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.
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.
