By Yusuf Mehdi / Corporate Vice President, Modern Life, Search & Devices, Microsoft
From the launch of Windows 10, our focus was on moving people from having, to choosing, to loving Windows. With the release of every new build of Windows 10, we have seen customer satisfaction improve as we have made fixes and added new capabilities and experiences. We are humbled that customers are choosing and loving Windows 10, and there has never been a more important time for a secure, reliable platform that can empower people to create, educate and communicate wherever they are.
Today we’re delighted to announce that over one billion people have chosen Windows 10 across 200 countries resulting in more than one billion active Windows 10 devices. We couldn’t be more grateful to our customers, partners and employees for helping us get here.
From one to one billion devices—one customer at a time
One in every seven people on the planet are planning, creating, ideating, executing, moving, shaking and doing great things with Windows 10.
Because no matter who or where in the world or life they are, Windows 10 provides them with the features and flexibility they need to achieve more. From the high-powered developer who needs the most advanced technology available, to the business professional who needs to be productive at work and home, to the student in a developing market who is looking for a low-cost device for learning and self-improvement—Windows 10 is the platform to meet all these needs.
With 100% of the Fortune 500 now using Windows 10 devices, it has become a critical platform for driving business transformation in the enterprise and beyond. As companies transition from Windows 7 to Windows 10, they are making a commitment to running their business more efficiently, more securely, and positioning themselves to offer better products, services and solutions to their customers.
New Windows 10 features and security updates are now delivered faster than ever before. We’ve evolved from releasing a version every three years, to releasing multiple versions per year. And with the recent decoupling of the new Chromium-based Edge browser from Windows 10 we can now deliver new builds to customers outside of the normal Windows 10 release cadence—and to more versions of Windows.
With Windows 10, our focus has always been to put the customer at the center, to listen to feedback, and to have that feedback shape the development process. One of the strongest examples of this customer focus is our Windows Insider Program which now has over 17.8 million Insiders, with members in every country of the world.
We have also strived to make Windows an open, inclusive and accessible platform that can empower everyone to achieve their goals. Our Windows Accessibility team focuses on human-centered design, a method where engineers and designers work to deeply understand peoples’ needs, and then co-design and continuously iterate on solutions directly with them.
“Here was an answer—here was something that could change his life.” Mitra Niknam
It’s incredible to see the results of this work and the impact features like closed captions, narrator, magnifier and custom text size have made on people’s lives. Like Mitra Niknam’s son Andrew who was able to conquer his fear and learn to read. And Andre Louis who is his own one-man band thanks to Seeing AI.
From PCs, to Mixed Reality, to Xbox and more
Freedom of choice has always mattered to us—because we know it matters to you. Windows 10 is the only operating system at the heart of over 80,000 models and configurations of different laptops and 2-in-1s from over 1,000 different manufacturers. But that’s not all. Windows 10 also powers Mixed Reality and HoloLens—transforming the way people build, design, learn and experience the world around them.
And not only is Windows 10 the most popular PC gaming platform on the planet, but it also powers the entire Xbox family of consoles, including the fastest and most powerful Xbox Series X, which will be available later this year.
Windows 10 has enabled new category creation with devices like the Surface Pro, Surface Book and Surface Hub 2S. And we are committed to keep driving to innovate with devices like Surface Neo, a new dual-screen device which will run Windows 10X, which enables unique experiences on multi-posture dual-screen PCs.
Windows is a diverse and powerful canvas that gives our OEM partners the flexible tools they need to deliver innovation to the world which can be seen in their latest and greatest devices, all built on Windows 10:
- The Acer ConceptD 700 workstation is also built to handle heavy content creator workflows with ease, thanks to an Intel Xeon E processor and up to NVIDIA Quadro RTX 4000 graphics to address the needs of film makers, animators and AEC (architecture, engineering, construction) designers with powerful and stable performance for 3D computer-aided design (CAD).
- The ASUS ExpertBook B9 is built for professionals who do business on the go, weighing in at just 865 grams with a 14.9mm-thin profile. In addition, the B9450 integrates a Trusted Platform Module 2.0 (TPM) security chip to keeps business-critical data safe, while a built-in IR camera allows for biometric logins.
- The latest version of the popular XPS 13 from Dell is aimed at helping you innovate, collaborate and accomplish more in the next decade with the new 25% brighter XPS InfinityEdge display that delivers more screen space to multitask throughout the day and a new design that delivers a 13.4-inch display in an 11-inch form factor—fitting neatly on an airplane tray.
- In the Secured-Core PC family, the HP Elite Dragonfly has built-in Tile technology, which allows users to use an intuitive app to help you find your device near or far even when your PC is turned off. It also contains ocean-bound plastics in the speaker covers, and the outer box packaging is 100% sustainably sourced.
- The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7 has up to 10th Gen Intel Core i7 with Intel Iris Plus graphics. It also includes hands-free login and auto-logoff via IR camera and Windows Hello, plus an adjustable Smart Battery that transitions capability based on usage behavior, temperature and whether the device is plugged in.
- Combining productivity with a premium experience, the Samsung Galaxy Book Flex α provides the experience of a laptop with the mobility and flexibility of a smartphone. The 2-in-1 PC delivers a super-bright display that allows you to enjoy the screen’s 100% color volume and vibrant picture in almost any lighting with up to 17.5-hours of battery life.
From 1.0 to 10 and beyond
From pioneering seamless touch and pen experiences, to enabling biometric log-in with Windows Hello, and with experiences like the Your Phone app, enabling Android users to connect their phone to their PC—we strive to meet people where they are.
And this innovation continues, bringing Windows to the cloud to make Windows 10 through Azure and virtual machines available on nearly every platform, from Mac to iOS or even Chromebooks. We will strive to make Windows the most accessible operating system on the planet regardless of where our users are, or what device they are on.
Reaching a billion people with Windows 10 is just the beginning. We will invest in Windows not only within Windows 10 for PCs but also across many other Windows editions, serving diverse customer needs including Windows IoT, Windows 10 Teams edition for Surface Hub, Windows Server, Windows Mixed Reality on HoloLens, Windows 10 in S mode, Windows 10X and more.
We are inspired by the ways you use Windows 10, and we look forward to seeing how you continue to use these billion devices in new and exciting ways to power the world.