Microsoft

Intel Says No Legacy Software for ARM Windows 8, Suckers

Intel was quick to point out that the ARM version of Windows 8 won’t have any backwards compatibility—”Our competitors will not be running legacy applications. Not now. Not ever.” But the ol’ friendly x86 version? You betcha! Windows 8 on x86 chips will “Run all of [your] old applications, all of [your] old files—there’ll be…

Tech News Sam Biddle May 18

Microsoft-Backed E-Reader Tablet Loves to Share with Others

Few e-readers are as intimate as this prototype from Nicholas Chen. Look how they communicate in that video! The only caveat it’s backed by Microsoft Research. We all know what happened the last time they teased something like this. https://gizmodo.com/microsoft-cancels-innovative-courier-tablet-project-5527442 For the video adverse, the clip—after we navigate the unique intro—shows Chen demoing his e-reader,…

Tech News Jack Loftus May 14

Turn everyday objects into touch-sensitive controllers

Microsoft is developing a sensor system that could turn your house into a giant controller that lets you play video games and control appliances. The technology uses the electromagnetic fields from household wiring, appliances and nearby power lines to detect your motion. A wearable sensor uses your body as an EMF antenna and is sensitive…

Tech News Kelly May 10

How Google Sabotaged Itself So It Wouldn’t Buy Skype

Microsoft bought Skype for $8.5 billion, presumably beating out both Google and Facebook. But it turns out, Google didn’t want Skype. Not at all, in fact. They even went so far as to sabotage themselves from a potential deal. Back in 2009, Google execs, CEO Eric Schmidt included, were interested in landing Skype from eBay…

Tech News Casey Chan May 10

What Does Microsoft and Skype’s Puppy Love Mean for Your PC, Xbox, and Windows Phone?

Skype is the latest mail-order bride to join Microsoft’s stable up in Redmond, Washington. But unlike some of Microsoft’s has-been acquisitions (Danger, I see you!), Skype is an internationally known name. How will they fit into the world of Microsoft? https://gizmodo.com/confirmed-microsoft-is-buying-skype-for-8-5-billion-5800329 Obviously its up in the air if Microsoft will let the brand exist on…

Tech News Adrian Covert May 10

Confirmed: Microsoft is Buying Skype for $8.5 Billion

Last week, it was Google and Facebook who were said to be purchasing Skype. Today, Microsoft has announced that actually? They’re the ones snapping up the VoIP company. The confirmed price is $8.5 billion; considerably more than what eBay bought Skype for back in 2005. So what is Microsoft getting out of the deal? Not…

Tech News Kat Hannaford May 10

Microsoft’s Trying to Buy Skype

At $8.5 billion (or $7-$8 billion), it’d be Microsoft’s hugest acquisition ever. Supposedly, the deal’s going to be announced tomorrow. I can think of 100 reasons this could work, and like 101 reasons it’s a terrible idea. [Dealbook, WSJ, Boomtown]

Tech News Matt Buchanan May 10

Fisting a Multitouch Screen Looks Pretty Fun

Microsoft Surface is a technology that I know exists but wish it was a larger part of my life. And it’s getting better! Microsoft Research has been dabbling with Surface and adding new gestures that incorporate your whole hand, giving you more options than just point, point, point. The screen now recognizes shapes you make…

Tech News Casey Chan May 9

Windows Phone 7 Mango Update Even Tastier than We Expected

As you know, we want WP7 to be good. Really, really good—because it’s got the potential to be really great. Leaked details reveal that WP7’s next step (codenamed “Mango”) will be a sweet, delicious bite of update fruit. https://gizmodo.com/windows-phone-7-you-were-supposed-to-be-great-so-what-5791744 We already knew that Mango was going to deliver some seriously-needed multitasking and background service boosts—but…

Tech News Sam Biddle May 9

Clippy is Back… But As a Game, Which is Still Bad

I remember hating it when Clippy popped up for no good reason while working. Now, even after Microsoft officially put him to rest, he’s doing it again. Only this time it’s in game form. Which is marginally better, I suppose? Microsoft is having the much-maligned cartoon paperclip star in his own game, Ribbon Hero 2:…

Tech News Kwame Opam Apr 30

Windows 8: 7 Things We Know For Sure

Pre-release versions of Windows 8 have leaked to the web. Here’s what they tell us about the upcoming OS. Recently leaked builds show that Windows 8 will be a very different OS from its forebears, from the kernel to the cloud. ARM processor support, mobile-device optimization, and system-wide menu tweaks abound. There are still a…

Tech News Robert Strohmeyer - MaximumPC Apr 29

Microsoft Just Made Less Money Than Apple

Our favorite stat in Microsoft’s earnings for the past quarter? That Entertainment & Devices, the division in Microsoft that makes the best stuff (Xbox, Zune, Windows Media Center, Windows Phone) has grown 60 percent over the last year. (For a very long time, it wasn’t exactly a cash cow, which made us sad.) You already…

Tech News Matt Buchanan Apr 28

Hulu Plus on Xbox 360 This Friday—And the First Week’s Free

Hulu Plus for the Xbox 360 is aaaaalmost here. It launches tomorrow, with the main Xbox perk being integrated Kinect controls. It’s gonna be free for the first week for all Xbox Live members, but then the usual Hulu Plus subscription fee will kick in. Here’s what’s what with the features: Hulu Plus on Xbox…

Tech News Matt Buchanan Apr 28

Nokia’s Working on a Tablet With a “Uniquely Nokia Prospective”

