Will the Death of Windows XP Increase Windows 8, Windows 10 PC Sales?

Microsoft will officially end support for Windows XP on April 8, 2014. Which means that especially enterprise users, government agencies will start slowly replacing their Windows XP machines with newer Windows versions. And I find it hard to believe that they will choose to install Windows 7 instead of Windows 10, Windows 8, but there is still a chance of that happening.

Windows XP is already  12-years old and until now, it still holds an impressive share of the operating systems market – 37%, according to Net Applications.

Business owners will have two choices: one will be to buy a new Windows version and install it on their old machines and another one will be to buy a new machine with a new operating system. Now, this is where it will be interesting to observe what will they choose. For example, some might opt for a hybrid device, since maybe their employees need a device with them all the time. So, when they’re back to their desks, they can easily use it as a personal computer. After all, this is what Windows 10, Windows 8 is about – unfiying the experience on tablet and desktop mode and I still think Microsoft designed a product that will keep on rising.

If business owners and agencies orient themselves towards that kind of devices, then Windows 8, Windows 10 and those selling Windows 8, Windows 10 devices will definitely find a boost in sales. The problem for the Windows 10, Windows 8/RT adoption is going to rely in what will those leaving Windows XP behind will choose next. According to IDC market research firm data, PC shipments have apparently stabilized and Windows 8, Windows 10 is starting to see some real sales, at least in the United States:

Worldwide PC shipments totaled 75.6 million units in the second quarter of 2013 (2Q13), down -11.4% compared to the same quarter in 2012 but slightly better than expected.

The numbers reflect a market that is still struggling with the transition to touch-based systems running Windows 8 as well as justifying ultrabook prices in the face of economic pressures and competition from tablets and other devices. A silver lining is that a number of vendors and regions seemed to be focused on inventory reduction during the second quarter, which could reflect planned launches of new models as well as lower inventory going into the second half of the year.

A wider selections of Windows 8 models offered by top vendors and migration from Window XP to Win7 helped to push volume higher than anticipated. Dell managed to climb above 3.8 million units for the first time since 2011, gaining a few points of share in the U.S. PC market. HP maintained its leadership position, growing roughly even with the market. These two vendors represented nearly 50% of total U.S. PC shipments in 2Q13.

Windows XP dies to help Windows 8, Windows 10 grow

No official support for Windows XP from April 8, 2014 means that Microsoft will no longer issue security patches and software updates, which means systems running Windows XP will be the most vulnerable to malware and hacker attacks. But keeping this in mind, we realize that not everybody is going to make the switch to a new Windows version and even less folks are going to pay for it, even if upgrading to Windows 8, Windows 10 from XP isn’t that expensive.

Actually, the funny thing is that the end of Windows XP might do more for PC sales than Windows 8, Windows 10 actually did, as Patrick Thibodeau with ComputerWorld puts it.

What is your take on this? Will Windows 8, Windows 10 sales increase, as well as PC sales, as an effect of Windows XP’s demise?