Microsoft plans to bring Windows to robots and ‘a whole new class of small devices’
Microsoft’s Build 2014 kicks off tomorrow, but it’s not just Windows Phones, tablets, Office or even the return of Clippy. Redmond has plans to bring its operating system, well, everywhere else. A Windows on Devices site has apparated into existence, mentioning robots, talking bears, the Internet of Things and Intel’s Galileo acting as developmental hardware. It looks like Microsoft’s planning a charm offensive on the maker community, with the site linking out to a Big-styled — presumably Microsoft-powered — floor keyboard as well as Maker Faire. The first SDK will appear soon, (by the end of Spring 2014) with additional releases through out the year. Microsoft says it’ll have a life-sized piano to show-off its Windows on Devices conceit and naturally, it reckons its cloud services will serve as the perfect online accompaniment.
Filed under: Misc, Robots, Wearables, Wireless, Internet, Microsoft, Intel
Via: Twitter (@h0x0d), (@stroughtonsmith)
Source: Windows on Devices
Xbox One SmartGlass beta apps bring TV controls to Android, Windows and Windows Phone
Microsoft only just revealed it would test new TV remote features on the Xbox One and its associated SmartGlass apps, and Windows Phone Central points out that right now anyone can give them a try. All you need is one of the game systems and a device running Android, Windows 8 or Windows Phone 8. We tried out the apps and they install right alongside the standard Xbox One Smartglass apps, although there are some known issues and rough edges. The smiley face button serves as a way to report any issues, but overall things worked smoothly, and we were able to navigate recordings on a standard Comcast DVR or surf through the OneGuide without a problem. Download the apps now and try them via Google Play, the Windows Store or Windows Phone Store — we haven’t spotted a beta version for iOS yet.
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD, Mobile, Microsoft
Via: WPCentral, Android Central
Source: Google Play, Windows Phone Store, Windows Store
On Xbox One, game broadcasters are quickly catching up to PlayStation 4
Though Xbox One sales may be slightly behind that of the PlayStation 4, it looks like game broadcasting is taking off at a much quicker pace on Microsoft’s new console. In the first week of availability, 108K Xbox One owners took to Twitch to broadcast games; the same number was reached on the PlayStation 4 after 25 days of availability. This is largely due to Twitch broadcasting launching alongside the PS4, whereas broadcasting didn’t function on the Xbox One until early last month — resultantly, millions of Xbox One consoles were already out in the wild, whereas the PS4 had to be physically purchased and brought home before users discovered the glory of … mostly safe for work broadcasts. It also didn’t hurt that the Xbox One had its first major exclusive game, Titanfall, launching alongside game broadcasting (we even got in on the fun ourselves). Regardless, it looks like game broadcasting is proving more than just a passing fad.
TV-focused Xbox One update tests a DVR button and OneGuide on SmartGlass
We called the Xbox One a work in progress in our initial review, and to its credit, Microsoft has been hard at work addressing various software shortcomings (party system, friend notifications, Twitch streaming and so much more) over the last few months. One aspect that’s remained mostly the same since launch — besides some tweaks and a remote control accessory — is its unique HDMI-passthrough TV experience and that’s getting some much-needed attention in a new update preview test. Microsoft may be focused on gaming under Phil Spencer, but a big part of its strategy is to win there is by controlling input 1 on your HDTV, and making the Xbox One more useful in other ways than as a Titanfall machine could help. Check after the break for a video preview of the new features plus a few more details on what they can do, and which countries are getting access to more TV listings and voice controls.
For users in the preview group, their SmartGlass second screen app on phones or tablets is ready to work as a universal remote control, with features similar to the app for Google TV. There’s also a new DVR button so owners can watch recorded shows without grabbing the old cable remote, and it can bring the full OneGuide listing of live TV and streaming options to the second screen. Finally, SmartGlass is adding a “recent channels” layout (shown above) built just for the second screen, showing you what’s on those stations now. Microsoft has already added a slew of gaming and messaging-related tweaks to SmartGlass recently, and it’s also rolling out “rent once, play anywhere” for Xbox Video across TV, PC and phone.
Until now, the Xbox One’s TV control features have been extremely focused on live TV (it already controls pause, fast forward or rewind, but it just couldn’t pull up the DVR menu) even though that’s not how we watch these days. The DVR button seems like it should be compatible with most providers but we don’t have an official list yet, and at least right now there’s no associated voice command. Also, the system still can’t see what’s recorded on your DVR or set up new recordings by itself, so there’s still going to be some adjustment if you’re switching back and forth between menus and remotes. Even when we’ve used the Xbox One’s voice controls extensively, OneGuide has been tough to dive into because of what it lacks (DVR, cable video on-demand), so we’ll need some hands-on time to see if this makes it worth using more.
