Windows 8 started off rather strong, but now it looks like the adoption rate numbers are falling quite a bit. Microsoft previously touted that they had sold 40 million copies of Windows 8 (compared to Windows 7 with 60 million in the same time frame). As you could imagine it seemed like all of the doom and gloom associated with the controversial new UI seemed to be taking a back seat.
The chart above is from netmarketshare.com, and it is taken from a sample of 40,000 websites. So, the data represented in the chart has been accepted by most as a pretty decent estimate of the current market. As you can see, Windows 8 is currently sitting at around 1.56%. However, now that things are settling down post launch, there seems to be a different picture coming into focus for he new operating system. According to mobilenapps.com, Windows Vista with all its blue screens and bugs that had people running for the hills was actually ahead of Windows 8 in this time frame. So, while Windows 8 is at 1.56%, Vista would have already been at 2.2%. Furthermore, it seems some OEM partners are also not too keen on the adoption rate of Windows 8.
According to wired.com, manufacturers have been stating that the adoption rate could be caused by various other factors in the market. These factors could range from more competitors such as Android, iOS, and Linux Distros to users waiting for new and exciting products that interact with Windows 8. Additionally, there was also a decline in PCs sold in 2012 and more people turning towards smart phones instead, which could also be another factor into the equation.
Overall, Windows 8’s impact is quite uncertain at this time specifically on laptops and desktop PCs. However, aside from the UI, it is important to note that for the most part Windows 8 has offered some performance improvements specifically with boot times on older hard drives. You can check out our impressions for the new OS as well. In terms of blue screening and overall stability Windows 8 certainly doesn’t seem like another Windows Vista, but in terms of overall sales, we will just have to wait and see how this OS continues to pan out in the next couple of months.
Sources: softpedia.com, netmarketshare.com, mobilenapps.com, wired.com
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It’s really a shame that they won’t give desktop users the options that they want. I mean there are quite few performance tweaks and improvements under the hood, but the UI is still very intrusive to a decent amount of users.
The consumer preview impressions we did a while back still holds up:
http://pixelsmashers.com/wordpress/?p=14151
Many of the grips I have with windows 8 are as follows:
1. Users are forced to start up in the Metro UI
2. There is no way to disable the Metro UI (without third party applications)
3. There is no way to bring back the start menu (without third party applications)
4. Searching apps takes up the whole screen since you must go through the Metro UI
5. The Metro UI can be counterproductive in a desktop environment (Charms bar is outright annoying and moving the mouse over corners is not very intuitive)
6. The tiles are too large, scrolling horizontally instead of vertically isn’t my cup of tea on a desktop (for touch this may be acceptable).
All I’m saying is give people the options that they want.
I agree, I just simply want the UI the way I want it without haven’t to download some program to change it. I LIKE cascading menus; I didn’t like Ubuntu’s Unity search thing so I switched to Gnome, why can’t I start with the regular desktop in 8?
Earlier Windows versions seemed to have a higher level of freedom to allow you to rearrange certain things, this new version just feels… restrictive.
i hope M$ takes the hint and SP1 is actually more like a new win8 without all the aforementioned problems
I outright refuse to purchase and use Windows 8. When I got my new laptop I actively looked for models still sporting Windows 7.
I hate Metro, it is unintuitive with a mouse and just plain ugly on a touchscreen. It also felt incredibly restrictive as if they’re trying to remove the amount of options the end user has. Improved performance be damned (which is damning for my Piledriver CPU).