Windows 8 shrugs off critics, passes 60 million sales mark in just ten weeks
By Tim Colwill on January 10, 2013 at 2:48 pm
Windows 8 has had its detractors, but the sales figures show that many people are quickly moving to embrace it: Microsoft have announced at this year’s CES that the OS has now passed the 60 million sales mark only ten weeks since release.
At the show, Microsoft also announced that their new Windows store, which has been the subject of loud complaint from some in the gaming industry, has already passed the 100 million downloads mark. But are gamers really embracing it? The latest figures from December show that less than half-a-percent of Steam users have upgraded to Windows 8.
We recently completed a month of gaming with Windows 8 to see how it held up — check out our thoughts.
Source: Eurogamer
Friday Tech Roundup (17 May 2013): Windows 8.1 is almost upon us
Plus, Google CEO says "don't be evil" was "stupid", and the $325,000 in-vitro burger.
Analysts estimate 41% of all Windows 8 licenses sold aren’t being used
Only around 58 million Windows 8 PCs active worldwide.
Windows 8 passes 100 million licenses, is “very much alive” on PC
Windows Blue coming later in the year, set to contain a bunch of buzzwords.
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How many of those 60 million copies of Windows 8 are actually being used though?
Yeah good luck with all that microsoft.
How much of that figure includes tablets?
I don’t think that is particularly relevant.
I’m kind of looking at the 100 million downloads from the store thing. Of course that’s going to happen when you don’t even bother to include such niceties as the Windows standard built-in games as part of the installation package. Of course people are going to register and download stuff if it isn’t there to begin with. I wouldn’t entirely call it a huge success unless I saw dollar signs attached to it.
Don’t even believe they have 6 million legit world wide sales, let alone 60.
palzer0,
*tries not to sound like a little kiddie saying this* My dad’s been doing a lot of work trying to fix up other clients Win8 computers and tablets, and a lot of them have just tossed them aside due to network drop outs (really really common issue apparently), software issues, etc
So wouldn’t surprise me how many people have bought it, tried it, and said no thanks for that they can’t use it.
vcatkiller,
Agreed. When you’re forced to use a service, don’t brag about it achieving a benchmark. Plus my guess is most of them are like the android and apple app store downloads: “That was fun/useful to try out once/for the week, deleted”
phylum,
And why not?
Haters gonna hate? More to the point does the 60 million include Windows RT or is that counted separately?
If so then that’s 2 copies in my house, with a third in the works (two Windows 8 PCs + my Surface).
I really don’t get the hate i’ve had win8 since launch i’ve had ZERO issues.
The lack of a start button is the poorest of poor excuses that can be used, since there’s a quadrillion replacements/refined versions floating around the tubes, for example i use Pokki.
I myself have found win8 to be faster with most things over win7
I don’t see the lack of a Start button/menu as a poor excuse. Admittedly there are many other reasons that are much more valid than that, I overall dislike the entire Metro interface from top to bottom, for example, and prefer a good standard desktop layout instead. (which Windows 8 does have admittedly) Saying, however, it’s fine for a feature to be missing because you can hunt around for third party replacements is kind of silly. It’s like selling a car and saying “don’t mind that I’ve removed all the seats, you can find good replacements for those if you look around hard enough.” (ok maybe an exaggeration but you get the point)
I tried so hard to like Win8, i really did… and ill probly go back to it after a while to try again. Next time ill delve a little deeper and try n open my mind a little more.
For now though, Win7 is perfect for me.
I am a very happy and content Windows 8 user. No compatibility issues, my games all works, it’s damn fast and generally a slick experience.
BUT I completely, totally avoid the absolutely crap Start Screen/Apps/Metro side, that is truly a terrible experience after I tried to give it some love. That whole side to it is just utterly crap without a touchscreen (and I still think it would be with a touchscreen on a desktop PC)
Spends 5min (seriously it takes sweet **** all time to do) to set it up to NEVER use that side of Windows 8 and then you have a terrific system that I am completely happy with!
I don’t mind Windows 8 so far. It’s a very well running system but what really bugs me is that the windows 8 store installs everything on the C:\ Drive. I am using a solid state drive so this just makes it almost impossible to use the store even if I want to. Otherwise I have had little trouble and a general performance increase in games on the system.
