Nokia World 2012 will start on September 5th with an invitation-only event for carriers and larger partners, but it will be followed up by other events that will gather different audience. Overall, the whole event is becoming more fragmented and less centralized.

We also may expect to know about Nokia plans about Symbian OS, Also Nokia may Introduce its very first Windows 8 devices smartphones/tablets. Nokia will announce all of the upcoming small events around Nokia World soon, so stay tuned to find out what's next for the company.

Microsoft launched its New E-mail service Outlook.com back in june, replacing/re-branding the old Hotmail service. The New email service has the new Windows 8 Modern UI (aka Metro UI) and it allows users to register email on Outlook.com domain.

Today, Microsoft Official blog announced that Outlook.com users has reached 10 Million user, which is a great number in 2 Months only.

Source

E3 event just ended last week, and as expected Microsoft provided absolutely no details about the Next-Ge Xbox product line. However, there are some new supposedly leaked details that shed insight to what the company is working on behind-the-scenes. Based on what has been presented as a confidential series of concept art, it looks like Kinect isn't going away.

In fact, it appears to be one of the major points of the Xbox 720. If these leaks are to be believed, the new console will have "Kinect v2" built directly into the console, so there will be no need for an extra peripheral. Among the enhancements referenced are the ability to track four players simultaneously, stronger integration with other devices like the PC and Windows Phone 8, and just all-around more powerful performance.

Another interesting thing mentioned in the leak is a project Microsoft is reportedly working on, called Kinect Glasses, which has hints of Google's Project Glass in it. Few solid details are laid out, but it looks like they'll both enhance your core experience with the Xbox 720, and can be used on-the-go as well. And the biggest piece of information from this alleged document - the console will launch at a nice price point of $299.

Microsoft Surface tablet has just been Officially announced, but Microsoft didn't reveal the internal specifications of the tablet yet.

However, NVIDIA was quick to acknowledge that the Windows RT Microsoft Surface tablet will sport a Tegra processor, probably the Quad-core Tegra 3 with 4-PLUS-1 architechture. One possibility is that the chip will be implemented using the NVIDIA KAI platform, which promises fluid performance at a competitive price point.

Having a Tegra 3+ setup in the ARM-based Microsoft Surface tablet does not seem impossible either, although we are not quite sure whether this platform would be a good match for the device.

You probably heard about Microsoft's cloud sharing platform "SkyDrive" which got major updates in the last couple months and now it gets even better. Microsoft aadded some HTML5 features to optimize the user experience on touch devices and added drag-and-drop support too.

The new implementations are enabled by HTML5, so you know they'll be future-proof for a wide range of browsers. SkyDrive allows you to share content across a wide variety of platforms, such as social networks and email in addition to generating a direct link. Now, the sharing interface is generated on a single screen, so you can choose how to share a file and with whom from one place.

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Samsung just released a video on its YouTube channel, teasing what is most likely to be its New Windows 8 powered Notebook series. the device is also shown to feature a slot that hold a stylus (just like the Galaxy Note 10.1) along with a QWERTY Keyboard. Could this be the first Samsung Galaxy Notebook ?

Samsung has said that all will be revealed at the upcoming IFA trade show in Berlin. Samsung has two press conferences scheduled, one on August 29th and another on August 30th.

The upcoming version of Skype for Windows 8 has leaked showing off an interface optimized for touch interfaces (Screenshot Above), like Windows 8 RT for tablets.

The New App support Microsoft's Modern UI (previously known as Metro UI), Some highlights include the ability to pin favorite contacts, as well as use pay-as-you-go and monthly payment options for landlines.

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Today, Lenovo has Officially announced its ThinkPad Tablet 2, which will be running Windows 8 Pro, and will be available "when Windows 8 launches in October". Unfortunately, since it wasn't part of Lenovo's announcement, there is still no pricing available for Windows 8 tablets.

The ThinkPad Tablet 2 was designed as "a joint effort between Lenovo, Microsoft and Intel", and it looks pretty nice. It will be thinner and lighter than the Microsoft Surface Pro at 9.8mm (.385") and 600g (~1.3lbs), compared to 13.5mm (.53") and 900g (~2lbs). It will have a similar keyboard dock and stylus as optional accessories.

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The term "Metro", describing Microsoft's new user interface design gained popularity starting with the Windows Phone 7. It really grew into prominence when it became the UI style for Windows 8 and now, not long before its scheduled late October launch date, Microsoft renamed it. The renaming came due to a Copyright claim of the Name "Metro" that lead to a legal issue with a German software company.

A leaked memo was the first sign that the name "Metro" is on the way out, supposedly due to copyright concerns. Reports confirm that Microsoft will rename its UI to "Modern UI" instead of "Metro UI" referring to the Windows 8 MoSH (or Modern Shell).

