While I'm sure many of you will immediately jump to the smart ass answer of “not enough,” the actual figure for the man hours put into testing Windows 8 is quite staggering. The one that came out of Microsoft today during its official launch event for the new operating system, …
Read More »Microsoft issuing bans for Halo 4 pirates
Microsoft has announced that anyone found to have played the early release, pirated edition of Halo 4, will be given a lifetime Xbox Live ban. Some that have already played the game soon found themselves in receipt of an email from Microsoft that charged them with “prerelease title play.” Eurogamer …
Read More »Xbox Music launches tomorrow, 16th October
Microsoft's new music streaming service, Xbox Music, is set to launch tomorrow, 16th October, offering over 30 million tracks to users of the platform – easily topping Spotify's library of 16 million. Despite the larger catalogue of songs however, Xbox Music will operate in much the same way, offering a …
Read More »XBox Music set to launch
Prepare for a revolution. Sit down, strap in and get ready. Microsoft is on the verge of launching an amazing new system that will, wait for it, allow you to listen to the music you want, when you want and where you want. Wow. KitGuru finds a cool, dark room …
Read More »Apple pulls in iPad mini for October announcement
The best football teams in the world not only play their own game, they also mark the opposition off the pitch – preventing them from playing THEIR game. While Apple's initial plan was to push the iPad Mini into stores for 12th December, that date has moved ahead of announcements …
Read More »Xbox Live Gamerscore now earns rewards
Microsoft has implemented rewards for those that reach milestones for their achievement bolstered gamer scores, offering birthday gifts and money back on purchases. The introduction of gameplay achievements oh so many years ago was a big thing. It added a new element to gameplay that people enjoyed. While some games …
Read More »Microsoft: Malware pre-installed on 20 per cent of Chinese PCs
A Microsoft investigation has discovered that malware is being installed by criminals on to brand new machines in China, before they even leave the factory. It also found that in most cases, the PCs were shipping with counterfeit versions of Windows. While some might roll their eyes at this story, …
Read More »Microsoft extends Windows 8 cheap upgrade to Valentines
Whenever a new operating system launches from Microsoft, the company gives those who bought close to the launch date a chance to upgrade to the new operating system for cheap/free. With Windows 8, it looks like that window might shut around Valentine's Day. KitGuru wonders if Windows 8 users will …
Read More »Can Windows 8 tempt hackers, crackers or anyone?
If we're lucky, then each new operating system makes the world a little better for everyone. Microsoft's approach is more of a 2 steps forward, then 3 steps back. One very specific feature in Windows 8 could put off a chunk of the enthusiast market. KitGuru gets a little Doom9 …
Read More »Microsoft gets a new logo
Microsoft made a monumental announcement this morning. No, it's not a revamped Windows 8, no the next Xbox isn't just around the corner. Microsoft has a new logo and it's inspiration is clearly Metro. The design language, not a shortening of another word. This is the first time Microsoft has …
Read More »Microsoft opening new London studio for casual games
Microsoft has announced its plans to open a new games development studio in London, with staff there set to work on future casual games. The company is currently in the process of hiring developers, so if you wanted to get your foot in the door at a Microsoft studio, now might …
Read More »Microsoft moves aggressively against big boobies
Back in June, an act hired to entertain a Microsoft ensemble, decided to engage in some four-letter jokes, which caused the software giant some embarrassment. Now it's emerged that an ‘in joke' from its HyperV Virtualisation team has caused an issue. KitGuru examines this boob for size and impact. Someone …
Read More »Microsoft buys multi-touch firm
Software giant Microsoft has a new company to merge with its already multitudinous collection: Perceptive Pixel. Specialising in multi-touch displays and software development, the company was announced as a new Microsoft acquisition by Steve Ballmer, with it being made clear that the buy was part of Microsoft's Windows 8 release …
Read More »Xbox Live is down
Microsoft's Xbox Live platform has gone down. Apparently the software giant is aware of the problem as the service status page has been updated with errors and explanations, but no reason has been given for the downtime as of yet. It appears to have been unintended. At the time of …
Read More »Microsoft $6.3 billion aQuantive disaster
Microsoft bought online advertising service aQuantive in 2007 for a staggering $6.2 billion. The plan was to be in a position to take on Internet search leader Google Inc. Microsoft have acknowledged that the aQuantive deal didn't make as much online advertising as first thought, forcing the management to write …
Read More »Windows 8 disaster? More broken than you might think?
