Search the Community

Statcounter: Windows 11's climb slowed down in May 2023 by Taras Buria Several days ago, when detailing performance improvements in the latest Windows 11 update, Microsoft revealed that over one billion computers run its operating system. Unfortunately, the company did not provide extra details, such as how many devices have upgraded to Windows 11. Still, developers and customers are not in the complete dark—Statcounter's monthly reports provide regular insights into how many users each Windows version and other operating systems. Click here to learn more about Statcounter's methodology. Remember that data from third parties is never 100% accurate. According to the May 2023 report from Statcounter, Windows 10 remains the dominant operating system among Windows users. Approximately 71.9% (+0.54 points) of all customers continue using it for their daily computing needs. Windows 11, which soon turns two, slowed down a bit: 22.95%, with a slight dip compared with the previous month (-0.16 points). It will be interesting to see how the just-released "Moment 3" update will affect Windows 11's market share and if the announced at the Build conference features are tempting enough for Windows 10 customers to pull the trigger and update. Together, Windows 10 and 11 hold 94.85% of the entire market. As expected, Windows 7 took a significant nosedive when Microsoft ended the Extended Security Update program in January 2023. Still, a considerable number of users continue operating Windows 7 for all sorts of tasks. Statcounter claims the OS has a 3.61% market share (-0.17 points). Those not planning to upgrade from Windows 7 soon will be glad to learn that Mozilla is ready to continue supporting the now-dead OS for more than one extra year. Even though Windows 7 no longer receives updates, it still has a mainstream browser with regular patches and security fixes. Windows 10: 71.9% (+0.54 points) Windows 11: 22.95% (-0.16 points) Windows 7: 3.61% (-0.17 points) Windows 8.1: 0.72% (-0.13 points) Windows 8: 0.37% (-0.06 points) The honorable mention goes to Windows XP, which will soon mark ten years since the end of its extended support. Per Statcounter's findings, about 0.32% of Windows users are still rocking XP and using it to access the internet. A decade in no-update mode is nothing for a true fan! You can find more information about the Statcounter May 2023 report on the official website. A similar report covering the latest browser stats is available here.

Statcounter: Edge falls below 10%, Safari continues climbing by Taras Buria The first day of a new month means it is time for Statcounter's latest findings. The May 2023 report is now available with details about the most popular browsers and their market share changes. Click here to learn how Statcounter gathers its data. To no one's surprise, Google Chrome is still the number one go-to browser on most platforms. Its desktop variant holds a 66.02% share with minor fluctuations from month to month. In May 2023, Chrome lost 0.2 points. Apple's Safari, the only non-cross-platform desktop browser, is cementing its new place after taking over Microsoft Edge in April 2023. Safari's customer base increased from 11.89% to 12.79%, further gapping Microsoft Edge. The latter once again dipped below the 10% mark and reached a 9.91% share (-0.98 points). According to Statcounter, Edge is not the only browser having problems with increasing its market share. Firefox continues bleeding customers, and in May 2023, its share decreased from 5.59% to 5.28%. For reference, in July 2022, its market share was at 8%. Opera is the fifth most popular desktop browser, with a market share of 4.02% (+0.9 points). Finally, the honorable mention goes to Internet Explorer and its 0.45% share. Google Chrome - 66.02% (-0.2 points) Apple Safari - 12.79% (+0.9 points) Microsoft Edge - 9.91% (-0.98 points) Mozilla Firefox - 5.59% (-0.31 points) Opera - 4.02% (+0.9 points) And here is the mobile side of the market, where Google, Apple, and Samsung hold over 93% of users. Interestingly, Google Chrome lost a notable chunk of customers during the last three months. Safari, on the other hand, is experiencing a continuous spike. Google Chrome - 61.09% (-0.67 points) Apple Safari - 27.81% (+0.81 points) Samsung Internet - 4.97% (+0.14 points) Opera - 1.8% (-0.09 points) UC Browser - 1.54% (-0.17 points) You can find more information on the official Statcounter website.

Statcounter: 23% of all Windows computers run Windows 11 by Taras Buria In addition to the latest data about desktop and mobile browsers (there are some interesting changes), Statcounter's report provides insights into operating systems, allowing developers and regular customers to learn how popular various OSes are. Disclaimer: Third-party reports are never 100% accurate. Learn how Statcounter gathers its data in a post on the official website. According to the April 2023 report, Windows 11 has reached its all-time high of 23.01%, a 2.06 points increase compared to March 2023. Despite steady growth, dethroning Windows 10 with its massive 71.45% market share, which is slowly going down after a sharp rise that followed the end of Windows 7 support, remains an almost unreachable goal for Windows 11, especially when you consider rumors about Microsoft releasing Windows "12" in late 2024. Another dramatic change in Microsoft's approach to releasing "large" Windows versions may result in Windows 10 turning into another Windows 7—an OS people refuse to leave, even in sight of the incoming end of support in October 2025 (Microsoft has already confirmed version 22H2 is the last feature update for Windows 10). Windows 10 and 11 hold 94.46% of the market, leaving just a tad more than 5% to the remaining now-dead releases, such as Windows 7 and 8. Windows 7 has 3.78% (+0.05 points), and Windows 8.1 is still on 0.85% of all PCs (-0.01 points). Unsurprisingly, people still access the internet from computers running various Windows XP versions. Statcounter says about 0.35% of the market runs the OS Microsoft put to its final rest almost one decade ago. Windows 10 - 71.45% (-0.09 points) Windows 11 - 23.01% (+2.06 points) Windows 7 - 3.78% (-0.05 points) Windows 8.1 - 0.85% (+0.01 points) Windows 8 - 0.44% (-0.07 points) You can find more information about Statcounter's latest OS figures on the official website.

Statcounter: Microsoft Edge is no longer world's second desktop browser by Taras Buria According to Statcounter's April 2023 report, Microsoft Edge is no longer world's second most popular desktop browser. Apple Safari, the only non-cross-platform browser, has taken over Microsoft's Chromium-powered Edge. Disclaimer: Reports from Statcounter and other companies are never 100% accurate, and the idea is to provide average values and pinpoint general trends. You can learn how Statcounter gathers its data in the official FAQ. Statcounter says Safari is now in second place with a market share of 11.87%, a 0.95 points uplift compared with the previous month. Edge is now third, struggling to surpass an 11% mark for almost a year. In April 2023, Microsoft Edge lost 0.15 points. As for Chrome, it holds 66.13%, with a 0.36 points month-over-month increase. Here are the most popular desktop browsers per Statcounter's latest findings: Google Chrome - 66.13% (+0.36 points) Apple Safari - 11.87% (+0.95 points) Microsoft Edge - 11% (-0.15 points) Firefox - 5.65% (-0.82 points) Opera - 3.09% (-0.08 points) Most things have stayed the same on the mobile side of the market. Chrome and Safari continue holding almost 90% of all users, leaving a little less than 5% to Samsung, 2% to Opera, and the rest to less-known browsers. Google Chrome - 61.96% (-2.66 points) Apple Safari - (+1.73 points) Samsung Internet - 4.8% (+0.31 points) Opera - 1.88% (+0.08 points) UC Browser - 1.71% (+0.18 points) You can learn more about the April 2023 browser report from Statcounter on the official website.

