Windows XP is faster than the new Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1) in completing common consumer and business tasks on PCs coming out of sleep mode, but the differences are slight. The performance tests, conducted by Principled Technologies Inc. on Microsoft's behalf, showed that the older XP operating system remained faster than Vista SP1 in 61% of the operations grouped in a consumer test suite, and faster than Vista SP1 in 46% of the operations in the business-oriented head-to-head.

The results were from time trials held on identical PCs after they'd come out of standby, a power-saving feature in Windows. Vista, like other operating systems, including Apple Inc.'s Mac OS X, calls the same mode "sleep."

However, when the same tests were run after a cold boot -- with the PC's power turned on, the OS booted and the scripts run after two minutes -- Vista SP1 came out on top in 74% of the tested consumer functions, and 66% of the business operations.

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Microsoft, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Vista SP1, Performance