ZDNet has a series that they run where they host live debates on their website and let the users vote for which side they’re on. The current debate revolves around one question: Is a Windows 8 Tablet or an iPad better for Enterprise users? The debate is interesting and there are good points on both sides. Take a look for yourself and feel free to vote and let the world know which would you prefer for enterprise, iPad of Windows 8?
The debate started yesterday and resumed today with rebuttals. It is currently on break, but will resume with closing arguments tomorrow at 2PM ET.
Go cast your votes and let us know how you voted and why in the comments below.
NPD statistics in February show that Xbox is in the top spot for yet another month in a row. February takes Xbox’s streak to 14 total months that it has sold more units than any other console on the market. The NPD statistics show us three ways in which Xbox Comes out on top.
The current success of the Xbox 360 has a lot to do with the diverse ways in which it can be used. The Xbox can be and was primarily designed to be used as a hardcore gaming system, to play popular titles such as the Halo Series, Call of Duty and Gears of War. It can also be used as a light-weight gaming system. In combination with the Kinect, the Xbox appeals to those who typically haven’t been interested in video games before and who have a hard time learning how to use a controller. One of the main sales pitches when the Xbox Kinect came out was that if you know how to move your body, you know how to play the Kinect. On top of gaming, the Xbox makes a great home Media Center. It has the ability to record and store shows just like TiVo or a DVR and now with the latest update has the ability to view thousands of Movies, TV Shows and listen to music. The Xbox with Kinect can turn any TV into an easy to use Media Power House.
All of these features mix together to make the Xbox very appealing to a broad market, and I believe therein lies the secret to its success.
Let us know how you use your Xbox in the comments below.
Viewsonic revealed a business class tablet running Windows 8 that they plan to release in Q2 of 2012. The Viewsonic P100 comes in at 10” with an IPS 1280×800 display and a 1.6 GHz Intel N2600 dual-core processor. Viewsonic also released several Ice Cream Sandwich tablets today with stats that are minimal compared to the version they have planned for Windows.
The Wi-Fi only version of the tablet will go for a cool $799.00 and the 3G version will run for $999.00. The stats for the price aren’t completely impressive but it is a sample of things to come in the tablet world.
Are you planning on getting a Windows 8 tablet when they become available? How much are you looking to spend? Will a tablet be able to replace a laptop or desktop or will you still use both? Let us know your answers in the comments below.
Source: ChipChick.com
There is no doubt that Windows 8 will be great on new tablets and touch based computers, but what about the average user who already owns a normal PC and will face the decision of whether to upgrade or not. A lot of emphasis has been placed on touch interfaces in Windows 8 which leaves the average keyboard and mouse user feeling a little left out in the cold. So for you users of older versions of Windows, I have compiled a partial list of 10 new features in Windows 8 which can enhance your computer experience.
My first impression of Windows 8 came during the install process. It checked compatibility issues and then installed the OS over top of Windows 7. What was so remarkable about this was the fact that it kept all my applications, settings, favorites, passwords, files, it just kept everything. There was not a single program that I had to reinstall and I wasted no time transferring files from my old computer, or even from Windows. Installing Windows 8 on a PC currently running Windows couldn’t be easier.
Of course, the install gives you options to only keep files you choose, or to keep nothing at all from your old Windows install in case you should want a clean install, but having the ability, and defaulted at that, to keep everything how you already have it is absolutely revolutionary to Windows, the install was so easy, no one will ever need to hire a tech to come upgrade their OS again.
On top of keeping all files, programs and settings, Windows 8 is designed to work on the hardware you have. If you can run Windows Vista – 7, you can run Windows 8. If you can run XP, chances are you can still run Windows 8.
