The Microsoft Courier is a nice looking gadget that Microsoft is billing as a "digital journal." The touch-screen product is expected to go on sale later this year. It is expected to act an ebook reader as well as device that people can use for writing. Engadget reports that Microsoft Courier has built-in handwriting recognition. You can see more of the photographs of the Microsoft Courier here on engadget.com. They have also posted a video that shows the Courier being used as a project journal for business. The Courier appears to act like a digital sketchpad that lets you write just like you would on a notepad and drag and drop in photos and other content.
Microsoft Announces Windows Phone 7 Series Software
Microsoft announced the Windows Phone 7 Series at the Mobile World Conference in Barcelona. Windows Phone 7 Series is a new operating system for mobile phones from Microsoft. It should be very competitive with other phone OS offerings including Google's Android software and Apple's iPhone. The new operating system is an attempt from Microsoft to make its Bing search engine, Office software, gaming technology and music software useful for phone users. The Windows Phone 7 Series also brings Xbox Live games and the Zune music and video experience to the mobile phone for the first time. Microsoft had been rumored to be working on a Zune phone, but this new OS really is the Zune phone that insiders had been whispering about. Microsoft is also providing new communication software for managing photos, social networks and status updates.
Microsoft's new phone operating system includes five differents hubs: People Hub, Pictures Hub, Office Hub and Music + Video Hub.
In an interview with CNN, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer says the first phones using Windows Phone 7 Series should be out by Christmas time. The video below gives you an idea of Microsoft's new phone operating software will do. Take a look:
Sony Delays Launch of PlayStation 3 Motion Controller
The BBC reports that Sony is delaying its launch of a motion controller for the PlayStation 3 until Fall, 2010. The controller is meant to compete with the Nintendo Wii's controllers.
Nintendo's console was the first to have a mass-market motion-detecting controller, allowing the gamer to control the onscreen action with body movements rather than controlling a joystick.
Sony's device is similar to Nintendo's controller. A camera sits on top of the TV and detects the motion of a coloured orb attached to the end of a wand held by the player.
It will be available in North America, Europe, Japan and other Asian countries. Sony has not confirmed its cost.
Microsoft is also launching Natal near the end of 2010. Natal is a gaming technology that does not use a controller. Instead a person's body becomes the game controller. You can see some Natal videos here.
Microsoft's Bing Search Engine Released Top Searches for 2009
There is still a full month left in 2009 but Microsoft's Bing search engine has already released its data on the top ten searches of 2009. Michael Jackson was the most searched followed by Twitter and swine flu.
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer Says Windows 7 Sales Are Fantastic
CNET reports that Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer says Windows 7 sales are off to a great start
Windows 7 isn't just getting good reviews, it's also selling well, CEO Steve Ballmer told shareholders Thursday.
Delivering opening remarks at Microsoft's shareholder meeting, Ballmer said that Windows 7 was off to a "fantastic start."
"We've already sold twice as many units as any OS in a comparable time frame," Ballmer said. "Windows 7 is simply the best PC operating system that we or anyone else has ever built."
CNET is also reporting that already 4% of PCs accessing the Web are now using Windows 7.
Could Microsoft stores turn out to be more fun than Apple stores? Microsoft store employees are trying to make that way. Engadget posted this video that shows employees dancing and singing inside the new Microsoft in Mission Viejo to the latest Black Eyed Peas song. Some tech bloggers are making fun of this but it looks like some customers started joining in by the end of the video. Take a look:
Apple faces a growing retail threat from Microsoft in the years to come. Microsoft opened its first mall stores a few weeks ago. Apple is responding by expanding its retail presence overseas. The Wall Street Journalreports that Apple plans to open 40 to 50 new stores in 2010. Most of them will be outside the U.S.
More than half of Apple's 40 to 50 new retail locations in 2010 will be outside the U.S., including the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, France and China, he said.
"Retail is hard. And from Day One we've approached this retail strategy very humbly," Mr. Johnson said. Apple stores, which are about 6,000 square feet on average, generated $6.6 billion of Apple's $29.9 billion in revenue for 2009, he said. Some 170 million visitors entered one in the same period.
Overseas locations are likely to be where Apple concentrates on its significant-store strategy, said Charlie Wolf, a Needham analyst who follows the company's retail moves.