Tried Windows 8, didn’t like the pervasiveness of the Metro interface even within the desktop and other areas you wouldn’t expect to find it. I supposed I could get used to it, but that’s hardly a ringing endorsement of the operating system. Currently preparing my software library and skills such that I’ll be able to dump it for Linux without too much trouble. If this is the direction Microsoft wants to take things, I certainly don’t feel the need to go along with them.
Do those sales numbers include all the pre-installed copies that places like harvey norman sell with everything?
If so then that number is far from impressive for world wide sales around Xmass.
Meh Windows 8 is going to get replaced with Windows Blue in 6 months time.. no point even arguing about 8 since its already obsolete lol. One would hope Blue will be free for Win8 users.
Personally had issues with it, pain in the arse to startup with, but once modded it’s not too bad. Like a new install of Win XP really, took about 2hrs to setup all the little tricks and then you were away!
Problem is it feels like money for old rope once that’s done as apart from the lack of detail in the UI (flat single colours and broad brightness to appeal to 6yr olds) it’s Win 7 with a moron for a start menu. Only two things stand out for me. First Hardware audio acceleration is back (though partially as it has two pipelines, one CPU and one Hardware Audio). Second the edges are square again giving a much cleaner interface IMO. Still haven’t found any more positives than that.
Now that I’ve spent a few months with Windows 8, I’m generally of the opinion that it’s a step in the right direction. Metro works incredibly well on touch screens (which are only going to become more prevalent with time) and I find the Start screen to be just as good as the old Start menu from a usability standpoint and it stays out of the way when I’m in the desktop.
Metro itself does need work though. Apps are slow to start (especially the store) and while they’re polished, they don’t have a very broad feature set. This is stuff that will get better as the framework matures.
I’d be happy to toss the desktop away if Msft’s full screen Metro app framework becomes robust enough for it, though I don’t think we’re gonna see that happen in Windows 8′s cycle or even the next major version (and yes I’m aware of the rumours that they’ll be moving to a rolling release schedule for the next version)
99% of the people who hate Windows 8 don’t seem to have used it.
Also, what’s with the start menu drama? If you actually use the start menu for anything more than the search and run commands in Windows 7, you are doing things the sloooooow way.
Which is fine, if you love clicking through stuff…. but criticising the removal of an inefficient system doesn’t make much sense.
Makes you wonder how many of those sales are pre-packaged OS’s on new PC’s where the user probably didn’t even request it. Doesn’t show OS quality or consumer backing, just market domination.
According to this, Win7 was selling better than Win8 at this point in time: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/microsoft/9707731/Windows-8-outsells-Windows-7.html
Windows 7 did 60 million in the first 8 weeks
Windows 8 did 60 million in the first 10 weeks
Guess i’m part of the 1% then as i’ve used it and hate it.
Also, the start menu isn’t “the slow way”, it’s the clean way, it’s where I store my apps that I don’t want cluttering up my desktop. Where would I put those on Windows 8?
Am I the only one who used the start menu’s “Recent Items” feature? I missed that in Windows 8. I know there’s a way to access recent documents via a link you can add, but it’s not easily exposed compared to the start menu. That and the lack of the recently launched apps list (which was in the Win 7 start menu which I used quite a bit) also irritates me.
It’s amazing how many Windows 8 fans seem to believe that people who DON’T like Windows 8 are somehow wrong, and that their opinion is baseless. It’s fucking annoying and arrogant.
Yeah, anyone that thinks that is flatout stupid!
No!
Get lost with your strawman BS!
Then you are an idiot!
A locked down program environment is the worst thing you could do to PCs and you are a fool if you do not think so!
^^^Same here.
Don’t worry ooshp has 1000s of icons on his desktop all efficiently hiding each other :P
thed,
I wasn’t talking about their app ecosystem. Simmer down, buddy.
kunodiablo,
No you are not. That’s Windows 7′s best feature, especially when you can pin files for individual programs there instead of plastering them all over the desktop. You can have all your most common files at your fingertips without your system looking like a mad woman’s breakfast. Brilliant feature I say, Microsoft thinks otherwise apparently though. <_<