Windows 8: PC Sales Drops by 21% After Launch of New Version of OS

The sales of Windows PCs fell by 21 percent this month in spite of the Windows 8 debut indicating the ineffectiveness of the launch in perking up customers’ interest. The launch of Windows 8 operating system had expectations running high about reviving the slacking PC sales.

However, ever since Windows 8 was launched on October 26, laptop sales dropped by 24 percent while desktop sales dropped 9 percent when compared to the same period of time, last year. The statistics were observed by a renowned retail research firm, NPD Group, which uses data provided by the retailers to track weekly computer sales.

Ordinarily, a new launch by Microsoft would only increase sales. Customers even put off purchasing anything else for months just to get their hands on the latest software as soon as possible. But the case proved to be different this time, with Windows 8 decreasing the sales.

However, the firm says it is too soon to determine whether the new OS is at fault for the decreasing trend in PC sales in the market. The silver lining, as shown by NPD, is the sales of Windows 8 laptops with touchscreen, which has been showing storm market.

The data collected by NPD does not include the new Surface tablet from Microsoft, nor does it take into account PCs sold for businesses. The Surface tablets are available only in Microsoft’s own stores. The PC sales to businesses are showing a strong trend.

If the decline in sales extends over the holiday season, Microsoft as well as PC makers like Dell Inc., HP and Lenovo will have to face utter disappointment.