Windows 8 Beats Windows 7, Sets New Sales Record

From DailyTech: Windows 8 was an incredibly bold redesign on the part on Microsoft Corp. (MSFT). The move to a more touch-friendly, graphically rich operating system certainly seemed to mirror the general direction of the device market, but that did not shield Microsoft from loads of criticism. Many wondered whether it went too far with the graphical gloss, whether it was disrespecting developers with its shift to a walled-garden "Windows Store" app distribution model, and whether it was forsaking traditional desktop power users.

But the proof is in the sales, and Microsoft announced today that for all the haters, Windows 8 appears to be doing great.

In its first month of sales Windows 8 has moved 40 million licenses, according to Microsoft. The company announced the news in a blog post and at a conference presentation. It also points out that buoyed by reduced upgrade fees, the Windows 8 upgrade rate is outpacing that of Windows 7, the previous sales record-holder.

Indeed, our own polling shows that the majority of users are upgrading to Windows 8, although there are certainly many holdouts bitter about the changes.

Windows 8 is the first Microsoft OS to transition to a primarily online distribution. That shift has not seemed to adversely impact sales. It appears Microsoft timed its transition to disc-less media correctly.

View: Article @ Source Site