Super Pi Mod 1.5	Source: SuperPI

SuperPI calculates the number PI to 1 Million digits in this raw number crunching benchmark. The benchmark is fairly diverse and allows the user to change the number of digits of PI that can be calculated from 16 Thousand to 32 Million. The benchmark, which uses 19 iterations in the test, is set 1 Million digits.

Lower calculation times are better. SuperPi is not multi-threaded.

Super Pi Mod 1.5 XS (single-threaded) 1 Million Digits: (sec) Points Ranking Intel Core i7 920 - Win 7 15.313 Intel Core i7 920 - Win Vista 13.516 Intel Core i5 750 - Win 7 15.678 Intel Core i5 750 - Win Vista 15 Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 - Win 7 15.553 Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 - Win Vista 15.5 AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition (125W) - Win 7 20.374 AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition (125W) - Win Vista 20.4 AMD Athlon II X4 620 - Win 7 29.828 AMD Athlon II X4 620 - Win Vista 29.749 AMD Athlon II X3 435 - Win 7 27.222 AMD Athlon II X3 435 - Win Vista 27.5 AMD Athlon II X2 240e - Win 7 27.285 AMD Athlon II X2 240e - Win Vista 27 8 Million Digits: (sec) Points Ranking Intel Core i7 920 - Win 7 171.781 Intel Core i7 920 - Win Vista 173.92 Intel Core i5 750 - Win 7 174.876 Intel Core i5 750 - Win Vista 175.99 Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 - Win 7 196.529 Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 - Win Vista 198 AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition (125W) - Win 7 255.482 AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition (125W) - Win Vista 255.16 AMD Athlon II X4 620 - Win 7 324.667 AMD Athlon II X4 620 - Win Vista 324.164 AMD Athlon II X3 435 - Win 7 296.713 AMD Athlon II X3 435 - Win Vista 296.111 AMD Athlon II X2 240e - Win 7 303.639 AMD Athlon II X2 240e - Win Vista 302.125 16 Million Digits: (sec) Points Ranking Intel Core i7 920 - Win 7 375.969 Intel Core i7 920 - Win Vista 384.78 Intel Core i5 750 - Win 7 414.725 Intel Core i5 750 - Win Vista 413.643 Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 - Win 7 441.066 Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 - Win Vista 426 AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition (125W) - Win 7 573.395 AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition (125W) - Win Vista 573.32 AMD Athlon II X4 620 - Win 7 719.676 AMD Athlon II X4 620 - Win Vista 720.455 AMD Athlon II X3 435 - Win 7 657.058 AMD Athlon II X3 435 - Win Vista 656.112 AMD Athlon II X2 240e - Win 7 660.954 AMD Athlon II X2 240e - Win Vista 670.441

With other components like the videocard and hard drive no longer in the equation, the single-threaded performance levels between Windows Vista and Windows 7 again even.

Performance Benefit from Upgrading to Windows 7? Yes.

Microsoft has focused it performance improvements in areas where they were needed the most. While most computers with CPUs from the past five years or so are able to run multiple lightweight applications like a web browser or email client while a music player is running in the background. Similarly, dedicating a CPU to a single intensive application (especially when it's single threaded) tends to reach its maximum potential, regardless of operating system.

The real problem comes when there's a combination of an intensive multi-threaded task and other applications running simultaneously. You're compressing a multi-gigabyte ISO file that could take several minutes to complete, and you suddenly find that your system becomes so sluggish that you can no longer open up a web browser, your music player starts skipping and even basic tasks like opening up Internet Explorer are taking longer than they should.

Windows 7 makes a significant improvement over Windows Vista in these scenarios, with large performance gains demonstrated for nearly every class of processor.

In fact, dual-core processors actually stand to gain the most in this scenario as Windows 7 is much better at balancing workload between two cores than Vista's conservative approach that often left one CPU core at full usage and the other under-utilized when running background processes. If you own an older Intel Core 2 Duo or AMD Athlon processor and are noticing sluggish CPU performance, upgrading to Windows 7 can make a significant impact on your computing experience just in the way it handles CPU performance.

