Microsoft and Samsung have settled their patent dispute over royalty payments, which became an issue once Microsoft bought Nokia. Samsung had previously declined to pay Microsoft a patent fee and share sensitive commercial smartphone information after the company bought Nokia. The firm argued that the acquisition of Nokia would invalidate a …
Read More »Microsoft trademarks ‘Windows 365’ brand-name
When Microsoft releases its Windows 10 operating system later this year, the company will offer a software-as-a-service version of the OS. Last month the company filed an application with the U.S. patent and trademark office for the “Windows 365” brand name, which potentially confirms plan to introduce a subscription-based model …
Read More »Cortana is coming to Microsoft Office
Microsoft is currently working on bringing its digital assistant, Cortana, to Microsoft Office. The company is currently testing a “Work Assistant” app that is designed to use Cortana to open up, edit and share documents using voice commands. The application is just a prototype right now, but sources familiar with …
Read More »Screenshots on your Xbox One are coming soon
Phil Spencer, the head of Microsoft's Xbox division has announced on twitter that ability to capture screenshots is now coming to the Xbox One console. This long requested feature has been one of the top requests by users since day one, but up until now the Xbox One has only had the …
Read More »Xbox One February update starts rolling out
The Xbox One February update has started rolling out, including game hubs, a quick connect controller function along with updates to party chat and TV. Microsoft has listed the changes coming in an Xbox Wire post, starting off with the controller improvements. The Xbox One controller takes a while to …
Read More »Microsoft Office touch apps now available on Windows 10 preview
Microsoft has launched the new versions of Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint for the Windows 10 technical preview, the company announced on its Office Blog. The new universal applications are designed to run on every device running the Windows 10 OS, from Windows Phones, to tablets, to PCs and laptops. …
Read More »Microsoft thinks calendar app Sunrise is worth $100 million
Microsoft is well known for its costly acquisitions, with Nokia, Mojang and Skype all being snapped up by them for substantial amounts in the last few years. Now it seems that it is willing to pay over $100 million for a calendar app on iOS and Android, certainly not pocket …
Read More »Crystal Dynamics is not making the Xbox 360 version of Tomb Raider
Rise of the Tomb Raider will be heading to the Xbox One and Xbox 360 at the end of this year, although the last generation version will not be made by Crystal Dynamics. Instead, Netherlands based developer, Nixxes Software, will be bringing the game to Microsoft's last generation console. This …
Read More »Windows 10 for phones will be out soon, but not today
While some of us were hoping that the rumours of a fourth of February release for the preview of Windows 10 for phones were true, it turns out this is not the case. Microsoft representatives have confirmed that the preview, which will run on all phones running Windows Phone 8.1, will be coming …
Read More »Netflix reckons 4K video capable Xbox One and PS4 consoles could land this year
A Netflix executive appears to be under the impression that Sony and Microsoft are planning to launch 4K video capable refreshes of the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 this year, around November on their two year anniversaries. Obviously we are talking about 4K video playback, 4K gaming is going to …
Read More »Microsoft confirms cancellation of Lumia 2520 tablet
Microsoft Corp. has confirmed that its Nokia Lumia 2520 media tablet is no longer in production. Essentially, it means that there are no more devices powered by the company’s Windows RT operating system that are manufactured in high-volume quantities. Last week Microsoft halted production of its own Surface 2 slate …
Read More »Google, Amazon and Microsoft pay to get past Adblock Plus filter
It looks like Adblock Plus may be selling out those using it to block all online advertising, with a confidential source recently telling the Financial Times that the company behind the popular add-on, has been taking payments to allow some adverts on to its whitelist. At least four companies, Google, Amazon, Microsoft and Taboola …
Read More »343 Industries delays latest Halo update
Last week 343 Industries announced that it would be beta testing its latest update to the Master Chief Collection, aiming to fix up the matchmaking once and for all. Unfortunately, the update has been delayed and the beta may no longer happen as more work is apparently needed. The Halo …
Read More »Windows 10 announced for Raspberry Pi 2
Microsoft has announced that it will be bringing Windows 10 to the Raspberry Pi 2 this year, not only that but it will also be free for developers signed up to the Windows 10 Developer Program for IoT later on in the year. This is all part of Microsoft's efforts …
Read More »Outlook app for iOS and Android released
Microsoft has just released its new Outlook apps for both iOS and Android devices, and already, it has risen above Gmail and other similar productivity apps in the iOS store. While it has been based on the Acompli app that Microsoft bought at the end of last year, this new re-branded …
