Yes, on my desktop PC. Boot-up is a touch quicker and I'm using it mostly in desktop mode for which the only significant difference is the lack of a start button; I've been using Windows 7 like that for some time anyway so that is no big deal for me.
After boot-up one starts at the app screen and I don't find the apps to be of much use. However I have set tiles for various desktop programs and they, when clicked, automatically switch you to desktop mode whilst running the program so.
Overall, it's ok, no great shakes so far, but there's probably features of Windows 8 that I'm yet to discover e.g. maybe the apps might become more appealing with time.