Blame Dell, not Windows. They have the right to do what they want when they sell a product to you. There is no Windows 7 Basic in the USA. If you're referring to Starter, then you BOUGHT the crippled version by your own choice.
Windows 7 editions - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
GUARANTEED, Microsoft tested their interfaces at the cost of millions of dollars to get the best possible interface across all their user bases. They did this with the color blue when XP was released. They've done studies on the craziest things because user interaction is the number one thing people using the OS will notice across home users and office users.
And I don't know what you're talking about referring to the 'old interface'. The windows interface has changed little. There's a start button (just like XP) that's not labelled start anymore. All your programs are still there (just like XP but easier to find). There are the most frequently used software (just like XP). I really don't see the difference except it doesn't cover your desktop as it expands. And if you want a command line type interface, press WindowsKey, start typing. you found your program.