Interesting morning here at KitGuru central. While we do know several people who have managed to download and install Windows 8, many of us had not given it any thought yet – waiting instead for something closer to a Release Candidate. But, this morning, we thought “What the hell” and …
Read More »Microsoft begs Facebook, please don’t bounce Bing
While Google is certainly a monster in many ways, there is at least one ‘Sully in the closet' for the search engine super champ – and that's the idea of Facebook launching its own search engine. While that prospect might make Google worried enough to look under the bed at …
Read More »KitGuru Gaming – Weekly Round Up
If you have missed our gaming coverage, then below is a recap of some of the more interesting editorials we have published in the last week. “IGN and the GAME British Academy Stream Annual Video Game Award Show this Friday” Check out the nominees for the video game award show. …
Read More »Nokia reportedly working on a Windows 8 tablet
Rumour has surfaced that Finnish phone maker Nokia is planning to hit up the tablet PC market later this year with a Windows 8 + ARM entrant. Very little was said / known by the source about the tablet's specs at this early stage other than it supposedly being 10-inches …
Read More »Windows Mobile Marketplace shutting down in May
Microsoft has recently sent out emails to Windows Mobile 6.x users stating that the marketplace will soon be shutting down in early May. Windows Mobile 6.x is not to be mistaken with Microsoft's current Windows Phone 7 platform. Starting from the 9th of May users rocking Microsoft's old mobile operating …
Read More »Stardock keeps Start Menu lovers out of the cold in Windows 8
Following the release of the Consumer Preview of Windows 8 and with many folks trying it and feeling terribly lost without their beloved Start Menu, a third party has come to the rescue and provided a free substitute that does its best to mimic the Start Menu as closely as …
Read More »Nokia’s Lumia 800 bundle now listed at MS’ Online Store
You can now pick up Nokia's Lumia 800 smartphone in the U.S. from Microsoft's online store which comes bundled with a number of additional accessories for US $899, SIM free and unlocked. This option comes days after Microsoft started selling the bundle at its 16 brick and mortar stores across …
Read More »SkyDrive to receive paid storage and PC apps
Microsoft has been keen to upgrade Skydrive to the point where it can compete with the likes of Google and Dropbox and it looks as if they're about to take that extra step. Information discovered recently shows that Microsoft plans to introduce paid upgrade options. This storage will be added …
Read More »Android takes over but Nokia still sells the most phones
Research firm Gartner has just released their data for sales of smartphones in the last quarter of 2011 and to be honest it doesn't really hold many surprises. In Q4 2011 over 75 million Android smartphones were sold worldwide which gives them the dominant market share of 50.9%. This number …
Read More »ViewSonic to roll out Windows 8 tablets by Q3
According to ViewSonic's product marketing director in the Asia Pacific region, Max Liu, ViewSonic is planning to expand on its ViewPad line of Android-powered tablets and bring some Windows 8-based models to market later this year when Microsoft outs its next Metro UI wielding OS. During his brief discussion with …
Read More »Nokia admits there is no Plan B if Windows Phone 7 flops
Windows Phone 7, the fairly capable mobile operating system is currently Microsoft's only existing product in the mobile space. The same statement now appears as if it applies to Nokia as well. Recently Nokia Europe's Senior Vice President, Victor Saeijs told a Swedish newspaper that there is no fall back …
Read More »ARM based Windows 8 devices will have desktop UI, Office 15
In a recent Windows 8 blog post Microsoft has revealed some very interesting information on the upcoming ARM edition of Windows 8, currently dubbed as Windows on ARM. They are saying that Windows on ARM (WOA) is still under development but should ship at the same time as x86/x64 PCs later …
Read More »Even Microsoft thinks patent lawsuits are silly
Microsoft has always appears to be against patent lawsuits and attempting to get injunctions against competitors' products. So much so, earlier this year we learnt that Microsoft turns over more revenue from patent licencing fees from the likes of Samsung and HTC than it gets from its own Windows Phone 7 …
Read More »App Suspension coming to Windows 8, saving you battery life
We're hearing of another new feature Microsoft is working on rolling into Windows 8 with the primary objective being to extend battery life further while also improving the OS' performance – App Suspension. Essentially it's an optimization within the kernel whereby any applications currently running in the background that show …
Read More »Star Wars Xbox 360 Bundle set to arrive April 3
Over half a year later we've finally been granted a solid date for the arrival of Microsoft's Star Wars Xbox 360 bundle which we first laid eyes on during Comic Con back in July last year. Major Nelson has leaked news via a series of tweets that this Star Wars-themed …
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