Read More »Microsoft may invest in Android spin-off developer
Microsoft's take on the mobile industry hasn't ever been particularly strong. It has rebounded a little with its Nokia purchase and the recent Windows Phone push, but it is far and away the second fiddle and third wheel of the industry dominated by iOS and Android handsets. However that may …
Read More »Evidence suggests that Spartan will support Chrome extensions
Microsoft officially revealed its new web browser, currently code-named ‘Spartan', at its Windows 10 press event earlier this month. Since then, there has been much speculation surrounding the browser's extension compatibility. However, evidence suggests that Microsoft's new browser will support Chrome extensions. Originally, it was a report from Neowin that …
Read More »Microsoft ceases production of its Windows RT-based Surface tablets
Microsoft Corp. has announced that it had ceased production of its Surface 2 media tablet. The Surface 2 is generally one of the two devices based on Microsoft Windows RT operating system that is available commercially. This week Microsoft sold out the remaining stock of the Surface 2 products and …
Read More »Xbox One controller update reduces connection times
Microsoft is in the process of testing a new Xbox One controller firmware update, which will halve the time it takes for the gamepad to connect to Xbox One consoles. The current controllers currently take around five seconds to sync up with the main console. However, the new update will shrink …
Read More »Microsoft sold 6.6 million Xbox consoles in Q4 2014
Microsoft Corp. has sold 6.6 million Xbox consoles in the fourth quarter of 2014, the company said in its financial report for the quarter. Despite of relatively successful holiday season, the Xbox revenue dropped year-over-year. For the second quarter of fiscal 2015, which ended on the 31st of December, 2014, …
Read More »Windows 10 and the case of the missing desktop
Previously with Windows RT, a specially developed version of Windows 8 made for ARM processors that ran on Surface (not Surface Pro) tablets, there was access to the desktop, but there was no way to install desktop apps. With Windows Phone 8, even though the core of Windows 8 was …
Read More »New Graphics Cards won’t be essential for DirectX 12
Following Microsoft's recent Windows 10 press conference last week, there has been some confusion surrounding the DirectX 12 API and current GPU compatibility. However, Microsoft is hoping to clear things up a bit and has said that you won't need a new graphics card for the basic features. Following last …
Read More »New build of Windows 10 Technical Preview released
Microsoft have just made a new build of Windows 10 Technical Preview available online, for those signed up to its Windows Insider Program. This is the first build released this year, with the last build released in December of 2014. It contains a couple of new features over the last …
Read More »Microsoft is looking in to PC to Xbox One streaming as well
Earlier this week Microsoft held a Windows 10 press event, at which Xbox head, Phil Spencer revealed upcoming gaming features for the OS, the biggest of which was the ability to stream Xbox One titles to the PC. However, it turns out that Microsoft is also looking in to streaming …
Read More »Microsoft Surface will not be updated to Windows 10
Microsoft Corp.’s troubled Surface RT media tablets will not be updated with Windows 10 operating system, even though the new OS is compatible with ARM-based system-on-chips. While devices running Windows RT will get some of functionality of Windows 10, they will never get all of the advantage of the new …
Read More »Halo: The Master Chief Collection beta opens for Xbox One Preview participants
343 Industries have announced in a blog post today that they will soon be giving selected participants within the Xbox One Preview program, a chance to help test the next big update to the Halo: The Master Chief Collection. However this will only be available to Xbox One owners in North America, who have …
Read More »Office will soon be free and properly touch optimised
Microsoft had a lot to tell us during its Windows 10 event and several big announcements to make. One of the smaller announcements, was that its Office software suite will be getting a proper makeover for touch devices and it will be pre-installed for free on small tablets and phones running Windows …
Read More »Xbox One to PC streaming may be capable of 1080p 60fps
Microsoft revealed its new Xbox One to Windows 10 PC streaming functionality at a press event last night but since then more details have emerged. It turns out that the company is aiming to achieve 1080p and 60 frames per second streaming by the time the feature launches towards the …
Read More »Microsoft only managed to sell 300 Xbox One units in Japan last week
Microsoft just can't seem to catch a break in Japan, while Xbox One sales numbers have improved greatly in the US and Europe over the past year, things are still lacking in the Japanese market as just 300 consoles were sold in the country last week. Last week marked the …
Read More »DirectX 12 and what it will mean for us gamers
At the Windows 10 event today there was some talk of the next version of DirectX 12 and what it will bring to the PC for gamers like us. While DirectX 12 will only be coming to Windows 10 (and by extension Xbox One as well) that probably isn't such a bad …
Read More »