14 DAY TRIAL // All eyes are currently on Windows 10, but that doesn't necessarily mean that users worldwide jump ship and upgrade to this new OS, and statistics show that it's Windows 7 that is recording quite a surprising success these days.
Data provided by NetMarketShare for the month of January 2015 reveals that Windows 7 not only that continues to be the number one operating system in the world but it also remains the undisputed leader of the OS chart with a really unbeatable market share.
Windows 7 has gradually improved its market share since its release, so it's now powering a total of 55.92 percent of the PCs worldwide, according to January 2015 data. This is a slight drop from 56.26 percent in December 2014, most likely as some users upgraded to Windows 10, but it's still a sign that most users prefer the familiarity of Windows 7 in spite of Windows 8.1 modern features.
Free upgrade to Windows 10
While Windows 7 continues to be the clear leader in this particular market, there's no doubt that its market share will drop significantly once Windows 10 comes out.
This is expected to happen as a result of Microsoft's free Windows 10 offer that will make the new operating system available at absolutely no cost within the first year after launch for both Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users.
Basically, if you run any of these two operating systems and you decide to upgrade to Windows 10 in the first 12 months after the public launch, you can do it completely free of charge.
Windows 10 will remain on your PC after the first year and you won't have to pay anything, as Microsoft guarantees that the OS will be supported during the entire lifetime of your device.
On the other hand, if you do not upgrade to Windows 10 during the first year of availability, you'll have to pay a fee that's yet to be disclosed by the software giant.