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Tag Result For: Microsoft

Future:

The Home of the Future According to Microsoft

Microsoft has had challenges over the last few years being considered a futurist company. Their roots have definitely been bold and envisioned things that others could not, but lately the Star Trek visions of the future have been left to other tech companies. The company took a step in the right direction with the video below.

Electronics:

Report: Microsoft Kinect Only Costs $56 to Make

According to information gathered by Kotaku, the Microsoft Kinect which retails for $149 only costs $56 to make, and for some reason, this is shocking people.

From Kotaku:

UBM have got hold of a Kinect, torn it apart to examine each of its components then tracked how much each of them cost. What they found was that each of the cameras costs Microsoft approximately $56, of which the single biggest expenditure is Israeli company PrimeSense’s “reference system” of cameras, microphones and processor, which clocks in at $17.

Around The Web

last update: May 17, 2012

Devices:

Microsoft to Launch New Phone with AT&T

Microsoft Corp is set to unveil a new line of phones running its Windows software on Monday, as it attempts to pull back market share from Apple Inc’s iPhone and Google Inc’s Android system in the fast-growing market for multi-featured ‘smartphones’.

The world’s largest software company is hoping that the new phones, from handset makers such as Samsung, LG and HTC, will propel it back into the mobile market, which many see as the key to the future of computing.

The new phones, initially available on AT&T Inc’s network, have already been shown off in prototype form, and are much closer in look and feel to Apple’s iPhone, with colorful touch-screens and ’tiles’ for easy access to e-mail, the web, music and other applications.

Some analysts say they represent Microsoft’s last chance to catch up with rivals, which overtook them in the past few years. Handsets are not expected to appear in stores for a month, so their success may not be judged until the new year.

Microsoft has just a 5 percent share of the global smartphone market, according to research firm Gartner, compared with 9 percent a year ago. Google’s Android system has a 17 percent market share, jumping from only 2 percent a year ago.

Entertainment:

Microsoft Aims to Reignite Video Game Market With Halo

Microsoft Corp is hoping to reverse the recent slump in video games and kickstart the holiday shopping season as it launches the latest version of its blockbuster Halo video game early on Tuesday.

Halo: Reach, the fourth in the popular series that pits the player against murderous aliens in a variety of settings, will be available from midnight in stores across the United States.

The game has sold more than 34 million copies in the nine years of its life — boosting the popularity of Microsoft’s Xbox console — helping the world’s largest software company grab a slice of the $20 billion U.S. video game business.

The new Halo: Reach, technically a prequel to the main Halo narrative, has better graphics, more complex fighting scenarios and new ways of playing with others online, which analysts say could bring some excitement back to the slack video game business.

Web:

Yahoo Japan to Switch to Google’s Search Engine

Yahoo Japan, Japan’s largest Internet portal operator, will adopt Google’s search engine, refusing to follow Yahoo Inc in choosing Microsoft as a partner.

Yahoo Japan, which currently uses Yahoo Inc’s search technology, and Google together would control almost all of the search market in the word’s second-biggest economy.

The deal stands in stark contrast to the decision by Yahoo Inc, which owns roughly one-third of Yahoo Japan, to integrate its search technology with Microsoft after the U.S. government blocked a potential tie-up with Google.

Yahoo Japan, which hopes the deal will strengthen its No. 1 position in the domestic market, will also adopt Google’s search-linked advertisement delivery system and feed its data to Google sites.

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Electronics:

Kinect for Xbox 360 Coming to a City Near You

This summer, the Microsoft Kinect for Xbox 360 will be available for demos all over the country before it arrives in stores on November 4, 2010. The 14-week tour will visit 32 North American Cities beginning with a stop in New York City and ending in Las Vegas, NV at the PBR World Finals. Users will get a sneak peek at the Kinect and will get a trial of the games you can control with your voice and the wave of a hand instead of the traditional game console controller.

Only Kinect for Xbox 360 makes it possible to play in a whole new way by identifying your movement and body position to create a truly immersive entertainment experience. See a ball? Just kick it. Begin a movie by simply saying “Xbox, play,” or browse through a music list with the wave of a hand. With the Kinect Experience Mobile Demo Tour, you can hone your skills before anyone else by playing fun new games, such as “Kinect Sports,” “Kinectimals,” “Kinect Joy Ride” and “Kinect Adventures” and MTV Games’ and Harmonix’s “Dance Central.”

Space:

NASA and Microsoft Release Interactive Tour of Mars

NASA and Microsoft have teamed up to bring us an interactive tour of Mars chock full of high-res images and loads of information unlike anything most scientists have ever seen.

For the past three years, scientists at NASA have been compiling data on over 100 computers to create this comprehensive map of Mars. The collection of data spans about 40 years worth of space exploration, from the Viking orbiters to the current Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Active:

Technology Developed for NFL Draft by New Orleans Saints

In this years NFL Draft, the New Orleans Saints’ general manager, Mickey Loomis, employed a new technology to help him guide his final picks. The software he used called I.C.E. (an acronym for Interactive, Collaboration, and Evaluation) was developed for the Saints by a Microsoft partner company.

Basically, the software allows the Saints to gather tons of information, videos and pics of players and compress and compare it all, creating a large database of virtual “trading cards” that allowed Loomis to make informed decisions in a split second. The results were projected onto large walls and smaller screens so that every coach and executive could follow along in real time and view the list of the best available picks at any one time.

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