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Displaying items by tag: Windows 8

Thursday, 06 June 2013 21:29

Dell introduces the XPS 11

Dell-XPS-11-600x413

Dell at the fair Computex introduced the XPS 11, to be precise the prototype version of it. It is a computer with a screen diagonal of 11.6-inch in ultra-high resolution which is 2560x1440 pixels.

Published in News
win8logoredesigned

Windows 8.1 is coming out soon and Microsoft is detailing some of the changes that are going to be present. One of the most looked for changes is a return of the start button. This one feature is so missed by users that a booming trade in third party software for add-in start buttons has developed. The problem is that the start button Microsoft is putting back does not mean the start menu is back. Instead clicking this button will only get you back to the Modern UI. This makes the change cosmetic in nature and does not actually address the issue that most people have with Windows 8 and the Modern UI. This is the same as the option to boot to the desktop, if you do not have a real start menu, what is the point. People were not looking just to get the start button back, but the actual start menu with the ease of access that it brought. The rest of the improvements all appear to be related to the Modern UI and show that Microsoft is simply not read to listen to reason or even the consumer.

Published in News
win8mouse

Microsoft has unveiled two new wireless mouses adapted to users of Windows 8. They are larger model Sculpt Comfort Mouse and smaller Sculpt Mobile Mouse, both of which are intended for less demanding users and generally only have the basic controls and standard functionalities.

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windows-8-logo

Microsoft has put up an interesting new video spot where they attack the iPad on its in ability to truly multi-task, the static display and Office. The spot is sort of clever and uses Siri to highlight the points at each step. The goal of the ad is to show Windows 8 on a tablet as a true productivity device. As you might expect truth in advertising is a little limited in the ads, but we could be seeing a change in the way that Microsoft is approaching marketing. This is a good thing considering the dreadful sales that Windows 8 and Windows RT are showing right now.

Published in News
Monday, 20 May 2013 21:39

Acer Iconia W3 official information

iconiaw3

The rumors about Acer ICONIA W3-810 were going around for quite some time, but they always came from unverified sources. Although the device has not yet been introduced, the company's site in the Finnish market posted official information about it

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acerw3-2

Despite there being no clear reason to do so it looks like Microsoft is going to go ahead and push out a smaller version of their Windows 8/RT tablets. The information was leaked accidentally today by Acer Finland. The new product is going to be called the Iconia W3-810. When the rumor about an 8-inch Windows RT device first hit opinions varied as to if this was going help or hurt Microsoft and Windows RT. After a lukewarm launch sales of Windows RT and then Windows 8 devices immediately started to decline. Some blamed the radical redesign of the UI while other felt it was the locked down OS that kept people away. No matter what the cause Window 8 and RT sales were and are continuing to fall which is worrisome for Microsoft.

Published in Editorials
Wednesday, 15 May 2013 13:35

Is touch really the future of the PC?

Fingerprint detail on male finger

Touch as a form of input for a computer system is rather old although most people regard it as a new technology. It was even around long before the move to flat display panels happened. These touch input methods were often very rudimentary, but they got the job done. If all you needed was to hit a button on a screen for a point of sale system then making a matrix that could detect this was not that complicated. As the technology developed it split into different facets. One of them, the touch screen, is what you most often hear about when someone talks about touch. It is this that Microsoft and others are talking about when they say touch is the future. I say they are wrong.

Published in Editorials
MS-Myth

Microsoft will never learn it seems. On top of making core changes to their OS there are now trying to spin those changes as simply responding to customer feedback. The problem with this stance is that this feedback has been around since before the launch of Window 8 and Microsoft not only ignored it, but told the critics that they would get used to it. Microsoft also ignored the feedback that their Modern UI was going to look like a mobile OS on anything that had a keyboard and a mouse; they ignored this too. In short Microsoft can try to spin their way out of their admission of failure, but no one is buying it.

Published in News
nokia-ceo

Nokia could be in a tad bit of trouble with their decision to buddy up to Microsoft. It seems that investors are not willing to wait for their investment in Windows Phone to pay off and we can’t blame them. When Nokia made this decision it was more than a little controversial as Window Phone represented a mere fraction of the market and had not shown any growth potential to warrant making it the exclusive OS for Nokia. Many felt that it was only Stephen Elop’s close connections to Microsoft that enabled the deal as Elop was the head of Microsoft’s Business Division prior to taking the top spot at Nokia.

Published in Editorials
MS-Myth

Microsoft has announced that they are going to make “key” changes to their Windows 8 operating system. I think deep down we all knew this day was coming as the consumer response was not what Microsoft and many of their partners had hoped for. There are many contributing factors to this, but one of the biggest ones was Microsoft’s drastic shift from the PC being about what the user wants to users taking what Microsoft put in front of them.

Published in News
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