Every fifth PC runs Windows 11 as the OS reaches its all-time high by Taras Buria StatCounter's latest data is out, and it is not a lame attempt to be funny on April 1st. The March 2023 report shows Windows 11's continuous and unstoppable growth—Microsoft's newest operating system is now on every fifth Windows PC as it almost reaches the 21% mark. In March 2023, Windows 11 gained 1.81 points and increased from 19.13% to 20.94%. However, Windows 10 also went up, albeit not as drastic as in February 2023, when Microsoft killed Windows 7 and 8.1. The current market leader holds 73.48%, a 0.17 points increase from the previous month. As expected, people started leaving Windows 7 and 8.1 much faster after Microsoft announced the end of the Extended Security Updates program (ESU). Windows 7 continues its decline, reaching the 3.72% mark and losing 1.62 points. Windows 8.1 currently holds a puny 0.84%, a 0.3 points decrease from February 2023. Here is what the Windows market looks like according to Statcounter: Windows 10 - 73.48% Windows 11 - 29.94% Windows 7 - 3.72% Windows 8.1 - 0.84% Windows 8 - 0.51% Considering other operating systems (Android, iOS, macOS, ChromeOS, Linux, and others), Windows remains the second most popular OS, losing ground only to Android. Microsoft's desktop operating system has a 28.29% market share (+0.56 points) between Android and iOS. Android - 41.56% (-2.32) Windows - 28.89% (+0.56) iOS - 17.29% (+0.16) macOS - 7% (+0.33) Unknown OSes - 3.05% (+0.62) You can find more information on the official StatCounter website.

Statcounter: Safari is about to overtake Edge and become second-most popular desktop browser by Taras Buria The February 2023 report from Statcounter is now available with the latest details about the browser market. The most interesting change in the findings is Microsoft Edge risking losing its "second-most popular desktop browser" title to Apple's Safari. According to Statcounter, in February 2023, Google Chrome reached a 66.12% market share. Its overwhelmingly crushing numbers dropped just 0.29 points compared with January 2023. Microsoft Edge is second with 10.84% (-0.24), and Apple Safari is third at 10.14% (+0.83). Microsoft Edge used to keep a safe distance from its macOS rival, but now Safari is catching up. Firefox is not overtaking any browser soon as it has a more distant 6.84% share (-0.03). Finally, Opera closes the top 5 desktop browsers list with 3.21% (-0.2). Google Chrome - 66.12% (-0.29) Microsoft Edge - 10.84% (-0.24) Apple Safari - 10.14% (+0.83) Mozilla Firefox - 6.84% (-0.03) Opera - 3.21% (-0.2) There are no significant changes on the mobile side of the desktop market. Google Chrome and Apple Safari share almost 90% of the market, leaving the rest for Samsung Internet, Opera, UC Browser, and other less popular options. Microsoft Edge, unfortunately, remains too small to register on Statcounter's gauges, and integrating AI-powered Bing in Edge on Android and iOS is unlikely to help change the situation. Google Chrome - 66.08% (-0.7) Apple Safari - 23.97% (-0.45) Samsung Internet - 4.37% (-0.09) Opera - 1.71% (-0.06) UC Browser - 1.46% (-0.01) Finally, here is how the market looks like with desktop and mobile browsers combined: Google Chrome - 65.74% (+0.31) Apple Safari - 18.86% (+0.17) Microsoft Edge - 4.27% (-0.19) Mozilla Firefox - 2.92% (-0.09) Samsung Internet - 2.6% (-0.01) You can learn more about the Statcounter February 2023 browser report on the official website. Also, check out Statcounter's latest operating system report, where you will find interesting changes in Windows 10 and 11's shares. Note: Third-party reports are never 100% accurate. Learn how Statcounter gathers its data in the official FAQ.

Statcounter: Almost every fifth PC runs Windows 11, Windows 10 gets major spike by Taras Buria At the beginning of each month, Statcounter publishes its reports detailing the latest browser and operating system market shifts. Data for February 2023 is now available, and it shows several interesting changes, such as Windows 11 approaching a 20% milestone and Windows 10 experiencing a notable spike. According to Statcounter, in February 2023, Windows 11 increased its market share by 1.01 points, reaching an all-time high of 19.13%. In other words, almost every fifth PC runs Microsoft's newest operating system. The latest feature update released on February 28, 2023, might tempt more Windows 10 users to pull the trigger and migrate to Windows 11. You can learn what is new in the Windows 11 "Moment 2" update in our review. The operating system market is massive and rarely experiences sudden spikes or significant changes. However, February 2023 is an exception. In January 2023, Microsoft put Windows 7 and 8.1 to their final rest and ended the Extended Security Updates program. This resulted in more companies upgrading their computers to Windows 10, bringing its market share up from 68.86% in January to 73.25% in February. Despite the final end of support, Windows 7 remains the third most popular Windows version. However, it lost a massive chunk of users and dropped from 9.55% to 5.39%. Windows 8.1's market share also halved from 2.28% to 1.15%. Windows 10 - 73.25% (+4.39) Windows 11 - 19.13% (+1.01) Windows 7 - 5.39% (-4.16) Windows 8.1 - 1.15% (-1.13) Windows 8 - 0.52% (-0.1) You can learn more about the latest Statcounter findings on the official website. Note: Third-party reports are never 100% accurate. Learn how Statcounter gathers information in the official FAQ.

