Windows 11 Adoption Strong, Microsoft Insists

Microsoft is insisting that Windows 11 is off to a strong start, with users accepting the free upgrade offer at twice the rate it saw for Windows 10.

Microsoft also shared that Windows 11 has the highest quality and satisfaction scores of any Windows operating system ever.

These assertions come after IT asset management specialist Lansweeper earlier this month provided a real world snapshot into the reception of the Windows 11 operating system – three months since its launch last October.

Definitely not Vista

Lansweeper’s data revealed that adoption of the new Windows OS remains decidedly sluggish, with just 0.52 percent of PCs, actually upgrading to the latest operating system.

And to give an idea of just how sluggish uptake of Windows 11 has been, Lansweeper said this 0.52 percent rate was an increase of just 0.3 percent from two months ago.

This means that Windows 11 is currently the fifth most popular Windows operating system.

But Microsoft is seeking to dismiss concerns among some observers that Windows 11 could be the new Windows Vista, which (like Windows 11) had placed onerous system requirements (often requiring a new PC) when it launched in 2007.

Windows 11 it should be remembered requires UEFI (which does the same job as BIOS) and the PC must also be secure boot capable (for which the motherboard will need a trusted module chip).

Other requirements include at least 4GB of RAM, and a couple more processor cores.

Unfortunately, these requirements (especially the first two) will force those with an older computer to purchase a new machine – not great timing amid inventory issues, high prices, and a global chip shortage caused by the Coronavirus pandemic.

Strong adoption

Panos Panay, chief product officer for Windows and Devices, however noted in a blog post that the PC market saw its biggest growth in a decade, with Windows outpacing the market.

This comes as no surprise, as recent research from IDC has shown that despite all the issues, people were indeed buying new PCs during the past year, with shipments up 14.8 percent from 2020 to their highest level since 2012.

And then Panos addressed the reception so far of Windows 11.

“Since the launch of Windows 11 in October, we have seen strong demand and preference for Windows 11 with people accepting the upgrade offer to Windows 11 at twice the rate we saw for Windows 10,” said Panos.

“Windows 11 also has the highest quality scores and product satisfaction of any version of Windows we’ve ever shipped,” he added. “Product quality was a huge focus for the team, and we took a deliberate and phased approach to how we rolled out the upgrade. Today, we’re excited to share that the upgrade offer to Windows 11 is beginning to enter its final phase of availability putting us ahead of our initial plan of mid-20221.”

“Windows 11 is driving increased engagement with people spending 40 percent more time on their Windows 11 PC vs Windows 10,” said Panos. “The multitasking and productivity advantages of the Windows PC are being used more than ever with nearly half of Windows 11 users using the new Snap Layouts.”

“Windows 11 is also helping drive 3X more traffic to the newly redesigned Microsoft Store. Building on our open platform, we announced new Store policies last year to create greater economic opportunity for creators and developers, paving the way for not only new apps but new storefronts like Amazon and Epic Games,” said Panos. “We’re energised by the feedback from both our customers and partners about the new Microsoft Store.”

It should be remembered that the Windows Store has been redesigned, which can show movies and TV shows regardless of streaming services, and the store is also integrated with the Amazon app store.

This means that Android apps, such as TikTok, can now run inside Windows 11.

But some will point out that while Microsoft has addressed a number of other bugs and performance problems with Windows 11, it still has not resolved a stuttering problem with Windows 11 on AMD processors.

For those users intending to remain on Windows 10, Microsoft last year set a support retirement date of 2025 for Windows 10.

It should be remembered that Windows 10 was launched back on 29 July 2015, replacing Windows 8.1.

At the time of that launch Microsoft said Windows 10 was intended to be the final version of the operating system.

Indeed, Redmond at the time had dubbed “Windows as a service”, which meant the software would be gradually updated at no extra charge, rather than the company releasing a new operating system every few years.

But that model has now changed.