It feels incredibly solid and fast at the core. I use Win8 as my work machine now and the only thing that would make me happier is if they'd stop shoving the apps approach down my throat.
I'm interested in why you think having a start button provides faster access than the start screen.
With the start screen, you can press the windows key to bring up the start screen, start typing the name of a program you want to start, and press enter to launch it. It seems like a more efficient way to start programs than the start menu.
I got hooked on Win8 once I really embraced that, for both app launching and file searching. I went back to Win7 for a few days and felt like I was 10 years in the past.
1) The start button menu has a built in search function that makes the search typing function in the start screen pointless - if I want to use the search approach. It responds in real time just like the start screen search does as well. And importantly: no need to switch visual interfaces to get to the program search. Windows key > type, all inside the desktop visual mode.
2) I use a two-pronged approach to pinning programs. First, I pin everything I use for work to the taskbar, so that's one click and no typing or start screen visual switching (which is obnoxious to work flow). Then some slightly less frequently used programs I pin to the first layer of the start button menu, so that's two clicks (to launch) and no typing to access another ten or so programs (20 programs, in one or two clicks, no switching screens and no typing; covers 99% of what I use daily). And if I want to, I can obviously use a key approach to opening the start button menu as well. Windows key > start typing, initiates a search, or an arrow key tap upward rolls me into the program list or into my pinned group. All from the same interface, without a visual switch.
3) With the start button menu I get a very fast alphabetical listing of practically everything on my system. Tiles take up considerably more space and require a left / right roll to see everything. It's cute for a few items, it's obnoxious and messy for 50.
4) The start button menu has a settings section that I can roll over to a control panel sub list or network settings sub list etc etc. The control panel item, for example, spawns an alphabetical list of 50 items on my system that relate to system management. This is similar to the small icons view under Control Panel, but I can get to the list with one 'click' and it's nicely hidden away in a compact multi-use start button menu.
5) This is just purely convenience: the start button menu has direct access to power / reboot (switch user etc). With the new Win8 approach I can swipe the right side of the screen (annoying), then access "Settings" and then access power control (more steps, less options under one item, much slower). And obviously ctrl-alt-delete still gets you quick access to these options as well, but that's just another reason the swipe screens and start screen are pointless for me on the desktop.
6) I can customize the start button menu more than I can the start screen.
7) I work in the desktop mode, everything I use is in the desktop mode, it's ridiculous to boot me into the start screen to begin my experience.
The start screen doesn't even come close to how compact and fast the start button menu is. Not to mention the visual switching the start screen requires is a nasty work flow breaker because I have to dive into and out of a different interface, when I shouldn't have to do that just to access simple programs.
Cool, I didn't realize you could do windows key > type with the start menu (it's been a while since I've used Windows beyond just trying out the new stuff).
Why would I want visual change when launching something when I can do exactly same on W7 without sudden switch to some "home screen" and while still watching youtube on my desktop?
http://winsupersite.com/windows-8/windows-8-tip-embrace-chan...
If I'm just using it for playing games or watching Netflix, sure, then who cares much. Microsoft intentionally forced their start screen apps vision onto everybody to spur adoption of their lagging apps / mobile ecosystem. So Windows 8 by default punishes their power users, because of mistakes Microsoft made years ago, when a few simple options would alleviate all of that by giving power users more choice in customization.