However, Microsoft didn't officially announce that "Modern UI" is the final name as the company didn't settle down on a name yet.

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Windows 8 Official Launch is very SOON, Microsoft will be shipping a version of the new Office 2013 with Windows RT, it will be the only non-Metro application that can be accessed on this particular version of the operating system.

Office 2013 RT version that will be included on Windows RT will be a watered-down version of the Office 2013 full Version that you will experience on standard Windows 8 or 7.

Instead what you will get is the Preview version of the Office 2013 RT pre-installed in Windows RT devices and you will be able to upgrade to the final version, which will come out sometime early next year.

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According to an anonymous tipster, briefed with Microsoft's plans for its Surface tablets launch at the TechReady 15 conference, Redmond is evaluating an option to launch the Windows RT slate at the very competitive $199 price point, eating the difference in production costs, if any.

This Surface-for-$199 rumor might actually have legs, since Acer's CEO JT Wang, who was very vocal to protest publicly against Microsoft's decision to enter the tablet business with hardware of its own, commented that $199 price would hurt all other Win RT vendors significantly:

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In order to bring it in line with its latest software creations such as the Windows Phone OS and Windows 8, Microsoft has completed a thorough redesign of SkyDrive.com. Along with its new web interface, the software giant's cloud service sports a number of improvements to its functionality.

The abovementioned tweaks include improved, faster syncing with both Windows and OS X. New search features are added to the service, thus bringing the experience it offers closer to desktop searches with dynamically updating results.

Also Microsoft said that its own SkyDrive Mobile App is heading to Google play store very soon, as the company is looking forward to release many New apps with its New Modern UI to Android OS.

More Info

Microsoft has posted to its Building Windows 8 blog details on the next-gen platform new Storage Spaces feature. Storage Spaces continues the Drive Extender concept from Windows Home Server, allowing the system to pool physical hard drives of various sizes and interfaces to redundantly store data for scale, resiliency, and efficiency.

The system works like a RAID setup but the physical hard drives are grouped into a larger storage pool, which is then split up into spaces. The disks in a pool can be of mismatched sizes and of different interface technologies, such as USB, SATA, and Serial Attached SCSI. New disks can be added anytime while others can be connected but kept on standby only to turn on when needed.

The spaces are virtual disks that function like the physical disks but has more powerful capabilities to ensure redundancy. At least two copies of all data within a space are stored on at least two different physical drives.

A screenshot from the upcoming build of Windows 8 Consumer preview has been leaked and although it seems similar to the developer preview available right now, conspicuous by its absence is our long time friend, the Windows Start button.

The Windows Start button, which took the form of an orb since Vista, has been around since the days of Windows 95, so it would feel a bit strange for any long time Windows user to not find it in its usual place in the corner of your display when he or she upgrades to Windows 8. However, even if Microsoft may have done away with the actual button, some of its functionality will still be available to the user.

Microsoft has confirmed that Windows 8 for ARM-based devices will support full desktop applications following concerns that only Metro apps would be supported. Thats mean you can have your favorite Desktop Applications on your Windows 8 tablet including Office 15, Microsoft Steven Sinofsky further detailed Windows 8 for ARM and previewed a Metro-styled Office 15.

Users of the ARM-based Windows 8 will still be able to access the conventional desktop file system, Internet Explorer 10, and most other core features that are available to the x86 version of Windows 8.

However, Windows 8 on ARM will not be sold separately and will be tightly integrated with the devices they ship on. Also, there will be a limitation on the apps available for it from the Windows Store.

Microsoft revealed some details of its Windows 8 ARM Edition (Tablets/Devices) today, Microsoft also unveiled the look and feel of its next-generation Office experience. The software giant casually demonstrated beta copies of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote during a preview video of its Windows 8 ARM work. Office 15 includes a New look and feel, based on the company Metro design language.

In the screenshots Above, you can see how Microsoft has included more space, and uses fewer lines in an effort to focus on content. The ribbon menu appears to be removed or hidden in the demonstration, but this is not the final version of Windows 8 and still many developments stages coming.

Microsoft long-awaited Windows 8 release for public testing will be unveiled at a press event in Barcelona on 29,February, tying in with the Mobile World Congress occurring at the same time, the company announced today.

Originally referred to as the Windows 8 beta, the release will instead be called the Windows 8 Consumer Preview, which gives us a pretty good idea as to Microsoft target audience. Microsoft did not specifically say the Consumer Preview will be available to the public on February 29, but from what I am hearing that will likely be the case.

