Customers who have tried the former and been frustrated at the changes, notably the , and the forced boot to the tile-based Start screen, might take exception.

The Larson-Green and Angiulo stage time was the least impressive to analysts.

"It was like walking down the aisles at an automobile auction: almost too many choices and a lot of options to process," said Jack Narcotta of Technology Business Research, in an email reply to questions.

Gillett concurred. "There were just too many [devices]," he said of that segment. "It wasn't curated, and just reinforced our sense that the [Microsoft and OEM] approach makes it harder on buyers."

Unlike Apple, Microsoft has little control over what the actual makers of most Windows PCs and devices look like, how they're manufactured, the degree to which they're polished premium products, or even how they're marketed.