Statcounter: Windows 11 crosses 18% mark but Windows 10 is not giving up by Taras Buria In addition to covering the most recent changes in the browser market (desktop and mobile), Statcounter's January 2023 report covers operating systems for computers and mobile devices. And since Microsoft rarely provides precise numbers and performance figures for its OSes, Statcounter, Valve, and other companies are the only way to analyze how different Windows versions progress or decline. According to Statcounter, in January 2023, Windows 11 increased its market share by 1.16 points, effectively reaching 18.13%. It is a relatively modest number, but it remains consistent over months. Slow but steady, Windows 11 continues biting off customers from Windows 10 and other operating systems. Windows 10, the king of the hill, is not giving up easily. The soon-to-be eight-year-old operating system increased its customer base and went up from 67.95% in December 2022 to 68.75% in January 2023. The end of Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 extended support periods is the most likely reason for the sudden spike. As expected, Windows 7 and 8.1 experienced a notable dip in their market shares. Windows 7 went down from 11.2% to 9.62% (-1.58 ), and Windows 8.1 lost 0.29 points. Windows 8 closes the top 5 Windows versions list with 0.62% (-0.03), and Windows XP is sixth at 0.45% (-0.04). Windows 10: 68.75% (+0.8) Windows 11: 18.13% (+1.16) Windows 7: 9.62% (-1.58) Windows 8.1: 2.331% (-0.29) Windows 8: 0.62% (-0.03) Overall, Windows holds 74.14% of the desktop operating system market. The value went down 1.2 points in January 2023, which is nothing uncommon compared to the previous months. The closest rival to Windows, Apple's macOS, is second with 15.33% (+0.67). Windows: 74.14% (-1.2) macOS: 15.33% (+0.67) Unknown: 5.27% (+0.49) Linux: 2.91% (-0.02) ChromeOS: 2.34% (+0.06) Finally, when considering the entire mobile and desktop operating systems market, Windows is the second most popular OS that only Android manages to beat. iOS and macOS are third and fourth. Android: 43.01% (-1.59) Windows: 29.18% (+0.77) iOS: 17.24% (-0.05) macOS: 6.03% (+0.5) Unknown: 2.15% (+0.73) You can find more information about the desktop operating system market on the official Statcounter website. Keep in mind that reports like this one are not 100% accurate and leave a margin for errors and inaccuracies.

Statcounter: Microsoft Edge has slightly increased its market share in January 2023 by Taras Buria The January 2023 report from Statcounter is here with details about the mainstream browsers and their market shares. As usual, the market is slow, and there are no groundbreaking changes. Note: No report is 100% accurate, and you should take the stats with a grain of salt. Statcounter gathers its data from 1.5 million websites, so there is a margin of error. You can learn how Statcounter prepares its report in the official FAQ. Google Chrome was the most popular desktop browser in January 2023. It reached a 66.39% market share, gaining 0.25 points. Microsoft Edge also increased its customer base and climbed back past 11%—11.09% (+0.11 points). Meanwhile, Apple's Safari keeps its distance with a 9.33% market share (+0.32 points), and Mozilla Firefox is fourth with 6.87%. The latter is the only mainstream browser that demonstrated a notable dip—it lost 0.34 points compared with the previous month. Finally, Opera closes the top 5 desktop browsers lists with a 3.42% share and a +0.12 point increase in January 2023. Google Chrome - 66.39% (+0.25) Microsoft Edge - 11.09% (+0.11) Apple Safari - 9.33% (+0.32) Mozilla Firefox - 6.87% (-0.34) Opera - 3.42% (+0.12) On the mobile desktop browsers market, things are slightly more dynamic. Also, it misses Microsoft Edge as the company cannot figure out how to make users use its browser on Android and iOS. Edge's mobile market share is too small to appear in the report. Google Chrome - 65.35% (+1.04) Apple Safari - 24.45% (+0.9) Samsung Internet - 4.46% (-0.6) Opera - 1.78% (+0.14) UC Browser - 1.47% (-1.34) You can find more information about Statcounter's browser stats in the report available on the official website. The December 2022 report is available here.

Microsoft Edge gained less than 2% market share in 2022 by Taras Buria Statcounter has published its latest report, revealing information about different browsers on different platforms and operating systems. The overall picture has not changed—Google Chrome remains number one with out-of-reach share, while Edge, Safari, and Firefox continue fighting for the second place. Note: Statcounter's findings are not 100% accurate, so take reports like this with a reasonably-sized grain of salt. You can learn how Statcounter gathers its data in the official fact sheet. According to Statcounter, Chrome currently holds a 66.16% market share. In December 2022, Google's browser lost only 0.02 points (down from 66.18% in November 2022), which might be just a margin of error. Microsoft Edge is unsurprisingly the second most popular desktop browser with a much more modest 10.99% (-0.18 points). Safari is the only non-cross-platform browser in the report, and its macOS exclusivity makes it harder for Apple to push past its current market share. Statcounter claims Apple Safari currently holds 8.98% (-0.61 points). Firefox is fourth with 7.22% (+0.12 points), and Opera is fifth with 3.29% (-0.3 points). As we enter the unknowns of 2023, let's see browsers' shares compared to the previous years to spot year-over-year growths or declines. The overall picture did not change much for well-established players. Google Chrome has been stable in its 65-70% spot with periodical rises and dips, and the same applies to Apple Safari with its 9% market share. Firefox did experience a notable decrease in users from about 10% in early 2020 to the current 7.22%. Microsoft Edge shows that disrupting the desktop browser market is a tremendously difficult task even for Microsoft, with its 1+ billion active Windows devices capable of running Chromium-based Edge. Although Microsoft Edge keeps climbing, its year-over-year growth is less than 2%. Getting users to jump-ship from Chrome to Edge is hard, which explains why Microsoft sometimes resorts to not-so-user-friendly practices of imposing Edge using all sorts of annoying methods. You can find more details about the latest Statcounter monthly report on the official website.