Apple also just recently opened a store in the at the Louvre in Paris.
Needham retail analyst Charlie Wolf told the WSJ that Apple's retail stores "have been the Trojan horses for Apple." The stores allow them to get Windows users in the door to look at iPods and iPhones and then show them Apple's other products like Macs. This alone explains why Microsoft decide to undergo the expensive process of opening mall stores.
Photo: Inside of Apple's Fifth Avenue store from Apple Inc.
Microsoft's Project Natal Xbox 360 Add-on Could Cost $50 to $80
MCV is reporting that Microsoft's new Project Natal add-on for the Xbox 360 could priced in the $50 to $80 with a release around November, 2010. The camera add-on will allow for games where a person's body acts as the game controller. It is a direct challenge to the Wii. MCV says Microsoft plans to manufacture 5 million units.
Microsoft is planning to manufacture 5m units for day one release, with a mix of console and camera plus solus SKUs expected.
The device should cost under £50 when sold solo. One publishing source says Microsoft is "trying to get as close as possible to 'impulse buy'". Another even says the camera could even retail for just £30.
Project Natal could mark a new turning point in video games as they move away from using a controller. If you are not familiar with the Project Natal you can see a couple explanatory videos here.
Microsoft's Windows 7 operating system goes on sale today. The software comes pre-installed on many new PCs. It can also be purchased from many online retailers. Microsoft has also added the product to its online store which launch last year - see here. The new software has already proven popular as PC owners seek to replace Windows Vista. Amazon.com has reported record pre-orders for Windows 7.
Two of Microsoft's new retail stores are also opening soon as part of the Windows 7 push. Microsoft plans to eventually have hundreds of stores in malls around the country. Microsoft also debuted a new Twitter account called @microsofthelps.
PC World has a roundup of several reviews. The Wall Street Journal's Walt Mossberg says, "Windows 7 is a very good, versatile operating system that should help Microsoft bury the memory of Vista and make PC users happy."
CNET's Senior Editor Natali Del Conte talks about Windows 7 and how it is an improvement from Vista. She also says most people will get when they buy a new machine. Take a look:
Microsoft's plans for physical stores were first announced in February. The stores give Microsoft an opportunity to sell products - including the Zune, Xbox and software - as well as interact with customers. Now that Windows - the next version of Microsoft's widely used operating system software - is nearly here the stores are starting to open for business.
A Wall Street Journalarticle says the stores give Microsoft an opportunity to compete in the malls with Apple. Microsoft is opening its first store in Scottsdale, Arizona. The WSJ says a second store will open in a mall in Mission Viejo in a few weeks.
The stores are a clear nod to Apple Inc.'s success in retail. They also underscore the lengths to which Microsoft is willing to go to connect with consumers after stumbling in recent years with products such as Windows Vista, an operating system plagued by early technical problems that helped Apple gain
It's no coincidence that Microsoft is timing its first store's opening with the release of Windows 7, an operating system that has garnered positive buzz among reviewers.
"Our customers have told us they want more choice, more value and better service, and that's what we'll deliver through our Microsoft Stores," said David Porter, Microsoft's corporate vice president of retail stores.
Microsoft's store employees are probably going to be plagued by people asking how to do tasks in Windows and how to solve their PC woes. It will be interesting to see if Microsoft can fill its stores with smart, helpful people that know a lot of Microsoft's different products. If they can then the customer experience will be positive and Microsoft will likely get a boost from its expensive mall plan.
Microsoft's Zune HD player has received good reviews. The music player also started out with strong sales according to Robbie Bach, president of Microsoft's entertainment and devices division.
As for Zune HD, Microsoft "is struggling to keep up with demand," Bach said. "We're working hard on it for the holidays." Added communications director Jose Pinera, sales "exceeded our expectations" and sold out "in many outlets" after its Sept. 15 launch.
Bach also predicts a good holiday for Microsoft. He thinks "technology gifts will be very popular" despite the ongoing recession.
Features of the Zune HD include a touchscreen, HD radio, HD video out, web browser and wi-fi. It also has the Zune Originals design store which lets you customize your Zune HD. The Zune HD looks much nicer than the previous Zune. It comes in 16GB ($220) and 32GB ($290) units.
