Business

Windows 11 gains traction with gamers according to Steam’s latest Hardware Survey-

Steam’s latest hardware survey has been released. The key trends for December 2023 show that Windows 11 is inching towards parity with Windows 10, gamers are gradually shifting towards higher core count CPUs, and the share of systems with 8GB or less of RAM continues to shrink.

Although the wider market has not fallen in love with Windows 11, with just 26% of the desktop market share compared to the dominant Windows 10 at 67%, the picture is a little different for gamers.

In December’s Steam survey, Windows 11 made up ground, with 44% of surveyed users on Windows 11 compared to 51% on Windows 10. That’s a 4% swing compared to the previous month. With Windows 12 reportedly set to launch later in the year, Windows 10’s dominance should continue to erode over the course of 2024.

Data on the number of physical CPUs tends to be variable and Intel systems with e-cores make for some odd configurations, but it is interesting to see the number of users with eight-cores growing in popularity, now taking up over 20% of the overall share. 

Systems with six-cores or less are still dominant but it’s clear there is a shift away from dual and quad-core systems and laptops, which are now relegated to all but the cheapest of systems. Dual and quad core laptops will increasingly be retired.

The share of systems with 16GB of RAM is nearly 50%. Systems with 32GB actually fell a little, though the latter is probably offset by the introduction of 48GB systems into the mix.

Systems with 8GB or less of RAM are on the decline. There’s nothing surprising about that, with DDR5 memory kits typically starting at 2x16GB, while gaming laptops are increasingly shipping with 16GB of RAM. 2023 also saw lots of cheap memory hit the market. An upgrade to 16GB of DDR4 from just 8GB is a very cost effective upgrade for those using older systems.

As games become ever more demanding, 8GB is increasingly going to become inadequate, to say nothing of running a browser with dozens of open tabs at the same time (as yours truly does).

Other little nuggets include a jump in the number of Steam users with VR headsets. Though small overall at just 2.24%, that’s a 0.4% increase from the month before, or to put it another way, an increase of over 20% month on month.

With the exception of RTX 4060 mobile graphics, RTX 40-series models still aren’t gaining much traction, though Nvidia’s absolute dominance over AMD remains intact.

Overall there’s not much that’s surprising here. Of course, the trend towards higher system specs is inevitable and it’s also worth noting that the Steam Hardware Survey is better seen as a rough idea of market share than as the ultimate snapshot. Still, it’s interesting to get some insight into what gamers are really running in their rigs.

Related Posts

Sony quietly stops shipping PlayStation TV in Japan

Reports are circulating today that Sony is quietly halting sales of the PlayStation TV, at least in Japan, as the microconsole's official Japanese product page lists it as…

New Deadpool And Wolverine Trailer Is Maybe The Best One Yet

The final trailer for Deadpool & Wolverine has arrived, and it’s possibly the best one yet. This trailer is a little more serious and somber, setting up the…

A Surprise Plague Inc. Sequel Is Out Now, Centers On Healing The World After Apocalypse

Plague Inc. developer Ndemic just dropped a surprise sequel to the smash hit Plague Inc. Instead of a pessimistic pandemic simulator, the sequel is a sunny strategy game…

Lord Of The Rings Star Has A Blunt Response When Asked If He Would Come Back For New Movies

Actor Hugo Weaving played Elrond in Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film trilogies, but could he come back for the next set of…

Across The Spider-Verse Has Third Best Start At Box Office In Spider-Man History

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is doing big business at the box office. It earned $120.5 million in the US over its opening weekend to become the biggest blockbuster…

Amazon Brings On Disney Veteran To Work On The Lord Of The Rings TV Show

Amazon Studios has announced a new hire who will help lead the charge for the marketing and promotion of the network’s big-budget Lord of the Rings TV show…