Quad-core owners will also a noticeable improvement in performance, particularly when it comes to encoding media. If you moved to a quad-core processor in order to edit and encode video, then Microsoft Windows 7 can make a significant improvement in the kind of performance you can get out of your PC.

If you're the type of person who was unfazed by Windows 7's fancy new features and slick interface, these performance benchmarks might make a more convincing case for upgrading. There's a lot to like in Windows 7, and that includes better CPU performance.

If you have any comments or questions, please post them in the PCSTATS Forums. Find out about this and many other reviews by joining the Weekly PCSTATS.com Newsletter today! Catch all of PCSTATS latest hardware reviews right here.

- 99 Windows Vista Performance Tips and Tweaks - Windows Vista Crash Recovery and Repair Installs - Making Old Software Compatible with Windows Vista - Installing Windows Vista - Safe Mode in Windows Vista For Crash Recovery - Stopping Vista From Thrashing Hard Disks to Death - 10 Steps to a Secure PC - 101 Tips and Tweaks for Windows XP - 104 Killer Tech Tips for Windows XP - 99 Performance Tips for Windows XP - Annual PC Checkup Checklist - Assembling Your Own PC - Back up and Restore Data in WinXP - Browser Hijacking and How to Stop it - Building a Home Theatre PC / HTPC - Burning CDs and DVDs - Cloning WindowsXP - Converting Videotape Into Video Files - Crash Recovery: The Blue Screen of Death - Creating a Weblog / Blog - Creating MP3 Music Files - Decrypting Lost Document & Zipped File Passwords - Diagnosing Bad Hard Drives - Diagnosing Bad Memory - Dual OS Installation of WindowsXP 32-bit/64-bit - Encryption and Online Privacy - Ergonomics & Computers - Flashing a Video Card BIOS - Flash Memory Data Recovery and Protection - Firewalls and Internet Security - Firewall Setup and Configuration - Forgotten Passwords & Recovery Methods - Formatting and Partitioning a Hard Drive - Fundamentals of Upgrading a PC - Hard Drive Data Recovery - Home Networking and File Sharing - How to Install An Intel Socket 775 CPU and Heatsink - How to Install An Intel Socket 1366/1156 CPU and Heatsink - How to Fix Homesite Design Mode to Work in WindowsXP/ Vista - How To Make a Budget Desktop Computer on the Cheap - How to Update a Motherboard BIOS - Installing RAID on Desktop PCs - Installing WindowsXP

- Internet Connection Sharing - Legally Copying Software and Music - Linux Part 1: Getting Familiar - Linux Part 2: Installing a PC - Linux Part 3: New Software - Little Known Features of WindowsXP - Making DVD Movies from Video Files - Most Common Ways to Kill a PC - Optical Drives & Recording Formats - Overclocking the CPU, Motherboard & Memory - Overclocking the Videocard - Preventing Data Theft from a Stolen Laptop - Printer Sharing on a Home Network - Quick Guide for Eliminating Spyware and Hijacker Software - RAM, Memory and Upgrading - Registry: Backups, Repairs, and Protection - Remote Access to Computers - RSS Feed Setup & Subscriptions - Setting up an FTP Server in WinXP - Slipstreaming WindowsXP with Service Pack 2 - Spyware Protection and Removal - Stopping Spam - Synchronizing Files and Folders - Unattended Windows 2000/XP Installations - Understanding & Creating Batch Files - Understanding & Tweaking WindowsXP Services - Upgrading A Motherboard Without Reinstalling - Upgrading Win98 to Windows XP - USB Memory Drive Projects & Tips - VPNs and Internet Connection Security - Website Hosting From A Home PC - Website Hosting With Apache - Windows XP Command Prompt - Windows XP Safe Mode Explained - Wireless Home Networking - Wireless Network Security Got an idea for a Guide we haven't already covered? Send it in.