PC Worldsays the Zune HD is no iPod Killer. Even if a far superior device it would be hard for Microsoft to overtake Apple's popular music player. You can read more Zune HD reviews here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.
T-Mobile Now Says Most Sidekick Data Will Be Recovered
TechCrunch posts that T-Mobile is now saying most of Sidekick customers' data will probably be restored. This is good news because it seemed as if all data had been lost. T-Mobile has posted a new update here saying they have recovered most Sidekick customer data and they plan to soon begin restoring Sidekick customers' data beginning with personal contacts.
We are pleased to report that we have recovered most, if not all, customer data for those Sidekick customers whose data was affected by the recent outage. We plan to begin restoring users' personal data as soon as possible, starting with personal contacts, after we have validated the data and our restoration plan. We will then continue to work around the clock to restore data to all affected users, including calendar, notes, tasks, photographs and high scores, as quickly as possible.
We now believe that data loss affected a minority of Sidekick users. If your Sidekick account was among those affected, please continue to log into the T-Mobile Sidekick forum at http://www.t-mobile.com/sidekick for the latest updates about when data restoration will begin, and any steps you may need to take. We will work with T-Mobile to post the next update on data restoration timing no later than Saturday.
We have determined that the outage was caused by a system failure that created data loss in the core database and the back-up. We rebuilt the system component by component, recovering data along the way. This careful process has taken a significant amount of time, but was necessary to preserve the integrity of the data.
That's great Sidekick users are getting some or all of their data returned to them. The incident still raises questions and concerns about how smartphone users' data is stored.
Users of T-Mobile's Sidekick were hit with a major outage earlier this week. Now T-Mobile is reporting the outage probably resulted in Sidekick data being lost forever. The company responsible for losing the data is the T-Mobile Sidekick data services provider, Danger, a subsidiary of Microsoft. T-Mobile's update says they are still looking for the data but it is probably gone for good. The data lost includes Sidekick users' contacts, calendar entries, photos and more.
Regrettably, based on Microsoft/Danger's latest recovery assessment of their systems, we must now inform you that personal information stored on your device - such as contacts, calendar entries, to-do lists or photos - that is no longer on your Sidekick almost certainly has been lost as a result of a server failure at Microsoft/Danger. That said, our teams continue to work around-the-clock in hopes of discovering some way to recover this information. However, the likelihood of a successful outcome is extremely low. As such, we wanted to share this news with you and offer some tips and suggestions to help you rebuild your personal content.
Tech Crunch says the Sidekick data loss will lead to countless articles about data loss, backups and data storage.
This latest large-scale publicized data loss will surely lead to managers everywhere forwarding a link to the story to their IT departments asking "what are we doing so that this doesn’t happen to us." It will lead to the issue of data loss and backups being written about ad naseum by technology pundits. Research companies will rub their hands together as they prepare new 80 page whitepapers with titles such as "How Companies Who Pay Us Money Can Prevent Your Data Being Lost" (complete with FDA "may cause drowsiness" warning label on the cover).
These data loss articles need to be written. This is not only a problem for Sidekick users. This incident is going to raise questions for other smartphone users about how their data is stored. It is going to raise questions that many smartphone users never consider before - like where is their data stored and how secure is it?
How secure are the contacts, emails and photos you keep on a smartphone if it is all kept in a giant database? Smartphones aren't very smart if your data can just vanish overnight never to be retrieved again. Smartphones also aren't very smart if your important private information can be easily discovered by criminals.
Microsoft Courier: Microsoft's Secret Tablet Project
The tech world has been buzzing about ebook readers and tablets this year, including the highly anticipated launch in 2010 of an Apple Tablet. Gizmodo reports that Microsoft has also been working on a tablet project called Microsoft Courier. Microsoft considers the device (pictured above) a booklet instead of a tablet. It has dual multitouch screens and includes a stylus that can be used for writing and drawing. It looks pretty interesting but it probably won't be out for a while because it is still in the "late prototype" stage of development. Gizmodo also has a video about the device here.
Microsoft has a "secret" phone project called Project Pink. Gizmodo managed to obtain images of the phones in development. The above images is the phone code named "Turtle." The rounded phone is strange and toy-like. Fortunately, these images are not the final product, which will probably have straight edges. Gizmodo says the phones are going to made by Sharp.
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