Everyone here will probably say people are moving to Linux, but I imagine the biggest beneficiaries of Windows’ long-term decline in market share are ChromeOS and MacOS. I would probably recommend a MacBook to my mother if she asked for my opinion on a new laptop.
There is also the argument that Windows’ market dominance was an aberration and unsustainable, and now we are seeing a reversion to the mean. While Windows is in an enshittification phase right now I wouldn’t be surprised if Microsoft eases off in a few years if their market share continues to decline.
This is good news, hopefully more competition in the OS space.
While Windows is in an enshittification phase right now
Right now? It’s been there for a decade at least. We all made due with Windows 10 because we learned to clean it up and make it our own, but let’s not pretend it didn’t have a foot in the enshitification direction already. The forced updates alone were more than enough evidence of that. Ads in the start menu started there. Forced “assistants”, telemetry, junk getting reinstalled automatically, etc. They have been spitting on us for a long time.
Windows 11 is just a breaking point for many. At least Windows 10 was easy to clean out and I didn’t absolutely hate the design.
I think there’s an argument to be made for a decrease in computer ownership. In my line of work, over the past ~10 years, there has been an increasing number of people who only interact with our services through just their smartphone and just don’t own a laptop or PC.
I know my folks have switched to Chromebooks primarily. Both my older brother and younger brother in law do not own laptops or PCs. One of my younger sisters has a laptop, and the other a gaming PC. I personally own a pc and laptop. Computers are in a weird place right now.
Honestly? Good. Maybe that’ll stop them trying to chase that mythical “average user” who doesn’t know how to uninstall Candy Crush, and instead have their come to Jesus moment with the audience of professionals and enthusiasts they have been spitting on.
Last month, Statcounter reported a notable decrease in Windows 11’s market share, and the trend continued in April 2024. After reaching its all-time high of 28.16% in February 2024, Windows 11 plummeted below the 26% mark.
According to Statcounter, in April 2024, Windows 11 lost 0.97 points, going down from 26.68% to 25.65%. All those users seemingly went for Windows 10 since the OS, which will soon turn nine, crossed the 70% mark for the first time since September 2023, gaining 0.96 points.
It’s not just that Windows 11 is shrinking, Windows 10 actually increased. The implication being that users have the choice between the two, and they picked 10.
That being said, when we’re talking about percentages this low, I’m not sure there’s anything of statistical relevance here.
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