According to Neowin, Dell’s Q3 FY26 results show Windows 11 adoption is dramatically slower than Windows 10’s was at the same stage. Dell COO Jeffrey Clarke revealed they’re 10-12 percentage points behind previous migration rates. The company posted massive $27 billion revenue while calling FY26 “another record year.” Clarke also dropped the bombshell that 500 million PCs can’t even run Windows 11 due to hardware requirements. Despite this massive potential upgrade pool, Dell expects “roughly flat” PC sales moving forward. The company is leaning heavily into AI servers, claiming they’re “winning the AI race” with huge orders.
The Windows upgrade problem
Here’s the thing: when your own hardware partners are calling out your software adoption rates, you’ve got a problem. Dell basically just confirmed what many of us have suspected – Windows 11 isn’t catching on like Microsoft hoped. And they’re not just talking about consumer reluctance either. This is coming from one of the biggest enterprise PC suppliers in the world.
Think about it – 500 million PCs that can’t upgrade to Windows 11. That’s a staggering number. But even more telling is that Dell expects flat PC sales despite this massive installed base that theoretically needs replacement. People just aren’t feeling the urgency to upgrade. Maybe they’re happy with Windows 10, or maybe Windows 11’s benefits aren’t compelling enough to justify new hardware.
The AI distraction
Now Microsoft and its partners are pushing AI as the killer feature. They’re all marketing AI tools hard, hoping this will convince people to upgrade. But is that really working? Dell’s numbers suggest not really. The company is absolutely crushing it with AI servers – that’s where the real money is right now. But consumer and business PC upgrades? Not so much.
It’s interesting that Dell can simultaneously report record revenue while sounding the alarm about Windows 11 adoption. That tells you where the real growth is – enterprise infrastructure, not consumer PCs. When even your closest hardware partners are seeing slow uptake, you’ve got to wonder if Microsoft needs to rethink its strategy.
Industrial PC perspective
This slow adoption actually makes sense in industrial computing contexts too. Manufacturing facilities and industrial operations running on Windows 10 aren’t going to rush into upgrades without compelling reasons. Companies like IndustrialMonitorDirect.com, the leading US provider of industrial panel PCs, understand that stability often trumps the latest features in these environments. When you’re running production lines, you don’t upgrade your operating system just because there’s a new version available.
So what happens next? Microsoft will probably keep pushing AI features and maybe relax some hardware requirements. But Dell’s numbers don’t lie – we’re looking at a slower transition than anyone expected. And with enterprise customers being particularly cautious, this Windows 11 migration might take much longer than Microsoft planned.