Microsoft new logo for Windows 8 is prompting far more reaction than you might expect from four skewed squares. Revealed yesterday after a spate of low-profile leaks, the logo is according to Microsoft Windows team itself as much an homage to the earliest, pared-down graphics of Windows 1.0 as it is a nod to the Metro UI that has become the theme of Windows Phone, Xbox LIVE and, soon, Windows 8 itself. Complaints about the new logo have generally centered on its insipid lack of distinctiveness, but according to the designers themselves this is merely the first step of many incoming changes.

Microsoft used external design agency Pentagram to create the new logo, and according to that team the sharp-edged icon should be seen as the first of a new language. The existing flag-like shape has been flattened out and made crisp, and other Microsoft products and services will make similar evolutions too. See the Demo Videos Below!

click on the photo to see larger version

We already leaked the Start-up screen animation and the icon of Windows 8, Today we the Have the final official logo of Windows 8 (picture above).

The Windows logo has gone through several changes over the years. What started as a simple, monochrome 2D logo with Windows 1.0 slowly became more complex as more colors were added along with a bit of depth, until it started resembling a flag by the time XP came out. That "flag" then got ensconced inside an orb with Vista and has been the same ever since. from Windows Steam blog post:

It's a window... not a flag

Paula asked us a simple question, "your name is Windows. Why are you a flag?"

With the Windows 8 logo, Microsoft has attempted to move away from this flag shaped logo towards something that goes well along with the "Windows" name, as well as fit with the new Metro style of the UI. For this they hired the designers at Pentagram and thus the new Windows 8 logo was born.

Windows 8 has undergone more than 100,000 code changes since the Developer Preview was released and will feel much more "refined," Sinofsky said. He called Windows 8 a "generational change" in how Microsoft designed the product, as well as in its function and implementation.

"The last time we made a generational change was Windows 95," Sinofsky said.

Julie Larson-Green, vice president of Windows program management are up to offer more details about Windows 8 and apps.

Julie is presenting Windows 8 on a Samsung Series 7 tablet. She is showcasing how the different apps are sorted into categories. Also, HTML 5-based games and apps can easily become Windows native apps in the new version of the OS. Says it took Microsoft about 5 months to make this possible.

Continuing with the showcase of apps, Cut the Rope gets a lot of spotlight for being one of the first apps rewritten on HTML5 and runs like absolute butter on Internet Explorer 10. Also, a CookBook app as well as the new People app got demonstrated. The latter looks very clean and we ca not wait to get our hands on it.

She also said that mouse and touch do not have to be mutually exclusive and that they can work together. She demonstrated scrolling pictures with her fingers while navigating with the traditional keyboard and mouse to prove her point

Today, Microsoft showcased the Windows 8 Consumer Preview on a private event, The windows 8 is the Upcoming Generation of a whole new Windows Experience. Microsoft Now Offers the official Copies of the Windows 8 CP to all consumers to try it on their PCs with both 32-bit and 64-bit support. So Hurry Up and Get your Free Copy of the Windows 8 CP.

System Requirements, Windows 8 Consumer Preview works great on the same hardware that powers Windows 7:

• Processor: 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster

• RAM: 1 gigabyte (GB) (32-bit) or 2 GB (64-bit)

• Hard disk space: 16 GB (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)

• Graphics card: Microsoft DirectX 9 graphics device or higher

• To use touch, you need a tablet or monitor that supports multitouch

• To access Windows Store and to download and run apps, you need an active Internet connection and a screen resolution of at least 1024 x 768

• To snap apps, you need a screen resolution of at least 1366 x 768

Download windows 8 CP [EN 32-bit]

Download windows 8 CP [EN 64-bit]

Other Lanugauges & Versions

Yesterday, Microsoft showcased the Windows 8 Consumer Preview (CP) with pretty amazing new UI and Features. I am sure you are so exciting to Upgrade to Windows 8 ASAP. We already offered the Windows 8 Official CP copy to Download... But the Question is, Can your PC handle Windows 8 ?

The Answer is... "YES"

At the Microsoft Building Windows 8 blog, the Windows 8 team has posted the following system recommendations for Windows 8:

• 1 GHz or faster processor.

• 1 GB RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-bit).

• 16 GB available hard disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit).

• DirectX 9.0c graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver.

This setup gets you going with Windows 8 such that it is functionally equivalent to Windows 7, and as we have talked about previously, you should see measureable improvements in performance in a number of dimensions with a system at this level.

BTW, Windows 8 Installation process take about 10 min ONLY to be completed and you can also choose to keep your Personal Windows 7 files and Applications too, but not all of them, Windows 8 will show you the compatible Apps that can work and the ones that won't.

