Windows 7 is gone, but China’s dedicated users aren’t ready to let go

Experts warn users to upgrade as Microsoft stops providing security updates for the decade-old OS

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Laptop computers on display during a keynote speech by then-Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer at CES 2011. (Picture: Robyn Beck/AFP)

Published: 8:00am, 17 Jan 2020Updated: 6:16pm, 16 Feb 2020

This article originally appeared on ABACUS

After more than 10 years, the curtain has finally come down on Windows 7. But it looks like many people in China aren’t quite ready to bid farewell to the country’s dominant PC operating system.

Microsoft ended support for Windows 7 this week, ceasing technical assistance and security updates for all users. While this affects nearly a third of the world’s computers, according to figures from NetMarketShare, the situation is even more drastic in China. In the third quarter of last year, almost half of the country’s computers were still running on Windows 7, according to CNCERT, the national computer emergency response body.

Microsoft is encouraging users worldwide to upgrade to Windows 10, currently used on less than 10% of China’s computers, to keep their PCs safe from potential threats. But some die-hard Windows 7 users say they have no plans to move on.

“As long as there’s no virus in Windows 7, I’ll keep using it,” said Bao Juan, a freelancer who told us she thinks the platform works better than Windows 10.

She’s far from the only one refusing to let go. From school campuses to workplaces, people in China say they still see computers limping onward with old operating systems.