Microsoft Content with 64-bit Version of Windows 7 Adoption

Article by George Norman (Cybersecurity Editor)

on 14 Jul 2010

As you may already know, the latest iteration of the Microsoft-developed Windows operating system, mainly Windows 7, is doing quite well on the market. Back in June for example Microsoft announced that it sold more than 150 million Windows 7 licenses to customers all over the world. At the time Microsoft touted that 7 copies of Windows 7 have been sold every second ever since the operating system was rolled out to the public.

How many of those Windows 7 editions are 64-bit versions? According to Microsoft, as of June 2010, 46% of all Windows 7-powered PCs in the world are running the 64-bit flavor of the operating system. That is to say that out of all Windows 7 versions out there, around half are the 64-bit edition.


Microsoft’s other operating systems, Vista and XP aren’t doing so well on the other hand. Out of all Windows Vista-powered PCs in the world, only 11% are running the 64-bit edition. And out of all Windows XP-powered PCs in the world, less than 1% are running the 64-bit edition.

The fact that there are so many Windows 7 64-bit editions being used out there, just goes to prove that 64-bit systems are becoming the norm. Windows Communications Manager with Microsoft, Brandon LeBlanc, explains why so many users jumped on board the Windows 7 64-bit edition train:

“The reason for the jump in transition to 64-bit PCs can be attributed to a few things. The first is the price of memory has dropped over the last several years making it easier for OEMs to up the amount of memory in the PCs they ship. And most major processors in PCs today are capable of running a 64-bit OS. There are also more and more compatible devices and applications for PCs running 64-bit Windows 7.”

As a little side note, and to put things in perspective, more than 13% of all the computers in the world are now powered by Microsoft’s Windows 7 operating system (at the time of writing this, according to Net Applications).


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