One topic I know is on everyone’s mind is “but my computer doesn’t have a touch screen, Windows 8 won’t work or will be hard to use on my computer.” Let me put those worries to rest by saying that a Mouse and Keyboard will work just fine on Windows 8. If we are to compare the usability of Win8 on touch screen vs. Win8 on mouse and keyboard, yes the touch is going to be way more fun, and in many ways easier to use. However, if we are to compare mouse and keyboard on Windows 8 vs. mouse and keyboard on Windows 7, Windows 8 is just as easy if not easier to maneuver with a mouse and keyboard than Windows 7. I’m not going to lie, there are a few things that take some getting used to, it may take a day or two of use before it feels 100% natural, but the experience getting there is still pretty fluid and once you are naturalized, you will be way more productive, connected and up to date on Windows 8 than you ever could be on Windows 7. And the touch on Win8 vs. the touch on Win7; not even a competition, that is where Win8 excels.
With the new Metro style apps, Windows 8 gives you the ability to split your screen. This allows you to view one metro app in a minimalist view and view the other in full screen. It is easy to switch apps in either of the two panes and this gives you a whole new level of Window-ability.
When writing apps for Metro, developers have the ability to define what content will show in the minimalist side and how it will be displayed. This often gives you quick access to what’s most important. For example, the chat app lets you maintain conversation while you go about your normal business on the computer.
It is important to mention that the desktop along with all running applications is treated as a single Metro application.
In the image above, the desktop is on the right side with a preview of all the running applications you can find on the desktop. Click any of those icons and it will open up to that program.
An example of the People App on the left side with the desktop on the right.
You mix that spit screen with Windows snap controls that is carried over from Windows 8 and you get the ability to quickly, effectively and easily split your screen into three working panes, making it easier than ever to get stuff done.
Last night I was sitting on the couch in my living room doing homework. Generally, I like to listen to music or watch TV as I work through my classes each night. It used to be that I either had to sacrifice some of my laptop screen to a TV show and work in the remaining space or go into the living room and use Kinect gestures or voice to get a TV show running. With Windows 8, there are some new controls to help out with that.
The XBOX Companion app that was recently released on Windows Phone 7 and then followed on other devices has now come to Windows 8. This allows you to search for videos, music, games or applications that you can then broadcast to your connected XBOX. Combine that with the split screen mentioned above and you get to continue working on your computer while you control the XBOX quite literally on the side
Windows has always exceled at multi monitor support, but in Windows 8 it makes even more improvements. The most noticeable and for me the best improvement is the extension of the start bar (app bar) all the way across all screens. Windows 8 not only lets you see the app bar on all screens but lets you customize what shows up on the bar.
My configuration is set so that I see pinned applications only on the main screen, and each app bar only shows the applications that are open on that screen, but many other configurations are possible.
The Task manager has always been for the more experienced of PC users. Most people don’t dare mess around inside of it because it all looks like something only a hacker on TV would understand. Windows 8 has revamped the task manager for the first time since it was released on Windows 95, and it looks great now. I won’t go into too many details of what you can do, but hopefully you get the point.
Windows 8 just like most mobile platforms has as strong emphasis on cloud storage. It comes installed with a SkyDrive app that allows you to copy to and copy from your Microsoft SkyDrive account as well as including SkyDrive albums in your photo app. Windows 8 doesn’t stop there, in the photos app, you’ll have access to several cloud storage options for photos including SkyDrive, Facebook and Flickr with more to come in the final release.
Windows 8 also pulls all your contact lists from any email addresses you add to your computer, Facebook, your live account and many other sources and gives you a complete list of all your contacts in one easy to use place, just like it does on Windows Phone.
One of most exciting aspects of Windows for me is the ability to take it with you, and this happens in two ways. First off, when you sign into Windows using your Microsoft Account, all your settings and favorites are synced to the cloud. When you log into a secondary computer, say your work computer, using the same account, all those settings are then synced between your two computers. This gets rid of the necessity to set up each computer just the way you like it, now you can set up once and have it sync to all of your computers. For me this is immeasurably useful as I currently have my laptop that I use for work, a laptop I leave at my house as a media center and soon will have a Windows 8 tablet. I want my experience on those three devices to be as uniform as possible, and with Windows 8, that is more possible than ever.
The other way that Windows goes with you is through Windows Go, the ability to install Windows 8 to a flash drive. With a flash drive version of Windows 8, you can carry around all your files, settings and programs on a flash drive, plug into any PC, boot up and be running on your familiar computer. The potential here for Professionals and Enterprise users is amazing, the ability to have your computer with you everywhere, without lugging around the actual physical hard drive.