Microsoft Weekly: Windows 11 on the rise, new builds, and Windows 12 by Usama Jawad We are at the close of yet another week and it's time again to recap everything important that happened in the Microsoft-verse in the past few days. This was a pretty busy week with a number of Windows builds and issues cropping up. With the end of the month, we also got some statistics regarding market share, along with an interesting "Windows 12" concept. Without further ado, let's dive in to our weekly digest for November 26 - December 2! Windows 11 on the rise Statcounter revealed that Windows 11 now controls 16.12% of the market share as Windows 10 dipped below 70% for the first time. This is an increase of 0.67 percentage points compared to last month which is not a massive jump, but it does indicate that adoption of Microsoft's latest OS is steadily climbing upwards and nipping away at Windows 10's market share. Windows 8.1, 8, 7, and XP still capture 2.54%, 0.79%, 10.24%, and 0.4% of the market currently. On the gaming front, Valve's Steam Hardware survey results peg Windows 11 at 27.98%, which is a significant increase of 4.61 percentage points compared to the previous month. Windows 10 is shown struggling here too as it fell to 65.60%, a notable decline of 3.31 percentage points. Coming over to the web browsers market, Microsoft Edge now has a share of 11.17%. This is an increase 0.31 percentage points compared to the previous month and 1.65 percentage points improvement year-over-year. Of course, Google Chrome is still king at 66.13%, despite a slight decline of 0.36 percentage points. With the end of the month, Microsoft also shared a bunch of updates it introduced to some of its pieces of software. These include a hefty number of improvements in Teams, modest updates to Excel, and November enhancements for Power BI Desktop. Windows builds and issues Earlier in the week, Windows 11 Insiders received Dev Channel build 25252. It introduced a new VPN status icon in the system tray, more Taskbar search styles, a bunch of bug fixes, and a truckload worth of known issues. This release was followed closely by Beta build 22623.1020 (KB5020035) bringing OneDrive storage alerts, fixes for high CPU usage, and more. Later, we were treated to a servicing pipeline release too. There were some whispers from the Windows "Moment" updates camp as well. Test IDs for purported "Moment 3" and "Moment 4" update have been discovered in the latest Beta build. Microsoft has also made some "Moment 2" capabilities available to Windows 11 version 22H2 users on the stable channel via the latest build 22621.900 (KB5020044). These include Energy Recommendations, an improved Task Manager, and a slightly enhanced settings page for managing the touch keyboard. Unfortunately, this new build has also introduced an issue in Task Manager where certain UI elements may not render properly if you are using a custom color mode. The mitigation for now is to switch to Light or Dark mode as Microsoft works on a fix. In related news, Input Method Editor (IME) problems can be fixed by installing the latest KB5020044 update and a performance fix for copying large file remotely is also being tested in the recent Dev Channel release. "Windows 12"... and other stuff An interesting concept for "Windows 12" surfaced very recently and was covered in detail by us. Created by an enthusiast, the design focuses a lot on making Widgets more useful while making nifty improvements to other UI elements. Another capability it emphasizes is the splitting of two apps within one window and grouping files in collections inside File Explorer (similar to Collections in Microsoft Edge). Of course, our readers are divided on the aesthetics and utility of this design but do head here to voice your opinion. In other news, Microsoft has officially ended support for the original Surface Hub 55 and Surface Hub 84. Running Windows 10 Team on a fourth-gen Intel Core i5/i7 processor, this device enjoyed a life of seven years, initially being sold at up to $20,000. Although the original Surface Hub is dead in terms of updates, another tricky product, the Surface Duo, might get a dedicated Insider Program soon. Finally, in some smaller updates on the software side, PowerToys is getting a Windows 11 Quick Settings-like launcher to let you launch your favorite utilities with a couple of clicks in the notification area. Meanwhile, Microsoft Forms has introduced the useful capability of being able to add images as possible answers to multiple-choice questions (MCQs). Git gud Coming to the ongoing problem of Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard being probed by regulators, there have been rumors this week that the Redmond tech giant may offer concessions to the EU and that a deal has already been struck between Microsoft and Sony regarding the future of Call of Duty on PlayStation. Of course, nothing has been officially confirmed yet. What Microsoft has confirmed is that those with gaming issues won't be offered the Windows 11 2022 Update yet. This safeguard hold will probably be removed around mid-December. But talking about games themselves, a bunch of high-profile titles have hit or are hitting Xbox Game Pass this month. Notable additions include Battlefield 2042, LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, High On Life, and Warhammer 40,000: Darktide, among others. Meanwhile, the Games with Gold offerings are Colt Canyon and Bladed Fury. On the sales and promotions side, there is a massive Xbox Black Friday Sale going on. And the Free Play Days event has Battlefield 2042, Batora: Lost Haven, and Rainbow Six Siege on offer this weekend. But if none of this console gaming stuff tickles your fancy, check out News Editor Pulasthi Ariyasinghe's personally curated list of hot PC game deals this weekend. Dev Channel Skype 8.90 is now out Microsoft and PMI have announced new certifications for low-code learning Rufus 3.21 with improved Windows local account support, NTFS, and exFAT, is now available for all Under the spotlight News Reporter Taras Buria compiled a list of the top 5 flags that Microsoft Edge users should consider enabling in order to make the most of their browsing experience. Note that capabilities logged behind a flag are experimental in nature so do expect bugs. Taras also penned a couple more guides following the release of Windows 11 Dev Channel build 25252. The first details the process to enable the new Taskbar search box while the other describes how to disable the Windows 10-like Search Highlights. The final guide from Taras this week was about there being a hidden camera privacy indicator in Windows 11 and the process to enable it. On the other hand, forum member Adam Bottjen detailed the steps to launching pinned apps using just your keyboard in his latest edition of Tech Tip Tuesday. Last but not least, we had our Reviewer Robbie Khan criticizing the pitiful state of the much-hyped horror game The Callisto Protocol, in terms of PC performance. You can dive into the dedicated piece here where Robbie takes you with him on his journey to being super-excited about the title to refunding it after less than two hours of playtime on Steam. Logging off Our most interesting news item of the week relates to the imminent death of the free edition of the popular Macrium Reflect. The Windows backup software will not receive any new features but security updates will be provided up until January 1, 2024. Of course, you can continue to use the tool beyond that date but you won't be eligible for any support if some issue does pop up. The premium version of Macrium Reflect remains unaffected by this discontinuation. If you'd like to get a weekly digest of news from Neowin, we have a Newsletter you can sign up to either via the 'Get our newsletter' widget in the sidebar, or through this link. Missed any of the previous columns? Check them all out at this link.

Statcounter: Microsoft Edge crosses 11% market share by Taras Buria Here is the latest data from Statcounter, showing details about the desktop browser market and how the leading players are doing compared to one another. The desktop browser market is a slowly moving ship, and monthly changes are often within a margin of error. The November 2022 report is no exception—it shows only tiny fluctuations in each player's market share. Still, comparing several months and years lets you notice a general trend. For Microsoft Edge, that trend continues to be mostly positive. Slow but steady is how you can describe Edge's growth in the desktop browser market. According to Statcounter, after struggling for a while, Microsoft Edge has crossed the 11% mark for the first time since its introduction (including the OG "Spartan" Microsoft Edge from 2015). Modern Chromium-based Edge gained 0.31 points, reaching an 11.17% market share. For reference, one year ago, Microsoft Edge was at approximately 9.52% (+1.65 year-over-year increase). Google Chrome is at the top, sitting firmly in first place with an unreachable 66.13% share (-0.36), making it impossible for any competition to come close. Despite being available only on Macs, Apple's desktop browser Safari is the third most popular choice, with a 9.62% market share (+0.26). Firefox is fourth (7.1%, +0.05), and Opera is fifth with 3.3% (-0.29). As for Internet Explorer, the former king of the desktop browser market, about 0.77% of all users continue using this browser. Some people do not want or cannot let Internet Explorer go, despite Microsoft's continuous efforts to substitute it with a much better Edge and its built-in Internet Explorer mode. You can spot a similar picture in the world of Windows, where some customers keep sticking to Windows XP, which died in 2014 (not an "eight-year-old OS," as some readers rightly noted). Expect the same to happen to Windows 7. You can find more details about the latest report from Statcounter on the official website. As usual, remember that the data is approximate and not 100% accurate.

