Windows will be third placed OS ecosystem by 2017 says Gartner

[HEXUS]

Apple devices will edge past Windows to go second place to Google.

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[TheAnimus]

It's not even the marketsize, it's the engagement.

What is amazing is the 'low friction' people have for mobile apps, compared with desktop ones. Something that people wouldn't bother with on a desktop, they would for a mobile device.

[crossy]

Hmm, I'd not be so quick to write off MS. From what I've seen the Surface line has a LOT of respect and surely there's a halo effect from that. Sure the Lumia's haven't exactly set the world on fire, but I'm 100% convinced that MS has been caught in that app store chicken-and-egg setup where people ignore Lumia's because of lack of apps, but developers ignore it because of the lack of demand.

Am I right in thinking that Gartner's looking purely at consumer devices? I don't see any mention of server devices (which surely are still part of the "ecosystem") where Microsoft would do very well, and conversely Google and Apple wouldn't.

[shaithis]

Hmm, I'd not be so quick to write off MS. From what I've seen the Surface line has a LOT of respect and surely there's a halo effect from that. Sure the Lumia's haven't exactly set the world on fire, but I'm 100% convinced that MS has been caught in that app store chicken-and-egg setup where people ignore Lumia's because of lack of apps, but developers ignore it because of the lack of demand.

Am I right in thinking that Gartner's looking purely at consumer devices? I don't see any mention of server devices (which surely are still part of the "ecosystem") where Microsoft would do very well, and conversely Google and Apple wouldn't.

Or is it that the sheer number of new handsets completely dwarf the number of new servers to the point where they make hardly any difference to the numbers?

As we move forward, a certain amount of the server market will start to move towards ARM......meaning less Windows in that segment.....unless we see WinRT Server to try and combat it.

[Corky34]

What shaithis said, i think smartphones out number conventional computers (servers, desktops, notebooks, 2 in 1's) by something like 3 to 1.

[bae85]

This whole article is a bit lop sided really, most people have a phone where as the need for a computer has dropped slightly and we are returning to the days of a single PC in a household.

[abaxas]

This whole article is a bit lop sided really, most people have a phone where as the need for a computer has dropped slightly and we are returning to the days of a single PC in a household.

Why would you need a PC when your phone can be your PC, phone, etc.

[bae85]

Why would you need a PC when your phone can be your PC, phone, etc.

That's the point I'm making.

[daddacool]

People replace their phones a lot more frequently than they replace their computers!

[crossy]

Or is it that the sheer number of new handsets completely dwarf the number of new servers to the point where they make hardly any difference to the numbers? As we move forward, a certain amount of the server market will start to move towards ARM......meaning less Windows in that segment.....unless we see WinRT Server to try and combat it.

Not going to disagree - I guess the point I was making (badly - it's been a long day, so cut me some slack) was that there's more to an "OS ecosystem" than merely the latest "shiny shiny" in your flash mate's sweaty mitt or the desk jewellery on the bosses polished teak "workstation".

If ARM continues to march into the datacentres at the rate I'm seeing blades being dropped in, then I think a Windows Server 2016/ARM is not merely likely, but a certainty. To be honest, MS would be stark staring daft not to.

I'm also not 100% convinced by the "pundits" who are claiming that more powerful phones is going to see the death of the laptop, tablet and desktop. Sure, stuff like Continuum will blur the lines, but I'm pretty sure that none of the "PC gaming elite" are going to give up their watercooled, SLI setups in favour of iPhone7 or whatever totters out of Google-bet.

[abaxas]

.
I'm also not 100% convinced by the "pundits" who are claiming that more powerful phones is going to see the death of the laptop, tablet and desktop. Sure, stuff like Continuum will blur the lines, but I'm pretty sure that none of the "PC gaming elite" are going to give up their watercooled, SLI setups in favour of iPhone7 or whatever totters out of Google-bet.

Lets look at it this way.....

The new iphone 6s is similar in perf to a low end i3 with an elcrapo intel igpu.

So why is this different to a desktop pc with a low end i3 and an elcrapo intel gpu? It isn't, other than you tend not to plug in a keyboard and monitor to it.

