Windows 10 Creators Update on 10 percent of updated PCs

Out of ten vendors, Microsoft and MSI lead the pack

According to the latest report from AdDuplex, which collects statistics from Windows 10 machines, only 10 percent of eligible PCs have the Creators Update (version 1703) installed, while 82.1 percent are on the Anniversary Update (version 1607) released last summer.

It has been around two weeks since Microsoft made its Windows 10 Creators Update available as a general rollup, and since then AdDuplex has reported that around 9.8 percent of machines are running the company's latest feature update (version 1703), while 82.1 percent are on the Anniversary Update, 6 percent are on version 1511, and 1.8 percent are on the original RTM release. Meanwhile, around 7 percent of mobile devices running Windows 10 Mobile have the Creators Update installed. The report is based on data collected from around 5,000 Windows Store apps running the ad network's SDK.

To break the numbers down by OEMs, most are getting a 10 percent deployment rate so far, with the highest percentage coming from Microsoft's flagship Surface Book at close to 30 percent, and 24.1 percent coming from the Surface Pro 4. Meanwhile, older machines like the Surface Pro and Surface Pro 2 are at 14.4 and 6.8 percent, respectively. The only brand comparable with Microsoft's newer PCs so far is MSI at around 20 percent, while other vendors including HP, Lenovo, Dell, Asus, Acer, Toshiba, Samsung and Sony are at 10 percent or lower.

Windows 10 releases are bi-annual from now on

Last Thursday, Microsoft announced in a blog post that it would be switching to a bi-annual Windows 10 update schedule to make feature releases more manageable and predictable for consumers and enterprise users. The company has seen more than 400 million monthly active devices and rapid-growing adoption in the enterprise department, mostly because of feedback that Windows 10 has been the most secure version of Windows available for large-scale deployment.

So far, the Creators Update doesn't appear to be affected by issues that plagued the Anniversary Update – including broken webcams, evaporating DNS settings and SSD freeze-ups – but Microsoft appears to be sticking with a twice-annual deployment process. As for codenames, the Creators Update is Redstone 2, and it will be followed up by Redstone 3 in early fall later this year.

Around 60 percent of mobile devices eligible for Creators Update

The situation seems a bit trickier for mobile devices, however. Today, Microsoft was originally going to release the Creators Update to certain mobile devices in the stable channel release ring, but the efforts have been delayed and the update (build 15063) has been switched to the Release Preview ring. According to AdDuplex, this decision will affect four of the top ten Windows Mobile devices, leaving owners of the Lumia 535, Lumia 730, and Lumia 540 out of eligibility for now. Instead, the Creators Update will be available on just thirteen of the top devices for now, including the Lumia 550, 640, 640XL, 650, 950 and 950XL, the Alcatel IDOL 4S and OneTouch Fierce XL, the HP Elite x3, and a few others.

Windows Phones hang on at 1.7 market share in US

Of course, pundits are quick to predict an eventual decline of the Windows Phone ecosystem given Microsoft's track record in maintaining reasonable market share numbers. In September 2016, Windows 10 Mobile had 14 percent share within the overall Windows phone market, while the Windows Phone market was at just 0.7 percent worldwide. As of February 2017, Windows Phones climbed to 1.7 percent market share in the United States. What Microsoft really needs at this point is a game-changing product that will excite Android and iPhone users about the potential of running Win32 and UWP apps from a smartphone. Well, that device was expected to coincide with the release of the Creators Update (Redstone 2), but it appears the company has held it off for a future reveal, possibly with Redstone 3 later this fall. For now, it will need to explain to 40 percent of its mobile user that they will be unable to upgrade to what has reportedly been the smoothest and most functional version of Window s 10 Mobile to date.

Windows Phone Market Share Q2 2017 (via AdDuplex)

Source: Windows 10 Creators Update on 10 percent of updated PCs