Statcounter: Windows 10 dips below 70%, Windows 11 continues its slow climb by Taras Buria Statcounter has published its November 2022 report, showing the latest data about operating systems and browsers. According to the findings, in November 2022, Windows 10 dipped below 70% for the first time. Although Microsoft's operating system remains king of the hill, its market share is slowly decreasing as the successor becomes more popular. Statcounter claims Windows 10 now sits at a 69.77% mark, -1.49 point compared with the previous month. Windows 11 is not breaking any speed records, but it still gains more and more ground, keeping a relatively slow but steady pace. The November 2022 report indicates that Windows 11 is now at 16.12%, a +0.67 change compared to October 2022. Windows 7 remains the third most popular operating system, with a market share relatively close to Windows 11—approximately 10.24% (+0.62). Microsoft plans to end the Extended Security Updates program for Windows 7 early next year, so expect the OS's market share to go down a little faster. However, many customers will continue using Windows 7, which is why some developers are considering extending their software support. As for Windows 8.1 and 8, these two operating systems have 2.54% and 0.79% (+0.09 and +0.1). Windows XP, a now eight-year-old dead (unsupported) OS, still holds strong with a 0.4% market share. Although Windows has more than 1.5 billion active devices, it is not the most popular operating system. That distinction is held by Android with a 43.37% (-1.13) market share, although Windows is second with 29.24% (-0.93), and iOS is third with 17.25% (-0.32). You can find more information about the latest Statcounter report on the official website. Disclaimer: Third-party reports are not 100% accurate and always have a margin of error.

Microsoft Weekly: Windows 11 performance, adoption, and new features by Usama Jawad We are at the end of yet another week and it feels like time is just flying by. With the end of the week comes a new edition of Microsoft Weekly in which we recap everything important that happened in the world of Microsoft in the past few days. This edition covers a lot of news related to Windows 11, including its growth, performance, and a range of new features. Find out more in our Microsoft Weekly edition for October 29 - November 4! Windows 11 performance... and some other issues We will start Microsoft Weekly with news related to Windows 11's performance and some more issues that have cropped up. It turns out that Microsoft's recent tip for disabling certain security features in Windows 11 in order to boost gaming performance is benefiting a lot of Intel systems with some users reporting manifold improvements in benchmarks. In somewhat related news, the same cannot be said about AMD Ryzen 7000 customers who have been complaining about performance drops with Windows 11 version 22H2. For its part, AMD has denied all such reports and said that results across both Windows 10 and Windows 11 are roughly the same and within the margins of error, in terms of differences. Despite this denial, reports keep cropping up showing evidence of noticeable performance deterioration after updating to Windows 11 version 22H2. Since we are talking about issues, it's also apt to mention that Microsoft has put an upgrade block in place for the Windows 11 2022 Update (version 22H2) due to some audio sync issues. If you previously used the capture feature in Xbox Game Bar, the feature update will not be available until Microsoft provides a permanent fix. That said, a patch is expected soon. Image credits: Kevin Ku (Pexels) In the same vein, Firefox 106.0.3 is now out with some fixes for crashes and hangs on Windows 11 version 22H2. And OBS now supports Nvidia hardware fully for AV1, with a fix for a Windows 11 capture issue now rolled out too. Finally, Microsoft is facing a class-action lawsuit for its AI-powered GitHub Copilot pair-programming utility. The lawsuit alleges that Microsoft has violated GitHub's own policies, as well as attribution and other copyright laws by training the software on the billions of lines of code written by millions of programmers without their consent, and then making a profit off of it. Windows 11 growth The latest data from StatCounter indicates that Windows 11 is being used by 15.44% of users globally. While this may sound low at first, it kind of does make sense considering the OS' strict hardware requirements, controversial feature changes, and frequent bugs. This is also supported by the fact that roughly 71% of people are still on Windows 10, according to data from the same firm. Valve's data also shows Windows 11's adoption slowing down a bit with the OS' share dropping from 25% in September to 23.37% in October. That said, it is important to understand that Valve's figures are based on its user surveys, which are random and optional, so they might not paint the actual picture. However, Windows 10 has the lion's share of 69% in this report as well. Another entity that seemingly can't let go of older operating systems is Mozilla, which has said that it is considering extending support for Firefox on Windows 7 and 8.1 past Microsoft's own support deadlines, bonkers. That said, Microsoft may be looking to remedy some of these problems, in a bit of a controversial fashion. A recent job listing indicates that the company is working on a model that will allow the construction of low-cost Windows 11 PCs through which the firm will upsell its services via ads and subscription plans. It's unclear if these plans will ever materialize but if they do, they are bound to rub many people the wrong way. New features Windows 11 customers discovered quite a few hidden features in Windows 11 Dev Channel build 25231 this week. It appears that there is a whole Energy Recommendations hidden in the Settings app. It is a page where Windows 11 shows how to lower your carbon footprint and make a PC more energy efficient by letting it turn off the screen and go to sleep faster, setting the power mode for best efficiency, disabling a screen saver, and turning on dark mode. There is also a sort of green score that increases as you go through the "checklist." You can find out how to enable it here. There is also a hidden Task Manager search functionality currently in development. You can enable it via a third-party tool (at your own risk) and it should make searching for specific processes considerably easier. We did get a new Dev Channel build this week too, though. Build 25236 - also available for Windows Server VNext - brings a tooltip for Task Manager and a slight revamp for the Microsoft Store UX, among lots of other fixes. There was a servicing update rolled out for this build recently too. In some more exciting news, Google's solution to play Google Play Android games directly on your Windows 10 and Windows 11 PC is now available in more countries, including the U.S. This implementation is completely different from Microsoft's Windows 11-exclusive Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA). For our more tech-savvy audiences, you'll be happy to know that PowerToys 0.64.0 is now out with two new utilities: File Locksmith and Hosts File Editor, along with settings backup functionality. And if that doesn't interest you, perhaps this will catch your eye: You may soon be able to run multiple nested Windows inside Linux. Lastly, it's worth highlighting some Microsoft 365 improvements too. Microsoft has detailed all the new features it added to Teams in October 2022 and you should also keep an eye out for an upcoming capability in Outlook that will allow you to work without interruptions. Git gud On the gaming front, Microsoft's Phil Spencer hinted that if the acquisition of Activision Blizzard is completed, Microsoft would support Call of Duty on PlayStation forever. It's unclear if this statement is enough to allay the fears of both Sony and the UK CMA, but this was a big talking point when both entities argued why the deal should not go through. Meanwhile, Sea of Thieves' Return of the Damned Adventure kicked off too. It has pirates choosing to ally with the forces of Pendragon or Captain Flameheart, with the two groups clashing over Sea Forts. The event concludes on November 17, and Rare is planning to host a special livestream soon after to let players know which side took the win, and also reveal what will be the consequences of their actions. Coming over to subscriptions side of things, Praetorians - HD Remaster is now free via Xbox Games with Gold. And Xbox Game Pass is getting some The Walking Dead games, Pentiment, Return to Monkey Island, Football Manager 2023, and more in this month. Microsoft is also running another Xbox Free Play Days promotion offering Control, Serial Cleaner, and NHRA Championship Drag Racing: Speed for All at up to 90% off. But if that doesn't tickle your fancy, take a gander at this Weekend's PC Game Deals, curated by Neowin's News Editor Pulasthi Ariyasinghe. Dev Channel Microsoft has released a fix for Adobe Fresco compatibility issues on Surface Book 3 Microsoft will provide free tech support for Ukraine throughout 2023 Auto Dark Mode has received new features and reliability improvements in latest update Microsoft has released free Windows 11 version 22H2 virtual machines Under the spotlight We published a few guides this week. The first one is from News Reporter Hemant Saxena who had a very handy write-up on how you can disable Microsoft Teams from launching at startup. If this is something that bothers you, do give the guide a read. Hemant also wrote another guide providing instructions on how you can remove the downloads menu from Microsoft Edge if you don't find it particularly useful. Meanwhile, forum member Adam Bottjen penned his latest Tech Tip Tuesday column, explaining how you can toggle dark mode across Windows, Android, and iOS. Check it out here. Logging off Our most intriguing news stream this week relates to all the chaos happening at Twitter, with Elon Musk officially taking over just a few days ago and immediately firing the company's CEO, CFO, and head of legal policy. This was followed by reports that the social media platform would soon charge $20/month for Twitter Blue, with the verification badge being locked behind this subscription too. However, this was talked down to $8/month after intense negotiations with novelist Stephen King. In line with initial reporting, Musk began to lay off half of Twitter's workforce to reduce costs but was soon sued for not giving employees enough notice under federal law, along with facing criticism from political leaders. The "Chief Twit" then complained on Twitter about how revenues on the platform has massively dropped due to advertisers pulling out. Yeah, it's been a crazy week, and I haven't even talked about the abandonment of the Chirp developer conference, former CEO's Jack Dorsey's new relationship with Twitter, Vine possibly returning to life, and editable tweets potentially being available to everyone, free of cost. Phew! If you'd like to get a weekly digest of news from Neowin, we have a Newsletter you can sign up to either via the 'Get our newsletter' widget in the sidebar, or through this link. Missed any of the previous columns? Check them all out at this link.