Outside the US, Canada and several European countries including the UK, France and Germany will get new OneGuide and Kinect features. There Microsoft is adding live TV scheduling info to the OneGuide and Kinect voice commands to control set-top boxes and other home theater equipment (features that were already live in the US). We’ve been through the update preview process before so we’re pretty familiar with how it works, but it sounds like this one may go on a bit longer than the others. The extra time will be used to get feedback from users on how well these new features working before they roll out to everyone “later this year.” Of course, if that extra time is used to add proper surround sound passthrough or Blu-ray 3D playback, then that would be cool too Microsoft.
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD, Microsoft
Source: Xbox Wire, Xbox (YouTube)
Outlook Web App for Android will help your smartphone fit in at work
It’s easy to find Android phones that can handle the Exchange-based email you often find in the workplace, but they don’t always support all the latest features. That won’t be a problem for much longer, though, as Microsoft has just revealed plans to bring Outlook Web App to Google’s platform later this year. Much like its iOS counterpart from 2013, the Android release should let you take advantage of Office 365 technology that might not make it into third-party email software. The app may not be all that exciting by itself, but it could be the key to using your preferred phone for work instead of having to switch to company-approved hardware.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Microsoft
Source: Office Exchange Blog (1), (2)
New Xbox head Phil Spencer promises renewed focus on gaming across all Microsoft platforms
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella announced the new head of its Xbox division this morning: Phil Spencer, longtime Microsoft Studios leader and Xbox game dude. In Spencer’s initial letter to the legions of Xbox owners the world over, his approach comes across as scattershot. See for yourself:
“This past year has been a growth experience both for me and for the entire Xbox team. We’ve taken feedback, made our products better and renewed our focus on what is most important, our customer. Our mission is to build a world-class team, work hard to meet the high expectations of a passionate fan base, create the best games and entertainment and drive technical innovation. As we continue forward, this renewed focus and mission will be a foundational part of how I lead the Xbox program.”
Given that, our first question to Spencer in a short phone interview this afternoon was one of clarification. With so many aspects of Xbox to oversee, where will he begin? “I’m gonna lead with a gaming focus and making sure that’s where we’re led. That’s the North Star for the organization,” he told us.
Beyond coming from a background at Microsoft Studios — the name for a group of internal game development groups at Microsoft — Spencer’s known for being game-focused. He reaffirmed this approach to us. “Winning with the gamer first is gonna be something that drives the organization,” Spencer said. That’s at the heart of his boss Satya Nadella’s Xbox reorganization.
With Spencer’s title change comes a heap of new responsibility (due to an internal reorg). He’s not just overseeing the Xbox One and Xbox 360, but the entire ecosystem around the greater Xbox brand. That includes the following departments: Xbox, Xbox Live, Xbox Music, Xbox Video and Microsoft Studios.
Spencer actually fought for all this oversight. In a discussion with Nadella, as well as Windows boss Terry Myerson and devices lead (former Nokia head) Stephen Elop, he had two stipulations. The first was the unification of Xbox under one umbrella; the second was a seat at the table with the likes of Myerson and Elop. “The Xbox team, the Xbox leader (me) sitting at the same leadership table as Terry (the Windows team leader, the Windows Phone OS team leader) really helps us look at gaming as that first-class citizen across all Microsoft platforms,” he said.
More tightly, intelligently integrated Xbox services across more Windows platforms is something Redmond’s struggled with for years. With Spencer, there’s hope that someone with a real sense of the game industry can bridge the longstanding divide.
The next major beat for Spencer’s Xbox will, naturally, be E3. He said we’ll hear dribs and drabs before then — some games will get launch dates, the first ID@Xbox games will arrive on the Xbox One — but expect Xbox to once again lean on the all important holiday sales season for its major game releases.
Xbox gets a new leader at Microsoft: Phil Spencer
When longtime Xbox lead Marc Whitten left for Sonos recently, Microsoft was left without an exec to lead up one of its most powerful divisions. Today, Phil Spencer is stepping in to fill that spot — not exactly a surprise given Spencer’s past role leading up the Xbox software side (specifically games). Beyond just Microsoft Studios and Xbox, Spencer says he’s, “leading the Xbox, Xbox Live, and creative teams including Xbox Music, Xbox Video and Microsoft Studios.” It also stands to reason that we’ll see a lot more of Spencer during Microsoft’s annual E3 briefing and in press interviews; what we’re trying to say is “expect to hear from him a lot more going forward.”
Not sure who Phil Spencer is? Rest assured, we’ve got more on his background below.
Phil Spencer is a longtime vet at Microsoft, with previous work going back as far as the Encarta Encyclopedia CD-ROMs. He’s been with the Xbox division in various capacities for over a decade; Spencer originally worked with the EMEA region, and eventually rose to corporate VP at Microsoft Studios. Along with Marc Whitten, Yusuf Mehdi and Phil Harrison, Spencer led the charge on launching Microsoft’s latest game console, the Xbox One. Spencer and his European counterpart, Phil Harrison, have headed up the games side of the Xbox One’s launch, though after today’s news it looks like Spencer will have a much broader spectrum of oversight.
Filed under: Gaming, Software, HD, Microsoft
Source: Microsoft (1), Microsoft (2)
Weekends with Engadget: the future of Oculus Rift, new HTC One review and more!
