63724541
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
HTC has officially revealed the HTC One M8 for Windows today, exclusive to Verizon Wireless,and features a similar set of specifications as its Android counterpart. This will be the first device to ship with the Windows Phone 8.1 Update in the US, and comes packed with Cortana, Live Folders, Action Center, and more. The device will go up for sale on Verizon for $99 with a two-year contract, or $29.99 on Verizon's Edge plan.
The HTC One (M8) for Windows is made from a single block of aluminum, which translates to no gaps in its construction as the brushed metal frame wraps around the entire body of the phone. It has a 5-inch Super LCD3 1080p HD display with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 and powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 quad-core 2.3GHz processor, this smartphone screams! The device also features 32GB of storage.
63548019
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer now officially owns the NBA's Los Angeles Clippers. After being delayed by an issue between the league and outgoing owner Donald Sterling, Ballmer has finalized his purchase of the team for $2 billion. Ballmer apparently has no immediate plans to relocate the team to Seattle. According to Ballmer, the NBA would never allow it and he paid the $2 billion price since the Clippers are a Los Angeles based team. "Probably most people will tell you I paid an L.A. beachfront price, not a Seattle beachfront price for the team," Ballmer added. "I'm not crazy."
63424149
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
A tip from Microsoft has led to the arrest of a man in Pennsylvania who has been charged with receiving and sharing child porn via Microsoft's own OneDrive cloud storage service. Microsoft claims to have detected this behaviors by using "automated technologies to detect child pornography or abusive behavior that might harm the system, our customers, or others", which is also stated in their terms and conditions. Pennsylvania State Police confirmed that Microsoft's actions had prompted the investigation, which led to the man's arrest. Was this a violation of privacy or was Microsoft right in tipping off the authorities? You be the judge.
63279869
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
Microsoft has filed a contract dispute lawsuit against Samsung over what Microsoft claims is a breach of contract by Samsung involving Android patent royalties. Back in 2011, Samsung voluntarily entered into a legally binding contract with Microsoft in a cross-licensing IP agreement involving Android patents. Samsung has grown over the past few years and now believes that Microsoft's recent acquisition of Nokia nulls the agreement. Microsoft has taken it to court and is asking to settle the disagreement with Samsung in order to continue the original agreement. No word yet from Samsung as to why they have decided to change their mind.
63146077
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
The Chinese government is investigating Microsoft for possible breaches of anti-monopoly laws, following a series of surprise visits to Redmond's offices in cities across China on Monday. These surprise visits were part of China's ongoing investigation, and were based on security complaints about Microsoft’s Windows operating system and Office productivity suite. Results from an earlier inspection apparently were not enough to clear Microsoft of suspicion of anti-competitive behavior. Microsoft's alleged anti-monopoly behavior is a criminal matter, so if found guilty, the software giant could face steep fines as well as other sanctions.
62763841
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
Microsoft revealed today in an earnings call that quarterly profit declined 7.1% as the company absorbed a financial hit from acquiring Nokia's money-losing cellphone business. Microsoft also reported a whopping $23.38 billion in revenue for FY14 Q4, as well as an operating income of $6.48 billion. The company also reported $1.99 billion in phone revenue, stemming from its purchase of Nokia’s hardware assets for more than $7 billion. Microsoft also sold 5.8 million Windows Phone-based Lumia handsets in the period. That business cost the company $0.08 in earnings per share and lost it $692 million in the quarter. Had Microsoft not purchased the asset, it would have hit its profit mark. Azure and Office 365 grew more than 100 percent in just one year. Office 365 for consumers picked up another 1 million subscribers, ending the quarter with more than 5.6 million. Microsoft is clearly trying to sort out its profits and margins, especially since the company recently revealed that 18,000 employees were being laid off.
62513049
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
Microsoft wants you to trade-in your Sony PlayStation 3 or your old Xbox 360 for a brand new Xbox One console. In fact, simply take your PS3 or Xbox 360 to your local Microsoft Store and Microsoft will offer you $100 towards the new Xbox One. Microsoft has apparently realized that this promotion will come in handy for those looking to get rid of their older generation console, especially since the Kinect-less Xbox One can now be purchased for $399.
