Windows PC Sales Down 21% Since Windows 8 Launch

[Guest]

Nothing to do with windows 8 this, just a mature market where people arent inclined to upgrade every 2 years now.

Hell, I have a gaming PC, its already 2 years old but I wont be upgrading any time soon because no games have come out that cause my PC to really struggle. GPU might be upgraded next year, but CPU will probably last me another 2 years (3.6ghz i5).

Surface Pro will possibly be my next computing device I will buy, unless MSI come out with a pro tablet that has a thunderbolt connector + release an external GPU enclosure --> replacing my laptop and desktop with one device would be sweet.

 

[Old_Fogie_Late_Bloomer]

[citation][nom]kellybean[/nom]Sorry but OS X is all right and the hardware Apple provides for it looks nice enough (if you like brushed aluminum and glossy screens), though a lot of it is pretty overpriced.[/citation]
Fixed it for you...

 

[Guest]

I'm in a tough position. I'm still running XP (I know, it's unsafe, it's inefficient etc. . . . and yet I don't have issues, strange, huh?), but I'd like to upgrade. The problem is, funds are quite depressingly low, and with Win9 right around the corner, I don't see a compelling reason to upgrade to 7/8.

If 9 is a failure, I'll move to Win7 and hope for another decade of quality OS =]

 

[warezme]

Like drwho1, said these days people don't need a new PC every couple of years, especially if they are like us who build our own. I'm still rocking an X58SLI mobo with triple channel memory and 12GB of RAM and an i7920 OC'ed to 3.6Ghz(the original 920's). The only upgrade I have had to do is ditching two original GTX295's for a single 590GTX because it was faster, cooler, quiter and ran my 3 monitors out of a single card. Sure there are faster CPU's and mobo's out there but I still don't need them.

 

[bak0n]

[citation][nom]bllue[/nom]They've been in decline for over a year. I don't see how ALL of this is W8 fault[/citation]
You are correct. It is not all Win 8's fault. But part of the blame definitely lies there. How much is uncertain at this point. But I'm guessing quite a bit.

 

[leakingpaint]

*cough*....Big surprise headline...

 

[tburns1]

I wanna know what focus group M$ relied on? "Ugh! I has slick, 3D graphics using the true color palette. Please, oh please, give me back uninspired single color blocks using no more than (seemingly) 16 colors! I really miss my Commodore 64!"

 

[leandrodafontoura]

Muahahuahuahuahuaa

Apple Rises

 

[AndreT]

It's not all W8's fault but it's certainly not helping. Gaming is a big driver of advancement in power requirements in the PC sector. "Yeah, but can it play Crysis?" ring a bell? We have been in a rut since most games these days are just poor ports from the consoles which are over half a decade old. You don't need newer and better hardware to play most of it. Developers need to raise the bar again to drive excitement in the market for true advancement that will have enthusiasts spending money again on upgrades. Win 8 has nothing to add to this scenario other than "Look! Now you can play Angry Birds on all your devices the same way." Who cares??

That and businesses will not adopt the new OS because of the learning curve placed on the users and the burden/cost of training even to do simple things like turn off the PC. Most business users are not power users and learning a new interface is not a quick and easy process for them. It takes time, and time is money. Also, businesses see no real benefits to upgrading desktop hardware since it hasn't advanced that much in performance over the previous generations recently for things like business apps. Bad user interface and no real gains for business users. It's a no brainer. Staying on win 7 wins hands down.

 

[blazorthon]

[citation][nom]frobnoid[/nom]"Why is everyone trying to blame windows 8 or assume as an possiable reason of poor sales, have you thought that people just dont have that kind of money to spread, why buy a new PC or device when most have just bought a new one."Doesn't seem to be bothering Apple much.[/citation]

Apple isn't even in the markets that are getting hammered, the budget markets, so of course they're not bothered. Oh wait, they just took a $200 nose dive in stock prices recently, so they're having at least some problems, related to this or not, so even then, they're having problems of their own.

For everyone whining about Windows 8 and/or saying that this is karmic justice or other crap like that, get a clue. The drowning PC market right now has little to nothing to do with Windows 8. Not only can you still buy Windows 7 devices pretty much everywhere, but this was going on before Windows 8 launched, so it has almost nothing to do with 8. If 8 hadn't launched, then you'd all have to blame some other scapegoat. Scary, huh?

