6.1 and brought the desired results. Throughout the testing the hardware platform has remained unchanged. XP Professional: ...

    Trackback by winmatrix Latest Posts — April 30, 2008 @ 9:56 am

  • Windows XP SP3 - now via Windows Update
    Windows XP SP3 is finally here for those that use Windows Update, and here is a direct link to the stand-alone version of SP3 for x86 XP systems (32 bit). Here is an interesting article regarding SP3 performance, ignoring the fact that ...

    Trackback by techdudes — May 1, 2008 @ 6:41 am

  • XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 - Which is fastest?
    The data speaks for itself. At the top of the list is Windows Vista 64-bit, while at the bottom is XP SP2. In the middle we have XP RTM, XP SP3, Vista 32-bit RTM and Vista 32-bit SP1 fighting it out. However, benchmarks scores such as ...

    Trackback by Barthos Computers Blog — May 2, 2008 @ 7:29 pm

Essential Topics Click Here