Windows 10 begins to eat into Windows 7's usage share

[steven36]

Quick shift from Windows 8.1 upgraders to those updating from Windows 7 is good news for Microsoft

Although it initially tempted Windows 8.1 users, Windows 10 has increasingly grown its usage share at the expense of the much more widely used Windows 7, an encouraging sign for Microsoft's efforts to convince the old guard to switch.

Using data from Irish analytics company StatCounter, Computerworld calculated the changes in usage share -- a measurement of desktop-and-laptop-driven online activity -- of the various editions of Windows since 10's debut on July 29.

For the first four weeks after Windows 10's release, Windows 8.1 led in losses, beating Windows 7 by a wide margin. During that month-long span, Windows 8.1 accounted for 67% of all declines by it and Windows 7 -- those two editions are the only eligible for the free upgrade to Windows 10 -- while Windows 7 accounted for the remainder, or 33%. In each of those four weeks, Windows 8.1's losses exceeded those of Windows 7.

But that changed in Week 5.

In the last three full weeks, Windows 7's losses were larger than those of Windows 8.1. It was no contest, since Windows 8.1 actually gained usage share in the week ending Sept. 15. (The weeks used by Computerworld ran from Wednesday to Tuesday because Windows 10 was launched on a Wednesday.)

During the first four weeks of Windows 10's launch, Windows 8.1 lost significantly more usage share than Windows 7. (The two editions are the only eligible for the free upgrade.) Starting Week 5, however, the tables turned and Windows 7 declined by more than its successor.

For all seven weeks since Windows 10's launch, losses recorded by Windows 7 accounted for 63% of all declines by it and Windows 8.1, with the latter responsible for the remaining 37%.

StatCounter's data validates expectations of how Windows 10 would be adopted: That Windows 8.1 users, who were not only running the latest OS -- upgrade installations almost always initially skew toward those starting from newer OSes -- but were presumably the least satisfied with their edition because of its bifurcated user interface (UI), would be the first to jump on Windows 10 and its restoration of the Start menu.

Windows 10 was going to be a harder sell to Windows 7 users, that thinking went, because they were more set in their ways and already had a desktop-centric operating system. But convincing those customers to switch was going to be critical if Microsoft was to meet its self-imposed goal of putting Windows 10 on 1 billion devices by mid-2018, simply because Windows 7 was the dominant edition. According to StatCounter, Windows 7's usage share stood at 55.1% of all OSes on the morning of Windows 10's release; by Sept. 15, it had dropped to 51.5%.

There are still plenty of Windows 8.1 users who have not pulled the upgrade trigger -- 14.7% of all operating systems in usage share -- but the quick change to Windows 7's dominance in losses has to be good news for Microsoft.

That's not to say that Microsoft has an easy chore ahead. Interestingly, the one-month period where Windows 8.1's losses dominated was also the stretch during which Windows 10 grew its usage share most rapidly. Since then, growth has slowed, perhaps because the early-adopter pool -- again, primarily composed of Windows 8.1 users -- has been depleted.

In the last seven days, the average week-over-week gain by Windows 10 has shrunk to less than one-fifth of a percentage point, meaning at that rate it will take the OS five weeks to increase by one point in usage share. The week before, the average gain was twice as large.

Windows 10's week-over-week increases in usage share roared out the gate, but have sharply slowed since around the one-month mark. In the last week, weekly growth has dropped below three-tenths of a percentage point, with a new low of under two-tenths recorded yesterday.

Source

[Karlston]

Wonder why Windows 8.1 INCREASED by just under 1.5% in the latest week. Probably all those who gave up W7, upgraded to W8.1 instead of W10. :)

[steven36]

Wonder why Windows 8.1 INCREASED by just under 1.5% in the latest week. Probably all those who gave up W7, upgraded to W8.1 instead of W10. :)

Most likely because they added a start menu ..The excuse everyone used not to use windows 8.1 was that . I think 8.1 was a good and stable O/S .

[stylemessiah]

Windows 10 begins to eat into Windows 7's usage share

says Microsofts clueless marketing department, or the centre for total denial...these are the people who insisted for the past 2/3 years that Windows 8 adoption rates were always sunny....

my numbers would show a lot of people going back to Windows 7 after starting off on Windows 8, thinking they were finally going to get something usual (start menu) and then upgrading only to see the hell that is Windows 10...the buggiest most unstable Windows version since ME, and yes Windows 8, even you look better to me, and i hate you....

[steven36]

Windows 10 begins to eat into Windows 7's usage share

says Microsofts clueless marketing department, or the centre for total denial...these are the people who insisted for the past 2/3 years that Windows 8 adoption rates were always sunny....

my numbers would show a lot of people going back to Windows 7 after starting off on Windows 8, thinking they were finally going to get something usual (start menu) and then upgrading only to see the hell that is Windows 10...the buggiest most unstable Windows version since ME, and yes Windows 8, even you look better to me, and i hate you....

StatCounter has nothing to do with Microsoft's marketing department . they check users O/S thorough the browsers user agents .

StatCounter statistics are directly derived from hits (not unique visitors) from 3 million sites using StatCounter totaling more than 15 billion hits per month

And or are you sure its not the other way around? You seem to be clueless about how this info is even gathered. and seem to be in total denial Microsoft cant use this data this was Computerworld looking StatCounter data was all. :)

By the data there collecting windows 7 has been drooping every since windows 10 has came out GA . windows 10 is growning but at a snails pace right now but it will get a surge once they release the new version to Ga . Windows 7 has no reason for people to buy it anymore the updates are up in less than 5 years.. extended support has ended. So its considered a legacy O/S now . windows 8.1 is not a legacy O/S it stopped losing users and is staying were it is but it still never gained back what it lost. :P

[Sylence]

Wonder why Windows 8.1 INCREASED by just under 1.5% in the latest week. Probably all those who gave up W7, upgraded to W8.1 instead of W10. :)

Most likely because they added a start menu ..The excuse everyone used not to use windows 8.1 was that . I think 8.1 was a good and stable O/S .

But the start menu is only for Windows 8.1 RT, right? no pro users?

[steven36]

Wonder why Windows 8.1 INCREASED by just under 1.5% in the latest week. Probably all those who gave up W7, upgraded to W8.1 instead of W10. :)

Most likely because they added a start menu ..The excuse everyone used not to use windows 8.1 was that . I think 8.1 was a good and stable O/S .

But the start menu is only for Windows 8.1 RT, right? no pro users?

Yes its for only for RT bro they said because most pcs running this use light PC and wont be able to update to windows 10.

Anyways if you look at start counter for yourself you will see 8.1 lost users and then it even out but they never have gain any users back . So the overall it lost users . But its not like they had as many as windows 7 has no were near that ever . It took windows 7 years to beat out XP even but sooner or latter windows 10 will because of end of support for windows 7 . ;)

I guess many people rather complain about it now while its free and use windows 7 and buy windows 10 latter :lol:

[Sylence]

But the start menu is only for Windows 8.1 RT, right? no pro users?

Yes its for only for RT bro they said because most pcs running this use light PC and wont be able to update to windows 10.

Anyways if you look at start counter for yourself you will see 8.1 lost users and then it even out but they never have gain any users back . So the overall it lost users . But its not like they had as many as windows 7 has no were near that ever . It took windows 7 years to beat out XP even but sooner or latter windows 10 will because of end of support for windows 7 . ;)

I guess many people rather complain about it now while its free and use windows 7 and buy windows 10 latter :lol:

Haha yeah they can't resist it because like it or not they still depend of Windows so need its security updates too.