 

[loomis86]

[citation][nom]TeholtheObsolete[/nom]I'm in a tough position. I'm still running XP (I know, it's unsafe, it's inefficient etc. . . . and yet I don't have issues, strange, huh?), but I'd like to upgrade. The problem is, funds are quite depressingly low, and with Win9 right around the corner, I don't see a compelling reason to upgrade to 7/8.If 9 is a failure, I'll move to Win7 and hope for another decade of quality OS =][/citation]

You would be wise to upgrade to win7 before MS shuts the door on it. You better move quick. I have a suspicion there isn't going to be any windows 9.

 

[blazorthon]

[citation][nom]loomis86[/nom]You would be wise to upgrade to win7 before MS shuts the door on it. You better move quick. I have a suspicion there isn't going to be any windows 9.[/citation]

You can still buy Windows XP and some older versions. Windows 7 isn't going anywhere anytime soon as far as buying the OS goes. Why do you doubt the release of Windows 9 (assuming that the successor to 8 is keeps on the number naming scheme)?

 

[loomis86]

[citation][nom]blazorthon[/nom]You can still buy Windows XP and some older versions. Windows 7 isn't going anywhere anytime soon as far as buying the OS goes. Why do you doubt the release of Windows 9 (assuming that the successor to 8 is keeps on the number naming scheme)?[/citation]

I think they will switch to subscriptions by then. MS Office is moving to yearly subscriptions and you will pay a yearly fee and with that comes periodic updates, no charge. Why do you think W8 upgrades are so cheap? I think it is because MS is trying to get rid of everything older than W8 and then switch over to a subscription based OS.

 

[spookyman]

Of course PC sales are down when a big percent of the population just do word processing and internet surfing. Really don't need a new computer for that do you?

 

[classzero]

DOH!

 

[Guest]

Fresh from the Crappers at M$, the Windows That 8 the PC desktop productivity, the windows that 8 the profits of so many PC OEMs, the windows that will be center table on many peoples minds, as in, we really 8 some turkey from M$ this Thanksgiving!

 

[AM2A]

[citation][nom]blazorthon[/nom]You can still buy Windows XP and some older versions. Windows 7 isn't going anywhere anytime soon as far as buying the OS goes. Why do you doubt the release of Windows 9 (assuming that the successor to 8 is keeps on the number naming scheme)?[/citation]
Current rumor is that the next windows will be 8.1 and that they will be coming yearly. Can't remember where I read that, you can google "windows blue" to find some articles.

 

[pliskin1]

To quote Bill Engvall..."Here's your sign".

 

[gomerpile]

Ok its not windows 8 sales its the lack of availiblity to buy device that are touch screen, there are none available. I want a monitor and others want lapies and you cannot find one touch screen anywere

 

[killerb255]

What the audience here at Tom's wants to hear:
"Windows 8 sucks ass. IT CAUSED THE PROBLEM!!!!"

What's reality (or seems to be reality):
1) PC sales were falling even before Windows 8. Technology has got to the point where people have enough computer from their computer they bought three years ago. Why should they buy a new one?

2) The average Joe (in other words, very few, if ANY of Tom's primary audience) wants to surf the Internet, check their e-mail, check Facebook/Twitter/etc., and play a few games that are free or a few bucks to download. That can all be done on a smartphone or tablet, and this is Apple and Google's domain.

Before smartphones and tablets (as we know them now), PCs and laptops were the primary consumption devices. For the average Joe, smartphones and tablets are all they need. They don't need a PC.

Overall, demand for PCs had dwindled for the two reasons above: much of the market found their PC replacements (I say "much," not "all,"--I understand that this is Tom's and we're a bunch of enthusiasts that have the "You're going to have to pry my PC from my cold dead hands!" mentality. Understand that we're a very small audience, though.), and those that still have PCs from a few years ago (and are not enthusiasts like us) are still getting use out of them.

 

[misterawsome]

once steam goes out of beta on linux i think no one will turn back.

 

[shahrooz]

I prefer to have start menu alongside metro but I should admit that win8 is good at least it is more stable than 7 and faster specially in boot and shut down

 

[Guest]

Don't belive in this article, it is not recommended to anyone at all

 

[expressionate]

[citation][nom]killerclick[/nom]Die, Metro, die[/citation]
And die a horrible death too.....