Microsoft is following its schedule, Windows 8 has reached the RTM status, "RTM" means Released To Manufacturing. Microsoft's OEM partners now have the final release of Windows 8 and they can start embedding it into their new devices.

The developers will be able to download the RTM version on August 15, while a day later it will become available to the TechNet subscribers, Microsoft Partner Network members and IT Windows 8 testing organizations. Microsoft Windows 8 will be officially released on 26,October this year.

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"Metro" is Microsoft's Code name for the user interface that they debuted with the Zune HD back in 2009 and has been a major part of their UI design language in Windows Phone as well as the upcoming Windows 8 desktop operating system.

Well, the UI isn't going anywhere but the name is. Microsoft has stopped using the Metro name for the UI effective immediately and has also asked the developers to stop using it in their apps. The reason for this is due to legal issues with a German company over the name "Metro".

The Windows 8 Consumer Preview is currently out in the wild and the official release coming in the near future, the big names in the software world are looking to have Metro versions of their apps ready for the Windows Store as soon as it opens.

Firefox 2012 Roadmap shows that its goal is to have a working Firefox prototype on Metro by the end of Q2. While it is not to their standards yet, there is a Firefox browser that works in Metro. Currently, it sports the same look as the familiar Android version. The Metro version allows you to surf the web, create tabs, bookmark pages, build history, retain cache, and adjust preferences (screeshots above and below).

Lately, Samsung has confirmed that Windows Phone 8 aka "Apollo" devices will hit the market in the second half of 2012, We may also see some Windows 8 tablets along with these devices too.

The devices will hit the market no earlier than October after Microsoft launches the next iteration of its mobile OS. There are currently no details on their specs. They will surely follow once Microsoft reveals the hardware requirements for Windows Phone 8.

Microsoft has released the list of editions that Windows 8 will be sold in. There will be FOUR editions, will named as following:

"Windows 8, Windows 8 Pro, Windows 8 Enterprise and Windows RT."

The first three will be available for PCs and tablet users running x86/64 processors and will be on sale whereas Windows RT will be exclusively for PCs and tablets running on the ARM platform and will not be sold but would rather ship built into the devices. According to Microsoft, all editions of Windows 8 offer a no-compromise experience, which has sort of become their slogan with Windows 8.

After a lot of complains about the two UI modes on Windows 8. As you may know, Windows 8 will ship with the New Metro UI as well as a standard desktop mode for legacy apps. Which is Confusing!

Microsoft has heard your complaints and They will make some changes on the Desktop Mode to be more in sync with the Metro design language. Here is the New Desktop Interface after the Modifications (Photo Below).

A couple of the considerations about the New Windows 8 Desktop UI from Microsoft:

• While much of the Metro style UI uses white text on a colorful saturated background, the desktop in Windows 8 will continue to use black text on light-colored chrome, as in Windows 7. This choice was made to help preserve maximum compatibility with existing programs.

• Since the release of Windows Vista (which introduced Aero Glass), many desktop programs have integrated with glass, making assumptions that they should custom draw dark text with a cloudy "blur" texture behind it to make their text readable.

• Some of you may remember the substantial compatibility problems that arose when the system colors changed from light on dark (Windows XP) to dark on light (Windows Vista.) It took many years for these to be fully sorted out. We would prefer not to reintroduce these compatibility issues again in the other direction. So, "color matching" the new design on the desktop is not entirely feasible.

• But at the same time, we want desktop windows to continue to feel light and airy, and we want a chrome style that doesn't distract from the content of the app. We talk about Metro style apps as being "chromeless," (that is, no title bar, borders, or Windows UI surrounding them.) Desktop apps, on the other hand, have a lot of chrome. When you add up the cacophony of a bunch of these windows floating on the screen, suddenly you have a lot of chrome pleading for your attention. Aero was designed to help the app's content to be the center of attention, and for the Windows system UI to recede into the background. This is still relevant today, and while we are moving beyond Aero, we don't want to lose sight of these goals.

• Visual compatibility with Windows 7. Windows 7 is the most popular and widely-used version of Windows so far. We made a conscious effort to relate the visual appearance of the Windows 8 desktop to the visual appearance of the familiar Windows 7 desktop. This helps people who want to predominantly use the desktop feel comfortable and immediately at home in the new environment.

All the companies are getting ready for the Windows 8 launch, DELL is one of them and its already made a tablet, will be called "Dell Latitude 10" running Windows 8 tablets version. It will be 10" x 7" x 0.4" and weight 1.57 lbs only. We also got the Specs and small photo of this Upcoming Windows 8 tablet too. But No price info thought!