These two options make Windows more portable than ever and help to unify the user experience across devices.
When I installed Windows 8 yesterday morning, the only program that it could not carry over from Windows 7 was Microsoft Security Essentials. Why could Microsoft’s Windows not run Microsoft’s own security software? Because it already has it built into the OS.
With windows 8, Windows Defender has been (re-)upgraded into a full fledged security suite. The reason this is great for the end user is that it eliminates the need to buy high-priced security software to protect your PC. It now comes standard and for free. Also, Microsoft has a tendency to update their Security Definitions nightly which means your computer will never be more than 23 hours behind on how to combat the latest threats.
Windows Defender runs quietly in the background, taking up little to no system resources and best of all, it is highly non-invasive. Many security platforms have a tendency to pop up every 30 seconds and try to be in your way as much as possible. Windows Defender simply does not.
If you’ve heard about Metro on Windows Phone, or Metro on XBOX or even Metro on Media Center then you’re familiar with the concept of live tiles. Live tiles are large tile icons that give you up-to-date information as well as acting as a shortcut to open apps. Metro on Windows 8 has got them now too.
Now you will always be up to date on what matters most to you.
For the most part, the file system and the file structure are the same, what has changed is the way that Explorer handles some of the everyday tasks it has been tasked with.
The new Windows Explorer ribbon is one of the first things you’ll notice when browsing your files. This ribbon gives access to many quick command such as delete, copy, move and paste as well as many advanced features that only experienced users knew how to find in Windows 7, such as Mapping Network Drives, viewing or not viewing hidden files, hiding or showing known file extensions and many more.
It may be a while, but eventually you are going to try copying several files at once, we all do it eventually. In older versions of Windows, you used get multiple file transfer boxes popping up all over the place if you tried to transfer more than one thing at a time, in Windows 8, it all shows up together.
You’ll notice that you also now have the ability to pause and resume transfers as well as cancel them easily. If you click on more details, you’ll see graphs showing current transfer speed and history.
Windows 8 is different and that will definitely take some getting used to. I have also found a few things I don’t like about Windows 8, (hopefully things that will be fixed by the time it goes live later this year,) but overall Windows 8 is a refreshing change and has already begun to make my job and my life easier and more convenient.
If you’d like to test it for yourself, and determine whether Windows 8 is the right fit for you, you can get the Consumer Preview here.
Have you already been testing Windows 8? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
Microsoft has announced a new special edition XBOX 360 Kinect Combo Package, what’s so special about it, it has no pigment. XBOX is no stranger to special editions with the star wars edition, the halo edition and many others to match specific games. For those who want something a little classier but still want something special, now you have the Special Edition White version. The 4GB version is available for $300.00.
Which special edition XBOX is your favorite so far?
HBO has announced that they plan on releasing HBO GO for XBOX on April 1st. HBO Go will be one of a long line of content providers working with Microsoft to provide digital media content on the XBOX.
XBOX has been redefining connected media on box top systems over the last few months with their onslaught of simultaneous media content provider releases. With each media content provider, it becomes more and more possible to leave the traditional TV service providers and use voice and gesture commands with the Kinect to quickly access all your favorite TV shows.
HBO GO is joining the likes of, Hulu, Netflix, Syfy, ESPN, YouTube, and many others to provide a wide variety of options for online streaming of TV shows via the XBOX.
The benefit to online streaming is that you can watch the shows whenever you have time and wherever you happen to be. No longer do you have to make sure you are on the couch in the front room at exactly 8:00 PST to watch your show. DVR and Tivo devices allow you to record shows and watch them at your convenience. However, recordings do take up space and you can only store so many, so once you fill up your hard drive, you must delete some shows which you will no longer have access to unless you manage to record some re-runs of that show. With online streaming, you get access to entire series of shows, without the necessity to record the shows first, and the access almost never goes away (as long as you keep paying for the service that is.) You can also access shows from almost anywhere; Hulu and Netflix are available on most internet TV devices, smart phones, and tablets.
