makes me wonder if people will go with whatever works well enough and for the least amount of effort.

This has always been the case. People want something that just works right out of the box, and familiarity will keep a lot of people from considering anything else.

I've been talking for a long time now with a friend of mine about how sick we are of Windows, and more recently about how I'm planning on installing Linux on a spare HDD I have before making the commitment to getting rid of Windows entirely, and he's decided to go to 11 despite hating it because he's afraid of trying something new and having to learn a new system.

And it's not just a computer thing. People can and will hurt themselves by repeating the same mistakes because it's the familiar habit and doing something new - even if it's for your own good - is scarier. Been there, done that, plenty of times.