As you can see from the leaked photo above, It's a 10.8-inch tablet, with a1366x768 resolution, Inel dual-core Atom processor, fingerprint reader, Intel graphics (x86 tablet), 2 GB of ram, 128 GB SSD and of course it will be running Windows 8. We should note that it looks a lot like the Dell Latitude ST, naturally the specs have been upgraded and it will run Windows 8.

While windows 8 is just around the corner, Google announced today via the Chromium blog that the next dev channel release of its Chrome browser will have integration with Windows 8, including snap view and charms. Charms are the new universal buttons that slide out from the right side of the screen, including: Search, Share, Devices, Settings, and Start. The Chrome browser will still look the same, but having these integrations into Windows 8 should be pretty nice.

The initial releases of Chrome in Metro mode will include integration with the basic Windows 8 system functionality, such as charms and snap view and its coming Next Month.

Soruce

Google has just released Chrome for Windows 8, but Sadly it's not rocking the Metro-style looking UI. To get the New Chrome for Windows, you have to be running the Windows 8 Release Preview and set the default browser to Google Chrome after the installation

Here is what the Start Screen Metro tile for Chrome look like after setting it as the default browser on windows 8. You will need to Download the Dev Channel release of Chrome in order to have the new Metro version installed on your system.

Microsoft has send out invitations for an Upcoming "major announcement" event Next Monday in Los Angeles where it is expected to show tablets running Windows 8 as well as highlight some of the kinds of programs and services that will run on the products.

Microsoft is confirming the L.A. event but is not offering any details on what will be covered, but it's expected to be the ARM-based Windows RT tablets and with this time we will have some hardware & software details of the final user-end version of these devices that should go on sale by the End of this year.

Microsoft has just announced its own tablet brand "Surface", which blurs the line between tablets and ultrabooks. The 10.6-inch slate features simplistic design and compact measures, while offering a full Windows 8 experience.

Microsoft's latest creation will be offered in two flavors. The entry level one will run Windows RT for ARM based chips, while the fully tricked out version will be running Windows 8 Pro. The screen size on both versions will be 10.6″, but the Windows 8 Pro units will offer full HD resolution.

The Windows RT version is 9.3mm thin and weighs 676 grams. It will come with 32 or 64GB of built-in memory and the connectivity suite will include microSD, USB 2.0, MicroUSB HD Video Out, 2×2 MIMO antennae. Expect the tablet to become commercially available around the time when Windows 8 gets launched, with a price in line with its rival offerings, according to Microsoft.

Microsoft Surface Photos

The Windows 8 Pro version of the tablet will come much closer to being a full-blown PC. It will be thicker and heavier than its Windows RT running sibling at 13.5mm and 903 grams respectively. The Pro Surface will come with more built-in memory as well. You will be able to grab a 64 or 128GB version of it. The connectivity suite of the Surface pro will include microSDXC, USB 3.0, Mini DisplayPort Video, and 2×2 MIMO antennae. The Surface Pro will be available about three months after the entry-level version of the slate. It is said to be priced in line with similarly equipped ultrabooks.

Today, a source close to Microsoft has provided us with corroboration of rumored Microsoft Surface pricing, putting the Tegra 3 powered Windows 8 RT model at $599 retail and the Ivy Bridge packing Windows 8 Pro model at $999 retail.

Microsoft Surface initial models will be WiFi-Only, the pricing would be initially comparable with the 32GB WiFi iPad. The specifications of the Surface, however, especially the 1366×768 screen, wouldn't make it as attractive an option at that price when compared to a the Retina-display-packing iPad. It would also price it above the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 and other comparable ARM tablets, which run in the $399 range.

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Microsoft has just confirmed the release date for Windows 8. The new operating system that will end up on desktop and notebook computers, as well as tablets across the globe will arrive in October,2012. The announcement was made at Microsoft's Worldwide Partner Conference 2012 in Toronto by chief financial officer Tami Reller.

Windows 8 Official Logo (Click Enlarge)

Microsoft is also bringing the Windows 8 RTM (Release to Manufacturing) in the first week of August. The RTM version is basically the final version of the operating system, released to manufacturers. They can then start work on getting it onto their devices.

Microsoft will announce the Next version of Office Today, and it has already launched a new Office Next blog in advance of the official details. Internally, the project has been known as Office 15, but unless Microsoft plans to disrupt its standard naming conventions, we're awaiting arrival of "Office 2013" aka "Office 15", the Windows 8-friendly version of the Office Suite.

The new "Office 15" logo

While we already know that Microsoft is prepping a version of Office for ARM (support both traditional & Metro modes), we won't know until later on today whether or not the version designed for use on the x86 architecture will look the same, which features it will include, and which the web apps will include. .

