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Zune HD killed once again
Like UnlikeFiled in: Portable Media PlayersMicrosoftZune HD
The saga of the Zune HD has taken another turn. The execution of the device heralded last week when all links to the Zune HD was removed from Microsoft’s Zune website, and the above announcement, saying “we will no longer be producing Zune players” was posted on Microsoft’s site.
There followed the removal of the notice and denials by the official Zune twitter account.
Now the notice has gone up again, and online stores shows the Zune HD is out of stock.
The writing has been on the wall for Zune hardware for some time now with the integration of much of the software in Windows Phone 7, and while no-one may have told the Zune support staff I think it is safe to write the obituary now.
Updat...
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Microsoft/Skype deal to be approved by the EU
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Microsoft’s big nemisis in the last few years have been the EU, who have repeatedly pursued anti-trust litigation against the company, famously forcing Microsoft to release a version of Windows without Windows Media Player a few years ago and more recently a browser ballot screen when Windows is installed.
It seems the climate in Europe has however changed, with Brussels set to approve Microsoft’s $8.5 billion purchase of Skype without a second round of investigations or restrictions.
The FT reports that Joaquín Almunia, the EU competition commissioner, is to give the green light to the proposed deal without any remedies, in spite of complaints from would-be rivals over Microsoft “bundling” ...
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Microsoft expected to announce Xbox 360 TV plans today
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Microsoft will likely announce plans to bring premium television programming to the Xbox 360 today. Essentially, users would be able to convert their Microsoft gaming console into a cable box / streaming video service, as first reported by All Things D.
Microsoft has allegedly been in talks with cable networks and media companies for nearly a year to bring television programming to the 360. But as we inch closer to an announcement, things aren’t looking as promising as they once were.
While the concept seems like a great idea, there is one big catch. The service isn’t really any different than other premium streaming offerings in that you need to be subscribed to cable through a traditional ...
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Microsoft contradicts self on Zune death
Like UnlikeFiled in: Portable Media PlayersMicrosoftZune HD
Microsoft's support team claimed late Tuesday that it hadn't officially ended the Zune. Despite a public support page explicitly stating no more devices were being made, the support team told a user that "no official info has been released" dropping the platform. The division didn't have an explanation for the apparent self-contradiction.
While it's true the company hasn't put out a press release or separate statement, the support page made it clear the company was at least planning to wind down its MP3 players. The focus shifted to Windows Phone as soon as it launched in fall of last year and has seen few updates to the Zune HD in hardware and software, slowing down noticeably in the past y...
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Nokia putting in Windows phone orders from Foxconn also
Like UnlikeFiled in: Operating SystemsMicrosoftNOKIAFoxconnWindows Phone 7
Last we heard Nokia would be using Compal as an ODM for the Nokia Searay.
Now Digitimes reports that Nokia has begun releasing its orders for Windows Phone 7.5-based smartphones to both Foxconn International Holdings and Compal Communications.
This is pretty good news for prospective Nokia customers, as Foxconn, who famously also ODMs the iPhone, has a reputation for high quality, unlike Compal who frankly does not.
While there is no way of knowing, given that the Searay was connected with Compal, it may be that the Nokia Sabre or Nokia Ace will be made by Foxcon instead, and represent a somewhat better device, irrespective of specs.
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Microsoft kills the Zune, to focus on Windows Phone
Like UnlikeFiled in: Portable Media PlayersOperating SystemsMicrosoftZune HDWindows Phone 7
Microsoft’s Zune player never quite caught up with the iPod line of music player, but now as even the iPod is on the decline, Redmond has decided to kill the Zune altogether. The company will not be releasing new models of the player, but remains committed to supporting the device in North America.
The Zune player is closely tied to the Zune music service, which in turn has intimate connections with Microsoft’s Windows Phone lineup, but while the player itself is dead, the service will continue running as before, with the focus shifting on Windows Phone handsets.
The Zune started in 2006 as an ambitious iPod rival. At the time, Microsoft’s CEO Steve Ballmer saw it as a real competitor to Ap...
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Zune HD is dead confirms Microsoft
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Microsoft has officially confirmed that its Zune PMPs – including the Zune HD - have been axed, despite having denied yesterday that such a decision about the media players had been made. “We recently announced that, going forward, Windows Phone will be the focus of our mobile music and video strategy,” Microsoft’s Zune Player support page claims, “and that we will no longer be producing Zune players”
As we observed yesterday, the Zune HD has gone two years without a refresh; we initially reviewed it back in September 2009. A refresh was tipped for late 2010, but then Microsoft swung its focus to Windows Phone and how it could include both smartphone and media player functionality in one pac...