62512827
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
Microsoft has attempted to compete in the small-screen tablet market with Windows 8.1 and Windows RT, but it looks like the growing adoption of small-screen Android tablets are just too much for Lenovo to handle. Lenovo has slammed the brakes on sales of small screen Windows tablets in the United States, citing a lack of interest from consumers. In fact, Lenovo has stopped selling the 8-inch ThinkPad 8 and the 8-inch Miix 2. Fortunately, these small-screen Windows tablets have seen some success in Brazil, China, and Japan, so Lenovo will focus on efforts there. Microsoft also recently scrapped plans for the rumored Surface Mini.
61978573
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
Microsoft has killed off two of its mapping products, MapPoint and Streets & Trips. Both of these services have received their last update and will soon be retired in favor of Microsoft's premier mapping product, Bing Maps. The company has yet to go public with a press release announcing the retirement of these two mapping services, but the Redmond giant has quietly mentioned the fate on both the services' websites. MapPoint was first released back in 1999 and made it easier to view, edit, and integrate maps into software. Streets & Trips was a route planning package. Microsoft is now pushing Bing Maps as the service that can do all this and more.
61683971
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
One of Microsoft's main goals with Windows 9, the next major version of Windows, is to win over Windows 7 hold outs. The operating system will look and work differently based on hardware type. Microsoft is looking to showcase the desktop for desktop and laptop users, while two-in-one devices like the Surface Pro or Lenovo Yoga will support switching between the Metro interface and the classic desktop interface. The new desktop will allow Modern UI apps to run in windowed mode, and have Modern UI apps pinned to the Start Menu instead of a Start Screen. There will also be a mini-start menu. Microsoft is looking to undo the usability mistakes it made with Windows 8 for those who are not on a touch device. WIndows 9 is expected around spring of 2015.
61465673
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
The storage wars are in full force. Microsoft revealed today that they will be offering 15GB of free OneDrive storage, up from 7GB. Office 365 users will now get 1TB of storage, up from 20GB. This announcement comes after Amazon revealed unlimited photo storage for those who buy the new Fire phone. Dropbox, a competitor to OneDrive, currently has 2GB for free but offers more space if you refer people to the service. Google Drive offers 15GB of free storage, while Amazon Cloud Drive offers 5GB. This storage space increase can only mean good things for us, as competition between the companies will heat up.
61247373
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
Microsoft is looking to create a more open dialog between the Internet Explorer team and the Web development community by announcing Internet Explorer Developer Channel. IE Dev Channel allows you to preview the next version of Internet Explorer (IE12) alongside and independently of IE11. Web developers can download and test drive the latest IE platform features, something developers were already able to do with Firefox and Chrome. This preview release even offers support of the emerging Gamepad API, allowing you to use your Xbox controller to play games in IE!
60755301
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
Microsoft recently announced plans to reintroduce the Start Menu to Windows in an upcoming version of the operating system. While the plan was to roll out an update to Windows 8.1 and offer the Start menu later this year, it seems like this is no longer the case. Now Microsoft is reportedly looking to release the Start Menu with Windows 9, which is expected in April of 2015. Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 have faced a boat load of criticism and hatred, partly due to the removal of the Start button and Start menu. The restoration of a visible Start button on the taskbar was one of the key features of the Windows 8.1 update, released back in October of 2013.
60636063
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has purchased the LA Clippers for a whopping $2 billion, also setting a new record price for an NBA team. This deal is apparently tentative until Donald Sterling gives his blessing. Twenty-nine other NBA owners need to offer their approval as well, but that shouldn't be a problem as long as Ballmer reaffirms his commitment of keeping the Clippers in Los Angeles. Interestingly, Donald Sterling had purchased the team back in June of 1981 for $12.5 million.
60508187
submission
DroidJason1 writes:
A registry workaround, which tricks Windows Update into thinking you are running Windows Embedded POSReady 2009, allows you to get free security updates until 2019. All you need is a simple 32bit or 64bit registry entry in order to make this work. POSReady 2009 is slated to receive security updates for another five years. Microsoft ended support for Windows XP on April 8th of 2014.
