Windows device share on the rise in the education market

Chrome OS may be the dominant player in the U.S. education market as it currently stands, but Windows PC device share is on the rise. Microsoft today highlighted a new report from research firm Futuresource{.nofollow}, showing that PCs saw solid growth in the market over the past year, and that growth could be poised to continue based on market conditions and Microsoft's recent efforts in education.

In total, Windows device share grew by 4.3 percent on devices under $300 and 8.2 percent on devices over $300 in K-12 schools in the U.S. over the past year. Worldwide, Microsoft remains the in a dominant position in developed and emerging markets at an OS level, though Chromebooks are gaining share in Northern Europe, the firm says. Overall, Futuresource reports the total worldwide market (excluding the U.S.) grew by 26 percent in Q3 2017.

Futuresource

Says Microsoft:

In classrooms around the world, we have seen the empowerment that comes with increased reading and language skills when students have personalized tools for learning. We've seen imaginative problem-solving skills come to life through coding and STEM. And, we've seen how new worlds can open up for students when their creativity is sparked with immersive 3D and mixed reality experiences. Teachers are some of our greatest heroes and we're on a mission to save them time with integrated planning tools, a digital hub for collaboration for easily finding and distributing content, and rich data and analytics tools to measure each student's progress and help them stay on track.

This follows a year in which Microsoft has placed a renewed focus on the education market. Early on in 2017, Microsoft launched Windows 10 S as a more secure version of the OS aimed primarily at the education market. Services like OneNote continue to make strides with classroom-specific features, and even Minecraft is staking a claim on the classroom with more than 2 million Education Edition users. Going forward, it will be interesting to see where else Microsoft places its education focus, particularly where it concerns Windows Mixed Reality.

Dan Thorp-Lancaster

Dan Thorp-Lancaster is the former Editor-in-Chief of Windows Central. He began working with Windows Central, Android Central, and iMore as a news writer in 2014 and is obsessed with tech of all sorts. You can follow Dan on Twitter @DthorpL and Instagram @heyitsdtl

16 Comments
  • All connected pc is coming to steal more market share from chromebook
  • Mission accomplished... the only place Chromebooks are really successful is the US education market
  • Indeed... in Belgium (ok, not quite a significant market, I know) I don't know any schools using Chromebooks (I'm the IT guy at our school so I have quite a "network"). I think in Belgium one of the main reasons is that all schools get free Office 365 for all teachers, staff and students and that way people tend to go the Microsoft route over the Chromebook alternative (although alternative ;p)
  • Indeed... in Belgium (ok, not quite a significant market, I know) I don't know any schools using Chromebooks (I'm the IT guy at our school so I have quite a "network"). I think in Belgium one of the main reasons is that all schools get free Office 365 for all teachers, staff and students and that way people tend to go the Microsoft route over the Chromebook alternative (although alternative ;p)
  • Just like with Windows 10, Microsoft has discovered it can build up a large user base by giving away software for free. Unfortunately, it is not a viable long-term solution.
  • Can Chrome OS be engineered on Chrome OS?
  • Chromebooks are Google's sorry way to indoctrinate future customers and assimilating them into their product line. that's all they care about, absorbing user information to sell ads. As an education tool, it will leave kids outside of the knowledge of productivity tools in the real world. Awful.
  • Chromebooks were a buzz word for many administrators in education and so they adopted them only to find out that they were extremely limited with what could be done with them and just like the wave of iPad purchasers in education, they are now switching back to Windows.
  • Amen.
  • Chromebooks? Grow up US, you're raising the next generation to be the dumbest yet!
  • Well... given the current climate.. no one can argue with that observation.
  • If reading the chart correct it looks like ChromeOS gained both in US and worldwide the most over others. Google has now hit 59.8% US in last quarter while Windows peaked in the US at 24.3% in Q1 2017 and down almost 10% from highs. ChromeOS percent increasing the most US and Worldwide of any of the platforms. Worldwide ChromeOS increased 33% over 2016 and Windows increased 3%. So Google growth was over 10x MS. Google has a winner with ChromeOS in schools.
  • if i sold 1 book last year and this year i sold 2. Thats a 100% increase. Just saying.
  • glad to see they're moving away from tablets toy os
  • Cheap ARM based windows computers are really going to put a dent in Chrome OS in 2018!
  • This is no surprise, Microsoft just needed to get their **** together. Nobody does productivity better than Microsoft. MS will easily take back the education market.