It has been five months since Microsoft began rolling out Windows 10 for desktop and tablets to consumers on July 29. As 2015 draws to a close, the operating system has been installed more than 200 million times. If Windows 10 maintains the momentum, it won’t be difficult for Microsoft to achieve its ambitious target of having the OS installed on one billion devices within three years.
A thrilling milestone for Microsoft
The operating system reached 14 million installations within 24 hours of launch, and 75 million at the end of one month. The total installations climbed up to 132 million at the end of three months. Though the pace of upgrades to Windows 10 has slowed in recent weeks, Microsoft will be thrilled at crossing the 200 million milestone. Rivals including Apple have made fun of Microsoft for years over the slow adoption rate of new versions of Windows.
Following the Windows 8 debacle, Microsoft needed to step up to stay relevant. And Windows 10 has largely succeeded, receiving positive reviews and users and critics alike. But there were also many other factors in play behind the rapid adoption of the new OS. First, Microsoft released the developer preview of the OS to enthusiasts about a year before official launch through its Windows Insider Program. Even before the July 29 release of Windows 10, there were more than 5 million participants in Windows Insider program.
Microsoft aggressively pushing Windows 10 to users
Second, Microsoft made upgrades from Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 to Windows 10 free for the first year. It gave users an added incentive to upgrade to the new OS and experience advanced features such as Cortana. Third, the Redmond-based software giant has been pushing Windows 10 aggressively to Windows 7 and 8.1 users. The company has been notifying users about the availability of the new OS. It has even been downloading Windows 10 installation files to their desktops.
The new OS also had its fair share of issues. The first major update to the OS that was pushed out in November suffered from serious glitches. And then there were reports that Microsoft was spying on its users. But the company later clarified that it was collecting user data only to enhance user experience and offer more personalized services.