Sure, Nokia’s making a tablet. But what’s it going to run? Windows Phone 7? Windows 7? Meego? Symbian? Android? Bueller? Whatever they choose, Nokia CEO Stephen Elop wants to take their sweet time getting it right: “We could take advantage of Microsoft technology and software, and build a Windows-oriented tablet, or we could do things…

Tech News Kat Hannaford Apr 28

Shock! Microsoft’s BSOD Will Actually be a Black Screen of Death in Windows 8

Microsoft’s Blue Screen of Death has been simultaneously worrying and pissing people off since Windows 1.0. No doubt trying to add a bit of sexy glamour to an otherwise frustrating experience, Microsoft’s next OS looks to include a black screen. The change in colors (well, color to an absence of color) was dug up in…

Tech News Kat Hannaford Apr 25

Microsoft’s Mango Release Will Indeed be Windows Phone 7.5

The next iteration of Windows Phone will be called Windows Phone 7.5. So says a Microsoft Partner page anyway, which you can see a screenshot of here. “Preview the New Windows Phone OS 7.5” reads the website blurb, promising that the update will appear “later in 2011.” This is believed to be the Mango update…

Tech News Kat Hannaford Apr 25

Do Apple, Google and Microsoft Know Your Every Step? A Handy Chart

A fun side-effect of the iOS secret-tracking fiasco is that a lot of other different types of location data and transmissions to and from your smartphone are being conflated into a huge pile of fevered paranoia. But! Don’t freak out. To simplify all this (hopefully), here’s a chart that lays out what’s happening on three…

Tech News Matt Buchanan Apr 22

More Proof of Windows 8 Facial Recognition Shows Up in API

Facial recognition was one of the purported Windows 8 features to surface last summer in a batch of leaked docs. Now, the login API in the latest build of Windows 8 is making that rumor seem more likely. Windows8Italia made the discovery, and Microsoft News thinks the feature could be used in a Kinect-like manner:…

Tech News Adrian Covert Apr 22

Microsoft Has Sold More Windows 7 Licenses Than There Are People in the United States

Whoever’s idea it was, it looks like it was a good one. 350 million licenses for Windows 7 have been sold in just 18 months. The platform’s numbers have continued to climb after reaching 240 million sales in its first year and 300 million back in January. By contrast, Windows Vista sold just 180 million…

Tech News Kyle Wagner Apr 22

Microsoft’s Windows XP Death Watch Counter Doesn’t Work With Windows XP

Microsoft wants all of its Windows XP users to know exactly how much time they’ve got before XP is taken out to the back shed and mercy-killed with a shot to the nape. Which is why the “Windows XP End of Support Countdown Gadget,” available now from Microsoft, would be so, so handy—if it were…

Tech News Brian Barrett Apr 21

Intel Says No Legacy Software for ARM Windows 8, Suckers

Microsoft-Backed E-Reader Tablet Loves to Share with Others

Turn everyday objects into touch-sensitive controllers

How Google Sabotaged Itself So It Wouldn’t Buy Skype

What Does Microsoft and Skype’s Puppy Love Mean for Your PC, Xbox, and Windows Phone?

Confirmed: Microsoft is Buying Skype for $8.5 Billion

Microsoft’s Trying to Buy Skype

Fisting a Multitouch Screen Looks Pretty Fun

Windows Phone 7 Mango Update Even Tastier than We Expected

Clippy is Back… But As a Game, Which is Still Bad

Windows 8: 7 Things We Know For Sure

Microsoft Just Made Less Money Than Apple

Hulu Plus on Xbox 360 This Friday—And the First Week’s Free

Nokia’s Working on a Tablet With a “Uniquely Nokia Prospective”

Shock! Microsoft’s BSOD Will Actually be a Black Screen of Death in Windows 8

Microsoft’s Mango Release Will Indeed be Windows Phone 7.5

Do Apple, Google and Microsoft Know Your Every Step? A Handy Chart

More Proof of Windows 8 Facial Recognition Shows Up in API

Microsoft Has Sold More Windows 7 Licenses Than There Are People in the United States

Microsoft’s Windows XP Death Watch Counter Doesn’t Work With Windows XP

This Is Supposedly the Final, Final, FINAL Look of the Foldable iPhone

Scientists Watch Brain’s Self-Cleaning Process During Sleep in Real Time

LEGO Super Mario Piranha Plant Sees 30% Off on Amazon While LEGO and Nintendo’s Official Stores Keep It at Full Price

‘No Data Centers’ Sign Found After Shooting at Indianapolis Politician’s Home

‘Dark Matter’ Season 2 Sees Joel Edgerton Forced Back Into the Multiverse

Astronomers Found the Closest Thing Yet to the Universe’s First Stars

Samsung’s 55″ 4K Smart TV (2025) Comes Without the Pricey Tag in Amazon’s Clearance Sale, Skip Smaller Budget Displays

KAMRUI’s High-Performance Hyper H2 Mini PC Hits Its Lowest Price for Amazon Prime Members Only (32GB RAM, 1TB SSD)

Aqara Thermostat Hub W200 Review: Almost Better than My Ecobee

HP Omen Max 45L Review: 4K60 Gaming Has Never Been So Easy

Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Review: Window Cleaning Robots Have a Long Way to Go

AirPods Max 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen): Which ANC Headphones Win?

The Best Gadgets of March 2026

AirPods Max 2 Review: Still Ridiculously Expensive and Ridiculously Nice

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Aqara Smart Lock U400 Review: Hands-free Unlocking at Its Best

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