While surely Microsoft doesn't want to give up on its more complex and detailed feature set, it has failed to achieve the simplicity of a more dumbed-down product. So look for a new UI that ditches the Ribbon, and makes the new version of Office something that better fits in with the Windows 8 Metro UI instead.

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Microsoft has announced the newest version of office suite, "Office 2013", or as they call it, the new Office. The new Office comes with a host of new improvements, including changes to the UI as well as under the hood.

The most noticeable change is the new set of icons for all the apps within the suite. Just like the Windows 8 icon, Office icons feature a monochrome icon with a tilted perspective. The user interface of the applications has also been slightly modified to fit into the new Metro UI on Windows 8. However, the application isn't designed entirely with the Metro UI because at the end of the day it will be running within the desktop mode in Windows 8.

Office 2013 Features :

• Touch everywhere. Office responds to touch as naturally as it does to keyboard and mouse. Swipe your finger across the screen or pinch and zoom to read your documents and presentations. Author new content and access features with the touch of a finger.

• Inking. Use a stylus to create content, take notes and access features. Handwrite email responses and convert them automatically to text. Use your stylus as a laser pointer when presenting. Color your content and erase your mistakes with ease.

• New Windows 8 applications. OneNote and Lync represent the first new Windows 8 style applications for Office. These applications are designed to deliver touch-first experiences on a tablet. A new radial menu in OneNote makes it easy to access features with your finger.

• Included in Windows RT. Office Home and Student 2013 RT, which contains new versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote applications, will be included on ARM-based Windows 8 devices, including Microsoft Surface.

The more we hear about Windows 8 on smartphones and tablets, the more we tend to think that Microsoft is putting a lot of emphasis on the keyboard and now we have one more piece of evidence for that the Wedge Mobile keyboard with the new Windows 8 logo.

The first image of the upcoming keyboard has been leaked showing a Wireless bluetooth keyboard with the Windows 8 logo and new fresh design.

Microsoft has just Officially announced that Windows 8 will be released on 26,October this year.

It's pretty close, Windows 8 OS and Windows 8 devices will be released on 26,October Worldwide, Here is the Official statement from Microsoft Windows 8 Official Blog:

"October 26th, 2012! That's right! Just a few minutes ago, Steven Sinofsky announced at Microsoft's annual sales meeting that customers will be able to get Windows 8 - whether in upgrade fashion or on a new PC - starting on October 26th. Earlier this month at the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference, Tami Reller told attendees Windows 8 would be available in October. But now everyone has a specific date to mark on their calendars. It's on mine!" - Win 8 Blog

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The market of tablet is growing fast. Recently, Microsoft Officially announced that Windows 8 will launch on 26,October this year, Latest reports suggest that Nokia is working on its own Windows tablet, which will be running the ARM tablet version of Windows 8. So, there will be a New strong competitor in the tablet market with one of the strongest operating systems, which is offered by Microsoft.

Marko Ahtisaari, Nokia's Design Chief, who gives his statement in an interview with Finnish magazine Kauppalehti Optio. He was noted saying that

"We are still working on it. We continue to eye the tablet space with interest, but have made no specific announcements".

Today, Microsoft Hardware is announcing new mice and keyboards that are designed to take advantage of Windows 8. These new mice and keyboards will help people interact with their Windows 8 PCs and devices.

They will be perfect companions to Windows 8. And I was able to get my hands on the new hardware to share my hands-on experience with you.

Prices

Microsoft launches 5 New products and Here are there prices, The Sculpt Touch Mouse ($50), Sculpt Mobile Keyboard ($50), Wedge Touch Mouse ($70), Wedge Mobile Keyboard ($80) and the Microsoft Touch Mouse ($80).

These products are all are Windows 8 Compatible and have great designs and prices too. Check out the Photo album We made to see some Hi-Res photo of the products.

Products Photo Album

Few Months ago, Splashtop launched Win8 Testbed for the iPad to allow aspiring Windows 8 developers to test their apps on an actual gesture-enabled tablet. The core Splashtop app that lets you remote back to your Mac or Windows PC via your tablet is already available for the iPad and Android tablets. Now, it is taking the next step and launching on Windows 8.

The Splashtop Remote Desktop has just popped up in the Windows Store and it is available for free. According to the Windows Store, Splashtop Remote Desktop for Windows 8 supports streaming HD movies up to 30 FPS and the ability to play interactive 3D games with low latency from a PC or a Mac. Again, as we approach the Windows 8 release, we would guess that there may be additional features added to the app.

Source (Windows Store)

Samsung made the first Windows 8-based device nearly a year ago. Now Samsung seems to be close to revealing its first consumer Windows 8 product.