Personally I only have one TV in my house and it has no antennas, cable lines, or satellites hooked up to it. The only thing it has connected is my XBOX. Between the XBOX and Netflix and Hulu on my laptop we can watch all our favorite shows whenever we want.
Is it possible for online TV streaming to replace traditional TV service providers? Do you watch more TV shows on your TV or do you use online services such as Netflix and Hulu Plus? Tell us below!
Microsoft has a long tradition of insisting on designing its own web browsers, whether mobile or not. They have been highly criticized over Internet Explorer whether it was warranted or not, but today their stubbornness pays off.
George Kurtz, CEO of the security firm CrowdStrike warns of a new vulnerability in Webkit based mobile browsers. Webkit is the mobile browser kit which most major smart phone OS’s use as their mobile web browser. The vulnerability that CrowdStrike found would allow malware to access and take control of the entire mobile phone; sounds pretty bad for most smart phone users.
The silver lining in all of this? Microsoft opted to write their own web browser instead of using Webkit for Windows Phone. This means, and Krutz verified, that Windows Phone users are unaffected, while iOS, Android and Blackberry among others are all potential targets through this vulnerability.
Krutz will be demonstrating the vulnerability tomorrow at the TSA security conference, but unfortunately warns that there is not a lot users can do to fix the error other than wait. It will be up to the OS developers to fix the bug and release updates to each user.
How confident would you be in waiting for an update for your Android, your iPhone or your Blackberry? Do you think vulnerabilities such as this can affect a person’s decision when it comes time to buy their next smart phone, or are such vulnerabilities easily overlooked with an “as long as it doesn’t happen to me” mentaility?
As we speculated a few days ago, Nokia announced their Pure View 808 today, a cell phone with a stunning 41 megapixel camera sensor. The camera will allow users to take crystal clear 5 and 8 megapixel shots while still having the power to take up to 41 megapixel shots that can be cropped and edited later as needed. The phone will be able to record 1080 HD video and due to the 41 megapixel sensor will allow a digital zoom of 4x without compromising quality.
The phone is not running Windows Phone but that should not detour our hopes and dreams as Nokia announced that this technology will be coming to phones in their other product lines, hinting at Windows Phone. having a 41 MP sensor on a Windows Phone would make for an unrivaled camera experience on a mobile phone. With the dedicated camera button, pocket to picture to post and all of that with crystal clear shots, the Windows Phone would be second to none when it comes to taking pictures.
How would you use a 41 MegaPixel camera on your phone? Let us know below.
Source: Engadget
Microsoft took the stage earlier this morning at Mobile World Congress to announce that Skype for Windows Phone will finally be released today, albeit in a beta form. The Skype app has been sought after by Windows Phone users for well over a year and with Microsoft’s purchase of Skype last year, the whole world wondered why there was still no Skype for Windows Phone.
Many speculated that Skype would never be released as an app, but rather integrated into the next major Windows Phone update (Apollo). Although the App has been released, Microsoft has let it be known that it is still their intention to offer Skype integration in Windows Phone 8 (Apollo).
The newly minted app has video, chat and call capabilities. Phones with front facing cameras, like the HTC Titan and Radar, can take advantage of the video service now. As for the app’s stability, word is it runs pretty smoothly. We’ll have to wait for the full fledged app to come out as a true 1.0 version, but at least we have a morsel of Skype goodness to carry us over until that mint edition comes out.
Love having your Skype app on your Windows Phone? Let us know in the comments below. Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter. .
UPDATE: According to Mary Jo Foley on Zdnet.com, the full Skype app will be available by April.
Microsoft announced today, at Mobile World Congress that it will be expanding availability of the marketplace to 23 new countries. The 23 new markets expands the current marketplace availability from 40 countries to 63.
Recently the Marketplace had been made available in Argentina, Indonesia, Malaysia, Peru and the Philippines and with the new update, support will be coming to: Bahrain, Bulgaria, China, Costa Rica, Croatia, Estonia, Iceland, Iraq, Israel, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Qatar, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Thailand, Turkey, UAE, Ukraine, Venezuela and Vietnam.
Let us know if you live in one of these newly supported countries or if you are still waiting for the marketplace to come to your country in the comments below.
