Remember when we were talking about Motorola’s CEO conference call in which he spilled out the beans on a so called Windows Mobile 6.5. Well Ballmer has just confirmed that those beans exists and we’re actually anxious to see a phone working one Windows Mobile 6.5.

The new mobile OS will arrive sometime next year. I hope the 6.5 version will keep us busy until number 7 will hit.

via pocketnow

Tags: microsoft, microsoft, Mobile News, Mobile Software, Motorola, Steve Ballmer, Windows Mobile 6.5, Windows Mobile 7

This is one of the greatest pictures I’ve seen all day. As you can see, it’s Windows 7 running on a new MacBook Pro. Sure it could be all a fake but I doubt it. Macs know how to deal with Windows OS so I’m sure the new models will cope with Steve Ballmer’s new OS just fine.

via Engadget

Tags: Laptops, MacBook, microsoft, Steve Ballmer, Windows 7

In case you’re not a Safari Mobile fan you’re probably looking for alternative solutions to go online from your iPhone. Well we have some bad news for you. Apple wants you to use its browser. Opera Mini hasn’t been allowed into the App Store which means you won’t be able to get it working on your iPhone or iPod touch yet. Will it be available for jailbroken iPhones? Opera fans will certainly be waiting for that to happen.

Tags: 3g iphone, Apple, Apple, microsoft, Mobile News, mobile safari, Opera, Other Brands

Microsoft is really stubborn with its pro-Vista campaign. Someone should tell them it doesn’t really work out for them. We’ve seen Seinfeld and Gates trying their best to be funny yet informative but people didn’t understand any of that message. What followed were the “I’m a PC” videos. A little better but still not enough. And as you might already remember, Apple answered with three of their own, new “I’m a Mac” videos which were better received by the public.

I guess no one was expecting Microsoft to pull this next stunt but I guess they did. And they deserve a medal for it. A Microsoft booth has been neatly placed in front of an Apple store in Bullring, England. Everyone can record their “I’m a PC” message in that booth for the next three days. What do you think about that? How will Apple respond?

via AppleInsider

Tags: Apple, England, microsoft, microsoft, Mobile News

So how’s your Xbox game doing? Ready for some rumors about your favorite console platform? According to leaked Circuit City ad, a 60GB Xbox Live Starter Pack is about to arrive on American soil next week. The whole ensemble will cost just $99 which is not bad at all. The Pack includes three months of free Live Gold access, a wired headset and a 60GB hard drive. We’d like to confirm the rumor sometime next week, so Microsoft please make our wish come true! On second opinion, you can always cut some more of that price if you want!

Tags: game console, microsoft, microsoft, Mobile News, Mobile Software, Xbox 360, Xbox Live

Microsoft has finally released Windows 7. Well not quite officially. But the company gave its first public demonstration of the new OS at the PDC today. And from what I see it looks just like Vista, or a more complicated Vista skin.

Windows 7 will not be as shocking as Vista in terms of changes. While transition from Windows XP to Vista is somewhat difficult and annoying, current Vista users will have little problems in adjusting to Windows 7. You should expect to have the same problems but hopefully Microsoft will make things run smoother in 7.
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Tags: Desktop PCs, microsoft, microsoft, Steve Ballmer, Windows 7

Ok folks, take a seat for this one. Steve Ballmer did indeed announce the Microsoft Cloud earlier this month in what we could refer to a sudden sparkle of sanity. No matter if you believed him or not the cloud OS is upon us. And the name seems quite pleasant! We shall refer to it as the Windows Azure. This OS will probably be released together with Windows Vista 2 7, whenever that happens.

The announcement was made at this year’s Professional Developers Conference 2008 so we shall see more of it in the future. The Ballmer guy will surely enforce it. But let’s not judge beforehand! The Azure might actually work quite nice.

Ray Ozzie, Microsoft’s chief software architect said that the “Windows Azure is a new Windows offering in the Web tier of computing, a significant extension in the company’s family of platforms.” The Azure should help all developers createm deploy, manage and distribute web services and various application through the Internet. Wow, I mean that’s just wow! Are you still sitting down? We’ll see how the Azure develop in the future.

via Microsoft

Tags: Azure, Ballmer, microsoft, microsoft, Mobile News, OS, Portable Devices, windows

Besides iPhone firmware 2.2 beta 2, we heard that the Windows Vista SP2 is coming to town. Is it going to fix any problems? Well, did the last SP1 fix any significant problems?

We don’t know when the new update is actually set to arrive and we don’t know all of its features but we have a general idea. The SP2 is said to add Windows Search 4.0, Bluetooth 2.1 Feature Pack, ability to record data on Blu-ray medua and Windows Connect Now for simpler WiFi configuration. Wow!