Statcounter: Edge can't cross 11% mark despite being second most popular desktop browser by Taras Buria In addition to releasing the latest data about Windows and other desktop operating systems, Statcounter has published its findings about browsers. The October 2022 report reveals no drastic changes compared to the previous months, showing that Microsoft has a hard time getting Edge past a 10% market share. According to Statcounter, Google Chrome unsurprisingly remains king of the browser hill with its 66.46% market share despite losing 1.12 points in October 2022. Microsoft Edge is the second most popular desktop browser with a less impressive 10.85% share (+0.05 points) that has been relatively unchanged for five months. Apple's Safari closes the top three desktop browsers list with a 9.38% share (+0.45 points). Firefox is fourth with 7.05% (-0.22 points), and Opera is fifth with 3.61% (+0.67 points). Like Windows XP, which refuses to go away more than eight years after its end of support, Internet Explorer is not giving up, holding about 0.8% of the global desktop browser market share. Microsoft plans to disable the latter on specific Windows 10 versions on February 14, 2023. Google Chrome: 66.46% (-1.12) Microsoft Edge: 10.85% (+0.05) Apple Safari: 9.38% (+0.45) Mozilla Firefox: 7.05% (-0.22) Opera: 3.61% (+0.67) Things are slightly different on the mobile side of the browser market. Most users are split between Google Chrome and Safari, while Microsoft sits deep in the "Other" section with a market share too small to appear on the charts. Google Chrome: 65% (-0.23) Apple Safari: 25.11% (+0.49) Samsung Internet: 4.63% (-0.06) Opera: 1.81% (-0.05) UC Browser: 1.06% (-0.11) Which browser do you use on your computer and mobile devices? Let us know in the comments.

Statcounter: only 15% of Windows users upgraded to Windows 11 by Taras Buria Statcounter has published its monthly report, revealing the latest details about operating systems running on all sorts of devices across the globe. According to Statcounter, Microsoft's latest installment of Windows is not tremendously popular among Windows customers—only 15% of Windows PCs run Microsoft's latest operating system. Windows 11 gained 1.83 points in October 2022, climbing from 13.61% to 15.44%. As of now, Windows 11 is the second most popular version, sitting 5.83 points higher than now-dead Windows 7 with a 9.61% market share. Windows 10, on the other hand, remains in the unreachable (for now) zone with a 71.29% share. Windows 8.1, 8, and XP split the remaining breadcrumbs of the pie. Statcounter says Windows 8.1 currently holds 2.51%, Windows 8 has 0.69%, and Windows XP still runs on 0.39% of all PCs. Overall, Windows has 75.93% of the global desktop OS market, Apple's macOS has 15.74%, Linux 2.6%, and ChromeOS 2.38%. It is worth noting that Statcounter's data differs significantly from the latest AdDuplex findings published in early September 2022. The latter claims Windows 11 has more than 23%, 12 points higher than the newest info from Statcounter. The difference between the two findings is due to different data collection methods. AdDuplex gets its stats from Microsoft Store apps containing the AdDuplex SDK (approximately 5,000 titles), whereas Statcounter's reports are based on info gathered from more than 1.5 million websites. Microsoft, unfortunately, does not provide official numbers on its operating system, so the exact values and market shares remain anybody's guess. Even though Microsoft has already released one and a half feature updates for Windows 11, the OS's growth is unlikely to break records any time soon. And it is not just personal preference—another survey shows that about half of workstations do not meet Windows 11's hardware requirements, thus unable to get from Windows 10 to 11. Controversial feature changes, steep hardware requirements, and frequent bugs keep haunting Windows 11, likely resulting in a slower market share growth than Windows 10 was able to achieve after its first year on the market.

Edge gains modest ground on desktop browser market by Taras Buria Statcounter has published the August 2022 report, revealing the latest stats about browsers and operating systems. According to the findings, not much has changed in the browser market since July 2022. Some browsers lost a fraction of their share, while others increased their user bases. Google Chrome remains the most popular choice, with a 67.33% share. In August 2022, the browser gained 1.19 points, leaving competitors in the dust. Microsoft Edge holds second place with 10.91%. Like in previous months, Edge experienced a modest market share increase, gaining just 0.05 points. Apple's Safari closes the top 3 desktop browsers with 8.83% and -0.14 points in August 2022. Finally, Firefox is fourth, holding 7.4% (-0.67 points). Google Chrome - 67.33% (+1.19) Microsoft Edge - 10.91% (+0.05) Apple Safari - 8.83% (-0.14) Mozilla Firefox - 7.4% (-0.67) Opera - 2.86% (-0.21) On the mobile market, things are similar, minus Microsoft Edge, which lies somewhere in the "Other" section. Google Chrome is first (65.04%, -0.12 points), Apple Safari is second (24.59%, +0.36 points), and Samsung Internet is third (4.81%, -0.05 points). Opera, UC Browser, Android, and all the other mobile browsers split the remaining 5.56% of the market. Source: Statcounter

