14 DAY TRIAL // Windows 7 will reach the end of support in just a couple of months, as the last round of updates will be shipped on January 14 as part of the first Patch Tuesday cycle of the next year.
Certainly, this is a big moment for Microsoft and users alike, but despite the risks of staying with an unsupported operating system, not everyone is willing to upgrade.
Despite Windows 8.1 still receiving support, Microsoft is pushing for users to make the switch to Windows 10, which receives two feature updates every year and that the company claims is improved based on user feedback.
Of course, this doesn’t necessarily mean that everyone on Windows 7 buys this, so some just want to stick on Windows 7 even without security updates.
Truth be told, it’s important to remind everyone that not getting security patches doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to get hacked. There are ways to secure a Windows 7 device after January 2020, only that security updates can add an extra protection layer to block attacks happening at system level.
Right now, I think there are three reasons people refuse to upgrade to Windows 10 and just want to stick with Windows 7 God knows for how long.
Familiar desktop
First of all, it’s the familiar desktop. As I said several times, the switch from a traditional desktop to a modern approach made many ignore the upgrade to Windows 8.1 or Windows 10, simply because they don’t want a Microsoft Store, modern apps, or a touch interface.
Windows 7 is the last Windows version comes sticks with this familiar desktop, and this is without a doubt an important reason to stay with it even after the end of support.
While from a security perspective it may not be the best approach, it is as far as usability goes, at least for these users who don’t want anything else than what Windows 7 has to offer right now.
Runs just fine
Windows 7 is one of the best Windows versions ever released by Microsoft, and even now, ten years after launch, it still runs like a charm.
This is why many don’t see any reason to upgrade their devices to Windows 10. After all, if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it. Windows 7 still runs impressively in 2019, and some are concerned that switching to Windows 10 could actually have an impact on system performance and slow down their devices.
This is unlikely, given the requirements of the two operating system, but other than that, these users see no reason to upgrade since Windows 7 is running just fine anyway.
Not bloated
Windows 10 has often been considered a bloated operating system, and I’m not talking only about the unwanted apps that come pre-loaded, like Candy Crush Saga. The modern approach that I talked about earlier, which includes a Microsoft Store and everything, adds to this bloated experience, and some Windows 7 users see no reason to give up on something that works well in the first place.
There’s no doubt Windows 7 won’t just disappear overnight, and there’s a good chance Microsoft has to deal with the same struggle as in the case of Windows XP. The bigger problem is that while Windows XP users could upgrade to Windows 7, an operating system that looks and feels nearly the same as its older sibling, the only way to go for those on Windows 7 is Windows 10, which is based on an entirely new concept and relies on modern features that not everybody loves.
It’ll certainly be interesting to watch this migration from Windows 7 to Windows 10, but killing off the 2009 operating system is going to be one long effort for Microsoft.