Tags: microsoft, Mobile News, software, software, SP2, vista, windows

The T-Mobile G1 is the main phone of the day and lots of news are making their way to bloggers all over the world. People are talking about the Android update which will start rolling over-the-air tomorrow. Updates will continue on to October 31st.

The update will fix a bug related to Amazon songs and it will feature some light enhancements. We’ll know more about the G1 and its updates starting tomorrow!

Tags: Android, G1, Google, microsoft, OTA, T-Mobile, Update

Apple didn’t fail to respond to Microsoft latest commercials by bringing in their own “I’m a Mac” campaign. Entitled “Bean Counter” (above) and “V Word” (below) the new videos are way funnier than what Gates and Seinfeld tried to pull off. Apple takes aim at Microsoft 300 million add campaign suggesting that that money could have been invested in fixing Vista. During last Tuesday’s keynote, Apple’s officials counted the failure of Vista as one of the elements that helped them increase MacBooks sales.

What do you think about the new commercials?

Tags: Apple, Commercial, microsoft, microsoft, Mobile News, software, vista

I don’t know if you remember the dual touchscreen concept laptop we’ve shown you a while ago but we today we have confirmation that it was actually made by a big laptop manufacturer. Asus has a dual touchscreen laptop which might see the light of day in the first quarter of 2009.

The laptop will use Windows 7 of course, but other features are not known yet. And I might come up with a few reasons against such a fast release for the unnamed prototype. I’d definitely want to touch it though!

Tags: ASUS, dual screen, Laptops, microsoft, touchscreen, Windows 7

Microsoft’s Silverlight might soon be on the G1 and the iPhone. It seems like Microsoft isn’t wasting any time in its battle with Adobe when it comes to the company’s Flash technology competitor, Silverlight.

Microsoft is reportedly very interested in pushing Silverlight on Apple’s devices. But it’s well known that Apple ultimately controls what software runs on the iPhone - so good luck Microsoft. However, the story is quite different when it comes to the G1.

Google’s Android mobile operating system is open source and with the forthcoming Android Market, Google’s implementation of Apple’s App Store, things are going to be easier for Microsoft to release Silverlight for Android. The fundamental difference between Android Market and Apple’s App Store is that Google’s mobile apps store is open to all, making it easier for companies to release their software on the Android platform.

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Tags: Cell Phones, G1, iPhone, microsoft, Mobile News, Mobile Software, Silverlight

We have more news from the Microsoft world. It looks like Service Pack 2 for Microsoft Vista and Server 2008 is already being used by some software and hardware manufacturers. Is Microsoft ready to launch the SP2 for both OS before Windows 7? Windows 7 is supposed to arrive on June 3rd of next year but we’re going to play with beta versions until then. No details have been leaked about the any of the Service Packs, but we’re anxiously waiting for them.

Tags: microsoft, Server 2008, Service Pack 2, software, vista, Windows 7

11:05AM PDT: That’s it for this Apple’s event. We’ll be back with more news and analysis in the following days. We’ll thank Engadget, Gizmodo and Slashgear for being there. If you have questions and comments, well, don’t hesitate.

11:03AM PDT: No Apple netbook is going to arrive any time soon. As for the glossy glass screens you will be stuck with them. There’s no matte screen option. Touchscreen Macs aren’t coming anytime soon either.

10:57AM PDT: The new NVIDIA is being used first by Apple but others might get it soon. There’ no HDMI as it is limited in resolution. The Display Port is going to be used instead of that. There’s no Blu-ray as Steve says it’s “a bag of hurt”. The 17 inch Pro is being refreshed today although they don’t have any prices to offer. These are the answer to some of the most relevant questions from the audience.

10:54AM PDT: While they are answering questions over at Apple’s event. In the mean time, what do you think about the new MacBooks? Remember that later on today you will be able to watch the whole keynote over at Apple’s site.

10:53AM PDT: 110/70 is Steve’s blood pressure. That’s a good thing. He didn’t make any other remarks, but as always he managed to get lots of laughs.

10:49AM PDT: It looks like Apple’s official are ending the event by emphasizing again the new manufacturing process and design.

10:47AM PDT: Jonathan Ives is talking about how great the new MacBooks are. And about the whole manufacturing process.

10:45AM PDT: The models will be in stores tomorrow. Upgrades include 4GB of RAM, 320GB 5,400rpm HDD, 128GB SSD, and DVI, dual-DVI and VGA adapters.

