I updated to 10 (sience win 7 wasnt working properly and i was going to format anyway). Then i backed up the windows 10 and went back to 7 for a while (while keeping my registered windows 10 copy). In the end, after reading some tutorials i manually edited the registry (i dont like using software for that) to get rid of privacy issues (and some cosmetics) and finally moved to windows 10 (while i keep a copy of my win 7), so that could be an option for you (you could even part the disk and have both OS). Mayor downside for me is that i still havent taken the time to cripple the updates. I usually hibernate instead of turning off, so after a while it starts beeing annoying asking to set the time for the automatic reset, and many times interrupted my gameplay with those annoying messages ruining my progress. Also, when it starts downloading the updates in one computer, it makes me lag like hell on the others without a warning or a way to postpone (though ithat is easy to fix). Other than that, it worked ok, or at least worked as expected.

Upgrade, get the key, go back to W7 at the first annoyance. That is what I intend to do.

Just downgraded back. There are some improvements and everything seemed a bit faster, but there are too many annoyances and stuff to get used to. No point in wasting time tweaking stuff. Also, can't seem to make the start menu exactly like windows 7 even with Classic Shell.

Seems Microsoft eventually switching to a F2P model better keep your paid win7 license and grab a win10 if its offered free anyways. It can be had free as "insider" edition anyways with some nags. But thats win10 anyways.

But do yourselves a favor and install a ssd or try to optimize windows swapping (try googling for putting the swapfile on a ramdisk - prepare to have some memory installed in your comp)

Here's my story :

I've updated my laptop to windows 10, Because I liked it on my desktop pc :)
But after a few weeks usage, I've noticed some issue with my game and performance,
For Example Nfs Rivals is running in super slow motion, when it was running fair on Win 8.1,
Then I decided to make a refresh and clean install win 10 :D, went to settings > Recovery and clicked on clicked on full reset,
And guess what? After finishing setup I see win 8.1 is installed back on my lappy from my recovery partition, hah ha.
Something cool done by win 10, Now I'm not going to install Win 10 again on my lappy :P

i've switched week ago and have rather mixed feelings, i'll wait untill big patch next month and will see how it works

install Classicshell ,it will make it look like win7.
Gets rid of the huge desktop tiles/ icons

Man, I REALLY love the recycle bin icon, makes me feel like I'm using Windows 98 or 2k.
I wish I didn't hit the upgrade button but it's too late.

Well.... I've updated yesterday, and am suffering from problems since. Going through many restarts, but lets see how it goes.

If your system is more than three years old,

DO NOT UPGRADE TO WINDOWS 10!

I decided to upgrade my old laptop from Windows 7 to 10 a few months ago, just to see what it's like. For the most part I haven't had major problems, apart from losing bluetooth connectivity - I'm pretty sure the dated HP drivers are just too old. All things considered, 10 feels pretty OK and easy to use, but doesn't feel like an upgrade. Ofcourse it booted up quickly after a clean install and felt exciting and new, but after a couple months of use it feels just as quick/slow as it used to with 7. I've already done a re-install to keep the system tidy.

My gaming PC has 8.1 and I've decided not to upgrade it. Win10 doesn't bring anything new for my uses. If you feel like you need your current OS for further than January 2020 (Win7 expiry date), then upgrading to Win10 would bump the extended support lifecycle until 2025.

edit: I had concerns about the claims of privacy and data collection in Win10 and I've done some research to disable some of those services. I don't like that there's an unnecessary amount of work and complexity to find these background services, but it is known that some of the biggest software companies are not as transparent anymore.

If you're upgrading from 7 to 10, it's a learning curve, but it won't take you long to master 10 as well as 7. Privacy? I doubt you have it now (lot's of posts above mentioning your phone, google, etc.) but there are many easy ways to limit/block the windows 10 privacy issues. #1 way, don't install cortana!

Windows 7 is a ticking time bomb. It's support is going to end. Why not go ahead and get your free windows 10 upgrade now instead of waiting until you will be forced to pay for the upgrade. Assuming you aren't going to be switching to another system, what other choice is there?