But then you ask about the 'pc gaming elite/plebs(delete depening on your point of view)'. This, sadly, can't exist in a world where all the bottom end 'desktop pcs' have been replaced by other devices. Intel/AMD make money from volume not selling £500 quid CPUs, without it there simply is no high end.

PC, as we know it, is dead and it's being replaced by commodity items.

[Myss_tree]

Why would you need a PC when your phone can be your PC, phone, etc.

Because while (particularly) large phablet devices are good and i use my latest more than ever, it does not replace the full screen experience of a desktop monitor or the ease of use of a full size keyboard.
Desktops/Laptops/Tablets will still have their place, just be less of them around.

[DanceswithUnix]

Fun data: From this it seems that 1.6B Android devices will ship, of which 19% will be dropped down the toilet: http://www.cnet.com/uk/news/study-19...s-down-toilet/

I make that 304M nice new devices sploshed down the bend, almost as many as the 359M total Windows devices shipped.

That is just the ones shipped this year, so given the Android installed base is much larger than that there must be more Android devices meeting a watery doom per year than Microsoft ship in total

Or is it that the sheer number of new handsets completely dwarf the number of new servers to the point where they make hardly any difference to the numbers?

As we move forward, a certain amount of the server market will start to move towards ARM......meaning less Windows in that segment.....unless we see WinRT Server to try and combat it.

Servers are dominated by Linux, not Windows, one of the things that makes ARM servers viable. If you look at the support list of past Windows versions, at some point every major and some minor processor has had native Windows support, but it only lasts a few years before Microsoft pull the plug. No-one in their right mind would install Windows onto anything other than AMD64, but thankfully Linux has a good stable support of pretty much everything so servers are fine.

Because while (particularly) large phablet devices are good and i use my latest more than ever, it does not replace the full screen experience of a desktop monitor or the ease of use of a full size keyboard.
Desktops/Laptops/Tablets will still have their place, just be less of them around.

A bluetooth keyboard and mouse plus a miracast display can make your phone work much like a desktop today without it even leaving your pocket.

[shaithis]

Not going to disagree - I guess the point I was making (badly - it's been a long day, so cut me some slack) was that there's more to an "OS ecosystem" than merely the latest "shiny shiny" in your flash mate's sweaty mitt or the desk jewellery on the bosses polished teak "workstation".

Indeed, although there is only one company that has really managed to get the idea of an eco-system into users heads and that's a certain brain-washing fruity fashion company.

I really do not see Microsoft selling an eco-system....yet. Maybe they will in the future but I don't know a single person (including myself who has embraced Windows since 3.0) that has purchased a Windows Phone or tablet to integrate it with their desktop (likewise I don't know anyone who has purchased a Chromebook). For the most part, both windows and android devices are stand-alone.

If ARM continues to march into the datacentres at the rate I'm seeing blades being dropped in, then I think a Windows Server 2016/ARM is not merely likely, but a certainty. To be honest, MS would be stark staring daft not to.

Indeed.....I just have that nagging feeling that just like mobile, Microsoft may be leaving it too late......you really need to get out in front of new tech...or if your going to be late to the party, you need to arrive with a massive splash.

I'm also not 100% convinced by the "pundits" who are claiming that more powerful phones is going to see the death of the laptop, tablet and desktop. Sure, stuff like Continuum will blur the lines, but I'm pretty sure that none of the "PC gaming elite" are going to give up their watercooled, SLI setups in favour of iPhone7 or whatever totters out of Google-bet.

Indeed but with Vulkan coming, we may see Microsoft hold of the gaming market start to erode. It's a really dodgy time for Microsoft IMO.

[abaxas]

Because while (particularly) large phablet devices are good and i use my latest more than ever, it does not replace the full screen experience of a desktop monitor or the ease of use of a full size keyboard.
Desktops/Laptops/Tablets will still have their place, just be less of them around.

Ermmm, what would happen if you plugged a monitor /keyboard/mouse into your phone/tablet/etc.

Wouldn't that just be a desktop PC ?

[Corky34]

Would it be a phabtop, or maybe a deskblet.