The big picture: Microsoft on Monday crossed a significant milestone as there are now more than one billion active Windows 10 devices in the wild. It took a bit longer than originally anticipated but eh, better late than never, right?
Windows 10 got off to a solid start following its July 2015 launch. By October, more than 110 million devices were running Windows 10 and it seemed as though the company's ambitious goal of hitting one billion installations within three years of launch was plausible.
On the one year anniversary of Windows 10, however, Microsoft conceded that it wouldn't hit its goal on time. The company largely blamed its mobile phone business for having to rein in its forecast.
Much of Microsoft's early success with Windows 10 can be credited to the free upgrade path it provided for some users. Predictably, installations slowed once the Redmond-based company formally did away with the program although as of January, there was still a way to upgrade for free if you were willing to play loose with licensing agreements.
In the end, Microsoft ultimately missed its original projection by roughly 20 months.
In related news, Yusuf Mehdi, corporate VP of modern life and the search & devices group at Microsoft, said the Windows Insider program now has over 17.8 million participants. This open software testing program arrived in late 2014 as a way for developers, testers and general techies to help Microsoft test pre-release software.
Masthead credit: Computer room by Thannaree Deepul. Windows 10 DVD by Nor Gal.