Edge is getting closer to 11% market share on desktop market by Taras Buria Statcounter has published its latest data about the most popular browsers on different platforms. According to the July 2022 report, Edge continues its steady climb on the desktop market in an attempt to disrupt Google Chrome's reign. Last month, Microsoft's browser reached 10.84%, which is 0.2 points up compared to June 2022. Google Chrome retains its dominant position with a massive 66.19% market share that went down 0.74 points in July 2022. Safari is the third most popular desktop browser with an unchanged 8.94% share, and Firefox is keeping up with 8.08% (+0.28 points). Although Microsoft recently killed Internet Explorer 11, some users cannot move away from the former king of the desktop browser market. Statcounter reports that about 0.75% still use the good-old Internet Explorer. Google Chrome - 66.19% (-0.74) Microsoft Edge - 10.84% (+0.2) Apple Safari - 8.94% (+0.01) Mozilla Firefox - 8.08% (+0.28) Opera - 3.06% (+0.08) On the mobile side of the market, Google Chrome has 65.16%, 0.72 points down compared to June 2022. Safari is second with 24.22% (+0.13), and Samsung Internet is third with 4.86% (+0.05 points). Microsoft Edge for Android and iOS remains nowhere to be seen, with its market share being too small to register in the latest report from Statcounter. Google Chrome - 65.16% (-0.72) Apple Safari - 24.22% (+0.13) Samsung Internet - 4.86% (+0.05) UC Browser - 1.63% (+0.48) Opera - 1.59% (-0.03) You can check out Statcounter's latest report on the official website.

Microsoft Edge slowly gets more popular among users by Taras Buria Last month, for the first time since its introduction seven years ago, Microsoft Edge climbed past the 10% mark. Edge is now the second most popular browser, and in May 2022, it managed to increase its market share slightly. According to StatCounter, Microsoft Edge currently has a 10.11% global desktop browsers market share. In May 2022, the percentage went up by 0.04 points. Google Chrome was, is, and will be the most popular browser for quite a while. Its current market share is 66.1%, unreachable for any competitor in the foreseeable future. Apple's Safari is third with 9.16%, which is 0.46 points lower than in April 2022. Mozilla Firefox is fourth with 7.66%, and Opera closes the top 5 desktop browsers with 2.81%. Opera and Edge were the only two browsers that gained new users in May 2022. Interestingly, about 1.68% of users still use the almost-deceased Internet Explorer. Microsoft wants to change that and move every IE customer to the Edge browser by offering a dedicated IE mode. Here is a breakdown of the global desktop browser market: Google Chrome - 66.1% (-0.57) Microsoft Edge - 10.11% (+0.04) Apple Safari - 9.16% (-0.46) Mozilla Firefox - 7.66% (-0.21) Opera - 2.81% (+0.37) Google Chrome also crushes any competition on the mobile side, although Apple firmly holds a quarter of the market. Microsoft, which was quite late to the party with a mobile version of Edge, is nowhere to be found in the top 5 list: Google Chrome - 64.83% (+1.26) Apple Safari - 24.77% (-0.05) Samsung Internet - 4.84% (-0.06) Opera - 1.72% (-0.16) UC Browser - 1.25% (-0.16) Google, Microsoft, Mozilla, and other developers try to attract new customers and maintain existing ones by pushing regular updates with new features. Google recently released Chrome 102 with PWA improvements; Mozilla pleased its customers by restoring the old downloads prompt in Firefox 101, and Microsoft shipped several bug fixes in Edge 102. Source: StatCounter

Microsoft Edge now has more than 10% of the desktop browser market share by Taras Buria Although the original Edge was a solid browser with unique features, good efficiency, and superior optimizations for computers with touchscreens, its proprietary engine was causing all sorts of compatibility issues. Because of that, the browser struggled to get traction and never made it past single-digit market share values. Stuck in the "no users because developers do not support and developers do not support because no users" loop, Microsoft pulled the plug on the original Edge in 2019. Seven years since its introduction and more than two years after switching to Chromium, Microsoft Edge is finally making slow but steady progress. According to the latest data from StatCounter, Microsoft's browser crossed the 10% mark in April 2022. StatCounter claims Microsoft Edge managed to gain 0.42 points and reach the magical 10.07%. Of course, it is still a far cry from Chrome with its massive 66.64% (-0.65), but enough for Edge to claim the "second most popular browser" title. Apple's Safari holds third place in the desktop browser market with a 9.61% share (+0.05), and Firefox is fourth with 7.86% (+0.29). Google Chrome - 66.64% (-0.65) Microsoft Edge - 10.07% (+0.42) Apple Safari - 9.61% (+0.05) Mozilla Firefox - 7.86% (+0.29) Opera - 2.43% (-0.38) There are no major changes in the mobile browser market. Chrome and Safari hold together almost 90%, and other manufacturers made little to no progress in April 2022. Google Chrome - 63.57% (-0.02) Apple Safari - 24.82% (-0.01) Samsung Internet - 4.90% (+0.00) Opera - 1.88% (+0.00) UC Browser - 1.41% (+0.00) Source: StatCounter

Statcounter: Microsoft Edge is now the second most popular desktop browser by Taras Buria A couple of days ago, Adduplex published its March 2022 report with the latest information about the Windows market. The data revealed that Windows 11 gained little to no users in March 2022, while the most recent Windows versions managed to increase their shares. Now March 2022 report from Statcounter shows that Microsoft Edge is steadily climbing and gaining more consumers. According to Statcounter, Microsoft Edge is now the second most popular desktop browser. In March 2022, Edge managed to overtake Apple's Safari and hit second place with a 9.65% market share (+0.05). Safari is third with 9.56% (-0.21%), and the almighty Chrome remains first with 67.29% (+2.4%). Google Chrome: 67.29% Microsoft Edge: 9.65% Apple Safari: 9.56% Mozilla Firefox: 7.57% Opera: 2.81% Things are different in the global market that combines mobile and desktop platforms. Google Chrome is still the king with an overwhelming share, and the mobile market grants Safari a comfortable second position, far from Microsoft Edge. Google Chrome: 64.53% (+1.75) Apple Safari: 18.84% (-0.46) Microsoft Edge: 4.05% (-0.01) Mozilla Firefox: 3.4% (-0.81) Samsung Internet: 2.82% (+0.05) Microsoft is a relatively new player in the mobile browser market, and it has a hard time rivaling Safari and Chrome. Also, Microsoft has no power to force users to switch to Edge on mobile, which is another reason why Android and iOS combined tank Microsoft's figures in the browser market. Still, Edge demonstrates healthy progress on desktop platforms. Besides, with Microsoft making changing the default browser in Windows 11 less frustrating, you can expect Edge to continue gaining more favor in the eyes of consumers. Source: Statcounter.