10:42AM PDT: The 13.3 inch version will be $700 cheaper than the Pro. It will cost $1299. For $1599 2.0GHz Core 2 Duo CPU and 2GB of RAM, 250GB HDD with backlit keyboard and slot-load drive

10:39AM PDT: A new MacBook is revealed. Like the Pro but smaller. It will have an entry price from $1099 to $999 - that’s the regular MacBook we know right now. It has the same case like the Pro, the NVIDIA 9400M chipset and it’s the “new generation MacBook”. We were expecting this new MacBook too.

10:37AM PDT: A new Cinema Display with backlighting is announced. It’s 24 inches, 1920 x 1200 resolution and stereo speakers. It has a MagSafe connector, 3 USB ports, iSIght and microphone. It will cost $899 in November.

10:37AM PDT: $1799 for the Air with 1.6GHz Core 2 Duo, 2GB RAM and 120GB HDD. $2499 for the Air with 1.86GHz CPU and 128GB SSD. Both available in November.

10:36AM PDT: The MacBook Air will get an 128GB SSD upgrade and a mini display port. The standard is 120GB HDD with a NVIDIA 9400M card.

10:34AM PDT: The 15.4 inch MacBook Pros are shipping out today in a 37% smaller packaging which got Apple the EPEAT Gold Award.

10:33M PDT: $2499 for 2.53GHz CPU, double the cache, 4GB RAM, double graphics memory and 320GB HDD

10:33AM PDT: $1999 for 15.4-inch 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo 2GB of DDR3 RAM, NVIDIA 9400 and 9600

10:31AM PDT: Ethernet, firewire 800, two USB and mini display port, an ExpressCard slot, an optional SSD, in/out audio, built-in WiFi N and Bluetooth. These are the features of the slimmest MacBook Pro to date: 0.95 inch thickness.

10:30AM PDT: There’s of course the slot-load drive, magsafe power connector and the battery indicator which has been moved to the side. With the 9600M GT you will get around 5 hours of battery time instead of 4.

10:29AM PDT: The NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics will be used in the new MacBook Pros. Together with it a 9600M GT will be included. You can switch between them, or have just the integrated 9600M GT running for better battery life.

10:27AM PDT: Steve Jobs has actually passed around the shell so those attending live would get a their hands on the aluminum case. Too bad we aren’t there to get our hands on it already!

10:24AM PDT: The new MacBook Pro is introduced. It’s like we’ve suspected it would look like. Precision aluminum unibody enclosure, LED-backlit display, next generation GPU, multitouch trackpad, mini display port connector, built-in iSight and microphone, “Sudden motion sensor”, backlit keyboard, new magnetic latch.

10:23AM PDT: Here are the new actions:

• Two finger gesture = pinch and rotate for zooming and panning.
• Three finger gestures = swiping between photos.
• Four fingers = expose and app switching.

10:21AM PDT: The touchpad, as we heard, was changed completely. It’s made of glass and it’s 39% larger than current trackpads. It has no buttons as it’s a whole button itself. You can setup multiple virtual buttons and there are 4 new finger gestures to control the OS.

10:18AM PDT: Apple has been talking to NVIDIA, according to Steve Jobs, as the company had a new graphics product. The NVIDIA GeForce 9400 M. It’s a single die with chipset and GPU. It has 16 parallel graphics core, 54 gflops of performance. It’s 5 times faster than the current GPU in MacBook Pros (the NVIDIA 8600M).

10:16AM PDT: The case is made by rough-cutting it first followed by the making of the key holes. Instead of bolting things together to make it a whole, the remove material from a “Brick” of aluminum to come to the final shape.

10:15AM PDT: “We’ve been looking for a better way, and we think we’ve found it” They refer to the MacBook Air. The notebook wouldn’t have been possible if they would have used the old building process. That’s where creating the case out of a solid piece of aluminum comes into place.

10:13AM PDT: Current models have the internal frame filled with components and which is bolted to a pressed baseplate.

10:12AM PDT: Steve Jobs is back on the stage with Jonathan Ives. Now they are talking about building the new laptops. They wanted something light but strong. Aluminum comes to mind!

10:10AM PDT: Like always we have numbers from Apple. One out of every three dollars is spent on a Mac in the USA. Apple’ marketshare is at 17.6%. 39% that’s the unit share for computers in education. 50% is the number of Macs at major universities; up from 15%. Q1 to Q3 Mac sales in 2008 already equal sales for 2007.

10:07AM PDT: 400,000 people come in the Apple Stores a day. 50% of those that end up buying a map are new to the whole Apple hardware and freeware.

