The initial adoption of Windows 8, Microsoft’s latest operating system, is better in the southern States than from the rest of the country.
The operating system (OS), launched last week, is also gaining traction with both new and replacement users showing interest.
“It looks like the South is leading at the present moment. We are seeing good traction from Hyderabad, Chennai and Bangalore, mainly the cities. So clearly there is lot of interest, lot of awareness and a lot of people are asking about upgrading their existing systems,” Microsoft India Chairman Bhaskar Pramanik said.
Last week, Microsoft launched its much-awaited Windows 8 in India, a mobile application market dominated by Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS, simultaneously with the rest of the world. The OS is designed to work across form factors and platforms (such as tablets).
“We are seeing a huge amount of enthusiasm from retail stores,” he said, adding, enquiries are flowing in from new device buyers.
Adoption from the South is mainly because of the festive season, and not because major IT companies are housed in these parts.
The company is also launching Windows phone 8, its latest mobile operating platform, in the US today (late tonight Indian time).
“We as Microsoft are bringing the three screens together. There is going to be a lot of common interface and design that you will see in the Windows phone and the Windows PC,” said Pramanik.
Surface tablet
On the new ‘Surface’ tablet that Microsoft has launched initially across eight countries, Pramanik said, “India will follow”.
“I don’t have any specific information to share with you at this point of time. The good news is that most of our OEMs will have a tablet version, so it’s not that the consumers do not have an option for a tablet. Specific products like Surface, yes, you may have to wait a little longer,” he added.