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Xbox 360 fall dashboard video leaked
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A video has been posted online which shows off the upcoming Xbox 360 dashboard update. The footage is courtesy of a recently leaked software development kit for the 360 that includes the new dashboard, says TG Daily.
It is suspected that an Xbox employee in France somehow obtained a copy of the software. Content in the video is in French and was originally posted by Logic-Sunrise. The soundless clip gives the general public their first look at the dashboard in full motion. Microsoft released some slides of the planned update earlier this year but video certainly provides a richer experience.
The scheduled update will allow users to browse content faster and use the Kinect motion-sensing devi...
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T-Mobile Germany starts prepping for Nokia Windows Phone
Like UnlikeFiled in: Cell PhonesOperating SystemsMicrosoftNOKIAT-MobileWindows Phone 7
Some marketing materials from T-Mobile Germany have given us a few details on what to expect from Nokia’s first Windows Phone. It’ll be running the recently-released Mango update, have a 3.7-inch convex AMOLED touchscreen, and include a navigation app with 3D rendering and voice control. Most of that we’ve already heard in previous Sea Ray leaks, which suggest the device will also have a 5 megapixel camera, and a chassis roughly equivalent to Nokia’s one and only Meego handset, the N9.
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New Xbox 360 dashboard to be released 15 November claim sources
Like UnlikeFiled in: Game ConsolesMicrosoftXbox 360 S
The new Xbox 360 dashboard refresh will come on the 10th Anniversary of the Xbox, according to sources in the US.
Gaming website Kotaku is reporting that a leaked email to PayPal employees, who have been asked to test the company’s payment system in the new update, believe the launch date to be the 15 November.
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Nokia said paying app writers to support Windows Phone
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Nokia may be taking a cue from Microsoft and paying developers to support Windows Phone, sources maintained Friday. In return for agreeing to write apps, teams are said by CNN to be getting both cash incentives and extra perks. These bonuses could include the gem, being preloaded on Nokia phones, or getting prominent placement in Nokia's own Windows Phone app portal.
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More than 1000 Mango apps in Marketplace
Like UnlikeFiled in: Operating SystemsMicrosoftWindows Phone 7.5
Joe Belfiore from Microsoft has just tweeted that there are now more than 1000 Mango apps in Marketplace.
Mango apps are apps which have been recompiled with the new WP 7.1 SDK, which enabled fast user switching. They can also include other, more advanced features enabled by Mango, such as multiple live tiles, but that part is optional.
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Nokia Windows Phone 7 handset turns on 3D voice navigation
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As Nokia prepares to unleash its first iteration of Windows Phone 7 handsets upon the world, reports have come in that the Finnish phone giant is preparing its own voice navigation and 3D maps software for the Mango OS.
The reports that come in from WinRumors, say that an anonymous tipster sent in "images of some marketing posters that T-Mobile in Germany is currently preparing for its Nokia Windows Phones. The posters were briefly displayed at T-Mobile’s on-site shop at the company’s corporate headquarters in Bonn, Germany."
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IBM Is Now More Valuable Than Microsoft
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For the first time since 1996, IBM's market value now exceeds that of Microsoft. IBM jumped past Microsoft to become the world's second most valuable tech company behind #1 Apple.
IBM's stocks are blazing hot this year, spiking 22 percent to $179.17. This increase has raised the company's market value to $214 billion. Microsoft, however, has seen its stock slip 8 percent to $25.45 and its market value fall to $213 billion.
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Mango kills Microsoft's always-on location tracking, makes good on letter to House of Representatives
Like UnlikeFiled in: Operating SystemsMicrosoftWindows Phone 7.5
Remember all that iPhone tracking hubbub back in April? Sure you do -- you probably also recall Apple's denial, the subsequent Senate hearing, and the rest of the fiasco's dramatic fallout. Amid the ballyhoo, Microsoft stepped out to admit that its Windows Phone also collected location data, but quickly promised to knock it off following the next scheduled update. According to ChevronWP7 collaborator Rafael Rivera, Windows Phone 7.5 cinches it: Mango "no longer sends location data prior to being granted permission to do so." Redmond previously told the US House of Representatives that it only collected location data if a user expressly allowed an application to send it along -- a claim which...
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