Microsoft struggles to shift users from Windows 8 to Windows 8.1

By Barry Collins

Posted on 2 Dec 2013 at 14:56

Microsoft is struggling to convince users to take the free upgrade from Windows 8 to Windows 8.1, judging by the latest figures from Net Applications.

Windows 8.1, which was officially released on 17 October, accounted for 2.64% of the desktop market in November, while Windows 8 continued to command a (rather ominous) 6.66%.

By contrast, Apple’s OS X 10.9, which was released a week later than Windows 8.1, has already overtaken OS X 10.8. The older version fell from a 3.31% market share in October to 1.85% in November, while the latest release now commands a 2.42% market share.

For whatever reason, it seems Apple is having much greater success in migrating users to the latest version of its desktop operating system than Microsoft is with Windows.

Both upgrades are free to users of the previous version of the operating system, and both are presented as optional, not mandatory, upgrades.

Businesses using Windows 8 may have put the brakes on a Windows 8.1 deployment until it has been validated by the IT department, but most figures suggest that corporate uptake of Windows 8 remains relatively low anyway.

XP dwindling

The better news for Microsoft is that usage of Windows XP is, at last, beginning to fall off the cliff. It started 2013 with a market share of 39.51%, according to Net Applications’ figures, but has now fallen to 31.22%.

Yet, with the support cut-off date looming in only four months’ time, it seems highly likely that at least 20% of the world’s desktops will still be running XP at the time security updates cease, unless Microsoft once again relents

Call PCGOODGUYS at (651) 354-1865 for upgrade assistance.