V3 reports how analyst firm IDC says that Windows 10 is not going to be enough to prevent worldwide PC sales from declining. IDC notes that Windows 10 “should be a significant contributor” to sales but that it isn’t expected to “drive a surge in new PC shipments.”
The most obvious explanation for this is how Microsoft will be giving Windows 10 away for free to users with computers currently running Windows 7 or 8. This means people are more likely to simply upgrade their current computer instead of going out to buy a new model with Windows 10 out of the box.
Windows 10 should attract strong sales from the enterprise sector with a large volume of businesses expected to upgrade. Many have held off updating Windows 7 systems because of the extremely limited appeal of Windows 8 to companies due to its emphasis on consumer features.
Windows 10 is a more suitable offer with new features like Windows Update for Business making it much easier for administrators to configure and deploy. Despite this, enterprise updates will not be enough to offset the losses in the consumer market.
Worldwide PC shipments are expected to fall by 6.2 percent this year, a significant decline for the fourth consecutive year. This is a decrease from the 7.7 percent drop originally reported by IDC in the first quarter of the year though.
Despite the slew of new features in Windows 10 — including the return of the Start menu and the integration of Microsoft’s virtual digital assistant, Cortana — IDC expects that Microsoft is going to have trouble convincing consumers to buy Windows 10 products. The company lost its touch by releasing the disjointed and frequently confusing Windows 8. Loren Loverde, Vice President of IDC Worldwide PC Trackers, said: “In addition to educating clients, they’ll face tough competition from other devices, and weak spending in many regions. As a result, we see PC shipments stabilizing in 2016, followed by limited growth for the next few years.”
Windows 10 is expected to launch in the next few months. Although Microsoft has not yet confirmed any official dates, the latest reports indicate that manufacturers will get access to the finished build on July 29th.
A listing on PC hardware site Newegg.com appeared yesterday for retail editions of Windows 10 and has a release date of August 31st for general availability, although this may simply be a placeholder date. Newegg is a highly reputable site so they are likely to have enhanced knowledge on release dates though.
Regardless, we are definitely getting ever closer to the launch of Windows 10. Within the next three months you can be expect to be sitting with Cortana and the reworked Start menu — new PC or not.