Apple's iPhone is surprisingly common in the Five Eyes countries by Paul Hill If you’ve had a discussion about smartphones, even with people not that into tech, you’re likely to have had the iPhone versus Android debate. Common arguments in favour of Apple’s offering include its simplicity, ecosystem, and while not as much spoken about, the feeling that the device is somehow more exclusive and premium. On this last point, you’d expect that Android devices outnumber iPhones and on a global scale they do, but in quite a lot of countries, iPhones are used by the majority of people. In the image from StatCounter below, you can see that iPhones are the most popular devices in the Five Eyes countries (the U.S., UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand) as well as in Japan, the Nordics, France, and Saudi Arabia. They are also the most popular devices in Russia but that could soon change because Apple recently stopped sales there. On the global scale, iOS is used on just 28.27% of devices while Android is on 70.97% of devices. Only in a handful of countries is iOS used by more than half of the population and even in some countries where Apple is the most popular phone maker, it still does not capture 50% in terms of iOS marketshare. In the United States, 57.8% of mobiles run iOS while 41.91% run Android. In the UK, iOS is present on 53.6% of devices and Android runs on 45.89%. Given these figures, do iPhones lose a bit of their exclusive feel, or are they a bit… commonplace? Ironically, there was a bit of a stir a few months ago regarding the blue and green bubbles shown on iMessage. Apparently, teenagers have been bullied for having an Android phone instead of an iPhone because they appeared as a green bubble to iMessage users. Google’s Hiroshi Lockheimer called out Apple on this practice and labelled it as peer pressure in an attempt to rope in more customers. Given the current statistics, if exclusivity is what you care about, you’d be better off keeping an Android device in the U.S. and UK.

StatCounter says that Windows 10 is now on more PCs than Windows 7 by Rich Woods When Microsoft first launched Windows 10, it had grand plans to have the OS installed on over a billion devices within two to three years. Those were to include PCs, phones, Xbox consoles, HoloLens, and more; however, with the demise of Windows 10 Mobile among other factors, these ambitions were abandoned. Now, Microsoft touts that Windows 10 is installed on 600 million monthly active devices. Of course, we don't know exactly how many of them are PCs, although it's safe to assume that PCs account for the bulk of it. According to StatCounter today, Windows 10 has hit another milestone though, as it's finally installed on more active devices than Windows 7. "This is a breakthrough for Microsoft," commented Aodhan Cullen, CEO, StatCounter. "Windows 10 was launched at the end of July 2015 and Microsoft will be pleased to have put its Windows 8 experience behind it. However, Windows 7 retains loyalty especially amongst business users. Microsoft will be hoping that it can replace it a lot quicker than XP, launched back in August 2001, which only fell below 5% usage worldwide in June of 2017." As far as regional market share goes, Windows 10 has been ahead of Windows 7 in North America and Europe for some time. In South America, Windows 10 is just about to take over for Windows 7 as the leading OS. On the other hand, we can see that Windows 10 still has significant strides to make in Africa and Asia, regions where piracy of Windows can be common. Obviously, this was all bound to happen sooner or later. Just a few years ago, Windows XP was the beast that would never die. As time goes on, fewer and fewer people will use older operating systems as they upgrade either their hardware or their software. Initially, the upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10 was free, and that lasted for a year. Microsoft extended that for those who use assistive technologies, although that ended last month. Despite all of that, users can still upgrade their operating system if they just have a retail product key for Windows 7 or 8.1 lying around, and use it to install Windows 10.

Windows 10 may finally surpass Windows 7 before the end of the year by Muhammad Jarir Kanji With its launch in July 2015, Microsoft expected its latest operating system to reach the milestone of one billion active devices within two to three years, largely thanks to a free upgrade offer from Windows 7 and 8.1. While Microsoft has since reined in its expectations in that regard, Windows 10 has been on a healthy upward trend in terms of market share and may soon overtake its elder sibling, Windows 7. Current market trends from Statcounter show that Windows 10 will be able to eclipse Windows 7 by the end of the year. Standing at market shares of 43.99% and 39.3%, respectively, Windows 7 and 10 are already neck and neck in terms of market share. However, Windows 10 has maintained a rate of increase of more than 1% in the past few months - 1.43% for the last month - and if this trend continues, combined with Windows 7's monthly decline (1.11% this month) in market share, Statcounter estimates we may see a new king of the PC market before the end of the year. Extrapolating for the next three months with the same rate of increase, we may see Windows 10 occupy 43.59% of the Windows market share, while Windows 7 would have dropped down to 40.66% by the new year. Indeed, the rate of increase may, in fact, be larger than current figures in the month of October due to the release of the Fall Creators Update for Windows 10, which may prompt many users to upgrade from older versions of Windows for the added features and security. Via: TechRadar

Browser market share reports emphasize that Microsoft Edge just isn't good enough for users by Usama Jawad With the start of the new month, market share reports have started to come in. However, these reports don't bring encouraging news for every company, especially not Microsoft. Data from two separate firms shows that the company's Edge browser is only trudging forward, even though it comes bundled with Windows 10. It has been almost two years since the release of Windows 10, which came with Microsoft Edge by default, but it appears that the browser just isn't gaining traction among users. As Neowin's Senior Editor Andy Weir pointed out, there are a number of features missing from the browser, one of them being extensive support for extensions. Click to enlarge | Image via NetMarketShare According to NetMarketShare, Microsoft Edge only commands a market share of 5.65% - which is an increase of only 0.02 percentage points compared to last month. It is interesting to see that the browser was at 5.09% exactly one year ago, which means that it only grew by 0.56% year-over-year. On the other hand, Google Chrome has continued its dominance with a market share of 59.49%. As a point of reference, this is a sizeable growth of 10.84 percentage points year-over-year. Meanwhile, Internet Explorer fell to 16.84%, while Mozilla Firefox and Apple's Safari grew to 12.02% and 3.72% respectively. The "Other" section also showed a slight increase, and climbed to 2.29%. Click to enlarge | Image via StatCounter Data from another firm, StatCounter, depicts an even more depressing situation for Microsoft. According to the report, Edge sits at 3.89%, however, this is an increase of 0.15 percentage points compared to the previous month. That said, when viewed in a broader perspective, this is still a minor 1.14 percentage points year-over-year growth. Chrome is the king of all browsers according to these statistics as well, with a market share of 63.21% - a decrease of 0.14 percentage points compared to last month. Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Safari command 14%, 9.28%, and 5.16% respectively. It is important to note that these statistics are compiled based on the data provided by StatCounter and NetMarketShare's partner websites - which number 2.5 million and 20,000 websites worldwide respectively - so they may not entirely depict the real situation. That said, there's almost no doubt that Microsoft Edge's performance in terms of market share has been abysmal, and that this worrying aspect should be a concern for the company, keeping in mind that its latest operating system currently commands a market share of 25-30%. Source: NetMarketShare, StatCounter