10:04AM PDT: Steve says that Windows on a Mac “sends shivers up my spine”. Microsoft’s Vista is seen as a bad step for Microsoft; a step which has contributed to Macs’ recent success

10:03AM PDT: Tim Cook is talking now. Apple has sold 2.5 million Macs in the last quarter. They are better computers with better software.

10:00AM PDT: Steve Jobs is out on stage, and he will have some stories about how notebooks were made.

9:53AM PDT: Apple’s MacBook event is about to start. We will be covering it live for you. Stay tuned for the hottest news from Steve Jobs’ keynote. Unfortunately we aren’t in California at this time but we will virtually cover “The Spotlight Turns to Notebooks” event live.

Tags: Apple, Apple, MacBook, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, microsoft, Mobile News, Portable Devices

The unthinkable has happened. A Norwegian developer is to blame for this. Erik Kristiansen has installed Windows Mobile on the iPhone. I guess this unconfirmed news would make an overexcited Ballmer sweat his shirt off while sending an “I told you so!” mail to Microsoft employees. The Windows Mobile iPhone is said to be in beta right now, while a final version will come out in January.

While waiting for this news to be confirmed I’d advise you to keep the default OS on your Apple phone and wait for Microsoft to roll out its one Windows Mobile Zune phone.

Tags: Apple, Apple, iPhone, microsoft, Other Brands, Windows Mobile

I know, I know, a lot of you guys have been waiting for Xbox to have a Blu-ray drive. When rumors came up saying MS will add a Blu-Ray drive to the 360, I’m sure most of you were dancing all over the place. But I’m sorry, I have to pour cold water over your heads. Microsoft has once again denied the latest rumor that it’ll launch a Blu-ray Disc drive add-on for the Xbox 360.

Yes, that’s right! An article from The Register stated that a blogger going by the name of “Major Nelson” has posted an audio interview online with Aaron Greenberg, Microsoft’s Group Product Manager for the Xbox 360. In the interview, which took place at the Tokyo Game Show this week, Greenberg said: “We have no plans to integrate Blu-ray into the Xbox experience.”

However, Greenberg went on to say: “We also believe that the future’s digital, and that’s why we’ve invested in a massive library of entertainment content.” His statements seem to confirm the statements released by Microsoft back in May in which it stated that is has “no plans to introduce a Blu-ray drive for Xbox 360” because “games are what drive consumers to purchase game consoles”.

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Tags: Blu-ray, Drive, microsoft, microsoft, Mobile News, Mobile Software, Portable Devices, Xbox 360

The current economic crisis is definitely affection major companies. RIM is no exception. Their shares have dropped down to $53 which apparently caught Microsoft’s attention. Word is that if RIM’s share drop below $40, Microsoft is going to make a move. They will make a $50 bid per share and hope to acquire RIM.

Imagine RIM phones running on Windows Mobile! Imagine a Zune phone! But then again we’ve seen Microsoft blowing the Yahoo deal earlier this year so we wouldn’t be surprised if they don’t get to buy RIM after all. That’s what we hope predict to happen.

Tags: microsoft, microsoft, Mobile News, Research In Motion, RIM

Yes, we already know that Microsoft is planning on releasing Xbox 360’s with a Blu-ray drive, however, X-bit labs reported that its even more sweeter than that as the company already has the device ready to go.

According to the report, Toshiba and Samsung have been asked to come up with the external Blu-ray solution for the Xbox 360. Rumors are also floating around claiming a $100-to-$150 price point. We all know the impact of this move by Microsoft. It will eliminate one PS3’s major advantage and could bolster the Xbox 360 to even greater heights.

If this is true, then those who are “patiently” anticipating could have this either during the holidays or via a show like CES.

Tags: Blu-ray, microsoft, Mobile News, Portable Devices, Xbox 360

In an amazing turn of events we have come into possession of some serious information which will shock you to the core. If you’re not sitting down please do so. What you are about to find out might make you faint.

Steve Ballmer said he isn’t responsible for any problems caused by Windows Vista or the “Vista Capable” computers. He did so under oath in the trial that concerns exactly those capable computers. (more…)

Tags: microsoft, microsoft, software, Steve Ballmer, vista

Windows XP was supposed to be officially discontinued starting with January 31, 2009. According to a leaked email from a PC OEM, Microsoft has decided to postpone the XP retirement. The new rumored date is July 31, 2009. That gives us a whole six extra months to buy XP instead of Vista. After that you will probably be more likely to choose the future Windows 7 instead of Vista. That’s a nice trick Microsoft is pulling. Especially since they are working hard on promoting Vista.

Tags: Desktop PCs, Laptops, microsoft, microsoft, software, vista, Windows XP, xp