Should I upgrade..?

[quantum]

I've not been keeping up with Lightroom Forums or upgrades to the software lately. Just been using it really.
So I understand this is a difficult question for you all to answer but here goes.

I am running Windows 7 prof. I am pretty happy with my version LR 5.7. I am not at all keen on subscription payments as I like to own the thing and upgrade when I see significant improvements. So... what improvements would I get if I went to CC or whatever it's called now? Are there any drawbacks? What's the latest stand alone product without subscription that I could upgrade to, if any.

I have to also say that I am not always a fan of Current (2012) processing on my photos. I often like to use 2010 for speed of editing - I've yet to find a simple alternative to the brightness slider in 2010. On 2012 I have to use so many more sliders to do the same thing. I do understand that generally 2012 is better, but for general photos I find it's not worth the extra effort in processing. Just thought I'd mention if any of the newest versions don't allow 2010 processing.

Ta muchly.

 

[Gnits]

It is difficult to know what someone might find useful when it comes to software and software features.

I suggest that you read through the new features as documented in the following link back to your version.
Lightroom Journal | Tips and advice straight from the Lightroom team.

I was not a fan of the new CC model, but changed my mind when they combined Lr with PS and a decent monthly price. I am upset that Adobe have done a bad job on the Book module, cannot maintain Title, Caption and Keyword in the mobile apps and cannot use my metadata properly in the print module. All of these shortcomings are common to both the CC and Perpetual versions.

The new web features are also getting better, but too little too late for me as I have found better alternatives.

 

[clee01l]

You don't need to think that the subscription model is the only way forward. Adobe still sells the standalone upgrade v 6.7. There are features in the subscription version (2015.7) that aren't available to users with a perpetual license. Some of the features are related to Lightroom Mobile which requires a subscription. Other features have been added since LR6.0 was released and these are not available because the subscription users are paying a monthly fee that includes these added features.

You need to weight the additional features to determine if a subscription or a perpetual license is to your best advantage. Probably the biggest disadvantage to staying with the legacy version LR5.7 is with support for new cameras. The proprietary RAW format for new cameras introduced since LR5.7 won't be readable by your older version of LR.