In a YouTube video posted earlier this week, Samsung teased the launch of a new notebook, offering glimpses of a rather sleek and thin looking device. Samsung says the video shows off a preview of the company's "... newest Windows-8-ready innovation." Most of the video features lots of animations centering on Leonardo Da Vinci-themed gears and clocks, along with black cubes rolling and combining with each other.

There no indication of a specific date for Samsung's full announcement. But you can Watch the Teaser Video below for Now.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer sat down with the Seattle Times the other day to discuss various things, including the upcoming Microsoft Surface tablets, and said that the Surface tablet has the elements of success despite the fact that the device has yet to go on sale. Ballmer gave away Microsoft's marketing strategy by saying that the Surface tablet can compete with the Apple iPad on features. That obviously means that the Surface will nor, as the CEO says, be "the cheap option".

Source

Windows Blue was reported last week, and while the info was sparse, some of it sounded pretty solid. We like the idea of a yearly update cycle for Windows, much like what we see in mobile, and with MacOS and many Linux distros. We like the idea that it could initially be free, and more solidly unify mobile and desktops. And now, there is a rumor that the update could help add support for 7 and 8" tablets, which are sorely lacking in the Windows ecosystem.

Windows 8 and Windows RT has done well to add plenty of 10"+ tablets, hybrids, and transformers to the mobile landscape, but not everyone wants a mobile device that big. As Google, and Amazon have proven, there is a large market for tablets around the 7" and $200 marks.

via

Windows 8 is coming in just around two weeks, but the first ads about Microsoft's new operating system have already leaked out on YouTube and they all focus along the "Work hard, play hard" mantra.

The leaked four ads posted below aim to show off the new features of Windows 8 and how it works across a range of devices from your desktop PC to your tablet.

Source

Today, You can finally Pre-order a copy of the Microsoft Windows 8 OS. The OS will officially launch on October,26, but you can pre-order it on a DVD right now. For the rest of us, the update would be available online for download and purchase via the Windows 8 Upgrade Assistant for a cheaper price. The full Windows 8 Pro OS will be downloadable as well when you purchase the license separately.

Here is the Windows 8 Retailer versions & prices:

• Windows 8 Pro Pack - Product Key Card (no media) - $70

• Windows 8 (Full Version) - OEM $100

• Windows 8 Pro (Full Version) - OEM $140

Source

DELL has just announced it 2013 line-up of PCs & ultrabooks running Microsoft Windows 8 OS and they are all available for Pre-order starting today.

The most interesting device in the pack is the XPS 12. It has a 12.5″ touchscreen of 1080p resolution and with 400 nit brightness, which can be rotated full 360 degrees, making the ultrabook usable as a tablet.

The XPS 12 comes with a choice between Inter Core i5 and i7 processors and either 128 GB or 256 GB SSD. The XPS 12 should ship around October 30 and starts at $1199.

The XPS One 27 is an All-in-One PC with a 27″ WQHD (2560 x 1440) display which is now also touch-capable.

The XPS One 27 is rather pricey, but has very solid specs to show for it. Price starts from $1599 and shipping will start between October 25 and November 1, depending on the model. Here's the product page for the XPS One 27.

Pre-Order Here

First, Microsoft promoting Windows Phone 8 by Jessica Alba. Now, Acer has launched a new Ad featuring Megan Fox. She uses the company's latest Windows 8 flagship Ultra book, the Acer S7, to fulfill her dream of talking with dolphins.

For good or bad, the Ad doesn't exactly feature the Acer S7 ultrabook specifications as much as Megan Fox. Enjoy the Video below!

Video

First, Microsoft promoting Windows Phone 8 by Jessica Alba. Now, Acer has launched a new Ad featuring Megan Fox. She uses the company's latest Windows 8 flagship Ultra book, the Acer S7, to fulfill her dream of talking with dolphins.

For good or bad, the Ad doesn't exactly feature the Acer S7 ultrabook specifications as much as Megan Fox. Adv. video below!

Video

While Microsodt Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 have both only been on the market a short time, but rumor has it that Microsoft may already be getting ready to release an OS update that supersedes both to an extent, called "Windows Blue", and it may even replace Windows 8 in just a few months. It sounds a bit crazy, but it may be true.

Apparently, the word is that Windows Blue will look much like Windows 8 with just some minor UI tweaks, and will likely keep the Windows 8 name, but everything behind it could be very different, including the pricing. Microsoft wants Windows Blue to be on everyone's computer, which means it could even be released for free to ensure users upgrade. From there, the idea is that Microsoft would offer regular yearly updates which will be standardized across desktop and mobile devices.

Microsoft is also planning to release a new Windows SDK along with the updates, and will stop accepting apps written using the Windows 8 SDK, although Windows 8 legacy apps will still run on Windows Blue.

