Microsoft will release updates to Windows Vista this week that will target some of early adopters' most consistent complaints, including performance and compatibility tweaks. The updates will likely become available through Windows Update on Tuesday, according to Microsoft.

The new updates join a growing list of updates that will find themselves eventually integrated into Windows Vista SP1, which is due out early next year.

"These and similar updates will be wrapped into SP1 for those of you considering installing them in one fell swoop," Microsoft product manager Nick White wrote on his blog.

The most significant update Microsoft is adding to Windows Update is the second version of KB941649. It will extend battery life for mobile devices, improve the stability of Windows PowerShell and wireless network services, and also includes a number of compatibility and performance updates.

For example, it will improve Windows start-up time by "using a better timing structure," according to the update's release notes. It will also decrease the amount of time it takes for Windows Vista to return from a period of activity or exit one of Windows Vista's screen savers. Also included is better compatibility with non-Microsoft antivirus software.

Another of the updates to become available is a roll-up of hotfixes -- 21 previously reported problems that deal with USB reliability. That update fixes some significant problems, such as USB devices no longer working when a computer returns from Hibernation Mode, as well as some obscure ones that hadn't even been previously reported.

The other non-security update rolling out this week is a cumulative update for Windows Media Center that deals largely with compatibility.