Microsoft
will continue supporting
Windows 10
till October 2025. Recent reports said that the company is internally discussing extending the support period and it even announced Copilot for Windows 10. However, as per the latest development, the Windows-maker’s plan to end support for the older operating system could result in about 240 million
PCs
being disposed of.
According to Canalys Research, in the nearly two-year period until Microsoft’s official end-of-support date for Windows 10, roughly a fifth of devices will become
e-waste
due to incompatibility with the
Windows 11
OS.
“This equates to 240 million PCs. If these were all folded laptops, stacked one on top of another, they would make a pile 600 km taller than the moon,” the research firm added.
Recycling PCs an option
The report also suggests that most of these 240 million PCs, if in good condition, could be recycled, however, due to their incompatibility with the latest versions of Windows will massively reduce their value for refurbishing and reselling.
“Many of the 240 million PCs will still be usable for years to come, but demand for devices no longer supported by Microsoft will be minimal – even companies with the tightest of IT budgets will be deterred by the lack of free and continued security updates,” the report added.
Reportedly, Windows 10 has over 1.4 billion users, compared to 400 million on Windows 11. And with Copilot for Windows 10, Microsoft may also give users a reason to keep their outdated PCs for some more time.
Microsoft offers a solution
Support for any software includes security and OS updates. Earlier this month, Microsoft said that it will provide Extended Security Updates for Windows 10 till October 2028 but this will be available for a currently unspecified annual fee.
Previously, Microsoft offered paid Extended Security Updates for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 until January 2023.