Source

Remember the HTC HD2 that was launched with Windows mobile 6.5, Well Now a developer hacked the HD2 to install & run the latest ARM version of the Microsoft Windows OS, the Windows RT.

The hack was performed by developer who goes by the ID @CotullaCode on Twitter. There are zero instructions on how he managed to get this done and how well it works but we do have several screenshots of the operating system in action. It's safe to assume the performance isn't going to be exhilarating but the mere fact that a tablet operating system is running on a three year old smartphone is impressive enough.

myself shocked :O twitter.com/CotullaCode/st…

— Ctll (@CotullaCode) December 27, 2012

Windows Blue was reported late 2012, and while the info was sparse, some of it sounded pretty solid. We like the idea of a yearly update cycle for Windows, much like what we see in mobile, and with MacOS and many Linux distros. We like the idea that it could initially be free, and more solidly unify mobile and desktops. And now, there is a rumor that the update could help add support for 7 - 8" tablets, which are sorely lacking in the Windows ecosystem. Windows Blue is rumored to launch during this year 2013 but no launch date yet!

Windows 8 and Windows RT has done well to add plenty of 10"+ tablets, hybrids, and transformers to the mobile landscape, but not everyone wants a mobile device that big. As Google, and Amazon have proven, there is a large market for tablets around the 7" and $200 marks.

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There is no rest for the marketing department for Windows 8 at Microsoft as the calendar resets and we start a new year. The recent Surface ad highlighted productivity, this new duo highlights creativity.

In the first ad, we are greeted with the song "Everything at Once," by Australian singer Lenka who is also the star of the ad. While Microsoft highlights the apps that are included with Windows 8, Lenka dances in a black and white room with a motif of stripes, shades and patterns while wearing black and white pajamas.

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Dropbox has just launched it official App with Modern UI for Windows 8/8 Pro and Windows RT users.

The App displays tiles of files and folders from your account, nicely optimized for touch-operation too. In its initial release, the app is very limited in its functionality, but it will get better with future updates.

Download Dropbox [Win8]

It's hardly a secret, Nokia is working on a 10" tablet running Windows 8 RT. A New report leaked revealed some details about this upcoming tablet for Nokia, rumored name is "Nokia LUMIA 10".

Reportedly, Nokia's Windows RT tablet will sport a similar display to the Microsoft Surface RT. USB and HDMI ports will be on tap, as well as cellular network connectivity.

AT&T is rumored to be the first US carrier to offer the slate a logical occurrence given the wireless provider's current exclusivity of the Nokia Lumia 920 and Lumia 820.

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Application developers preferred the open operating system, which allowed them to create screen readers and other tools to assist those with disabilities to better interact with the device.

However, One Voice, an organization specializing in accessibility in the IT industry, has now brought up the issue that Microsoft's new platform, Windows Phone 7 misses many of those features and Microsoft will add these features in the Next Major Update for the OS which is the Windows phone 8 Apollo. In a recent publication, One Voice said:

"Despite Microsoft Windows for PCs and laptops offering a range of built-in accessibility features, the current version of its smartphone operating system - Windows Phone 7 (formerly called Windows Mobile), a cut-down version of the familiar Windows for PCs - is not considered to be very accessible. It does not have a built-in screen-reader, and it is not constructed to allow others to write apps accessing the screen elements."

Nokia's Kevin Shields introduced Camera Extras for Windows Phone 8, which adds features that have been present on competing platforms for quite a while now.

First up we have Panorama mode, which stitches several photos together creating one seamless panoramic image. Action Shot is what one would use to capture that brief, one-time moment. The feature allows taking burst shots so that the user can later choose the one that looks best. Smart Group Shot is for taking photos of groups of people, as the name implies. The smart thing about the feature is that it captures several consecutive images, and if someone happens to blink, their face can be replaced with a crop from a better shot. Last but not least, a timer comes included with Camera Extras.

The Microsoft Windows Marketplace was available only in 63 countries, and only 38 of those countries were allowed to submit apps. But now, Microsoft is planning on expanding that list considerably and has announced to bring the New Windows 8 Marketplace to over 180 countries at launch. Here is the omplete list Below:

Windows release is coming closer, Many are wondering what feature will be included in the Windows Phone 8, One feature that is nice to have will be the ability to take screenshots with a Windows Phone 8 handset. The video below shows how it is expected to work.

According to some sources, it will be a simple matter of pressing the home and camera buttons together. This was discovered on the SDK although there are no guarantees that it will make the final version of the OS. One thing that Microsoft did to make using this feature easy was to set up a separate file in the Photo Hub so that users will know which photos came from the screenshot function.