Welcome to Weekends with Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines from the past seven days — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. For even more news, subscribe to our Flipboard magazine!
Can Oculus survive the Facebook effect?
Earlier this week, the internet responded to Facebook’s $2 billion acquisition of Oculus VR with a swift fury. But it’s not all bad news. Our own Marc Perton points out, the deal doesn’t change the essence of the Oculus Rift, or its potential for non-gaming applications.
HTC One review (2014): a great phone, but no longer a game-changer
HTC’s new One is official, and it’s quite the looker. With a sleek unibody chassis reminiscent of last year’s model, the new One packs a larger 5-inch screen, and a brand new version of its Sense UI. What’s more, the handset is one sale in the US today, starting at $199 for the 16GB version.
iTunes Radio now streams the news, thanks to NPR
Last week, NPR announced that it joined iTunes Radio as the music streaming service’s first news channel. It may be the exclusive station for iDevice users at the moment, but we expect that won’t last for long.
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon review (2014): new, but not necessarily improved
The new ThinkPad X1 Carbon brings everything Lenovo fans loved about the original X1 Carbon, just in a lighter, slimmer package. Some users, however, may not enjoy its new “adaptive panel,” which replaces the traditional Fn keys. You can pick one up for $1,259, but be warned: the X1 Carbon has the shortest battery life in its class.
Turkish government bans YouTube following attempt to remove corruption videos
The Turkish government has struck again, this time banning YouTube in what appears to be an attempt to remove videos that contain evidence of political corruption. At this point, the restriction is active on several ISPs and continues to roll out.
San Francisco Giants (and most of MLB) adopt Apple’s iBeacon for an enhanced ballpark experience
The iBeacon is a small Apple device that boosts iPhone location services through Bluetooth — and the San Francisco Giants are outfitting their entire stadium with the tech. For the Giants, as well as 19 other MLB teams following suit, the iBeacon is yet another way to bring mobile interaction with fans to the next level.
Facebook: A visual history
Mark Zuckerberg’s social network turned 10 this year, so we took a look back at its design changes over the course of the decade. From profile redesigns to quarterly News Feed tweaks and open betas, constantly adapting aesthetics to catering to user habits has been a driving force for Facebook for quite some time.
Office for iPad review: three beautiful apps, each with strong competition
After quite a few leaks, Microsoft officially outed its Office for iPad offering. Those curious to try it out will need an Office 365 subscription in order to opt in and OneDrive for cloud accessibility, making it an optimal choice for those already invested in Redmond’s wares. Click through for all of the details in our full review.
This is what Facebook could look like on Oculus Rift (video)
As you’re probably aware, Facebook dropped $2 billion on Oculus VR with the intent to bring “completely new kinds of experiences” to us all. And while that leaves much to the imagination, Chaotic Moon studios has an idea of what that could look like.
NSA spied on Huawei founder’s emails to implicate him as a Communist Party insider
The New York Times managed to get a glimpse of documents suggesting that the NSA was hacking into the email account of Huawei founder, Ren Zhengfei. Apparently the government has been creating “back doors” in the company’s systems since 2009.
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Filed under: Misc
Daily Roundup: virtual Facebook concept, ThinkPad X1 Carbon review and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
This is what Facebook could look like on Oculus Rift (video)
As you’re probably aware, Facebook dropped $2 billion on Oculus VR with the intent to bring “completely new kinds of experiences” to us all. And while that leaves much to the imagination, Chaotic Moon studios has an idea of what that could look like.
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon review (2014): new, but not necessarily improved
The new ThinkPad X1 Carbon brings everything Lenovo fans loved about the original X1 Carbon, just in a lighter, slimmer package. Some users, however, may not enjoy its new “adaptive panel,” which replaces the traditional Fn keys. You can pick one up for $1,259, but be warned: the X1 Carbon has the shortest battery life in its class.
San Francisco Giants (and most of MLB) adopt Apple’s iBeacon for an enhanced ballpark experience
The iBeacon is a small Apple device that boosts iPhone location services through Bluetooth — and the San Francisco Giants are outfitting their entire stadium with the tech. For the Giants, as well as 19 other MLB teams following suit, the iBeacon is yet another way to bring mobile interaction with fans to the next level.
Facebook Messenger on iOS expands to include groups and forwarding
Facebook’s latest update to Messenger on iOS lets users send messages to a specific group of contacts in one fell swoop (with plenty of animal stickers, of course). You can also forward messages and photos to anyone outside of the conversation.
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Future Office for iPad update will let you print your documents
Although the Office for iPad suite is relatively full-featured, it won’t print hard copies. That’s a glaring omission even in this increasingly paperless era, we’d say. Not to worry, though: Microsoft tells PCWorld that printing support is coming as part of future app updates. The company hasn’t said just when those upgrades are due, but Office general manager Julia White promises to “iterate very fast” on the fledgling productivity software. In the meantime, don’t toss out your conventional PC — you may need it to print out that next contract or term paper.
Filed under: Tablets, Software, Microsoft
Source: PCWorld
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