Back in March, we reported that Starbucks will be releasing their Windows Phone app in the coming months. Kevin Johnson, Starbucks President, COO and ex-Microsoft Windows division president at that time said that their team has been working in partnership with Microsoft and they are within 30 to 45 days of releasing a Windows Phone app.
For a customer query on Twitter, Starbucks Global Chief Digital Officer Adam Brotman today answered they have shipped their app to the Windows store today. They are doing final testing and will be releasing it to the general public in the next few weeks.
All-In-One Messenger App for Windows 10. Use Facebook Messenger, Skype, Slack, WhatsApp Web and many more with this App. Get Notification when someone messaged you*! Set your own Personal password or use Windows Hello so that no one can access your app without your permission.
All-In-One App for Most Famous Social websites. With an Exclusive Dark Mode for Facebook Messenger, Skype. you can enjoy it even more!
Sometimes it's hard to connect with everyone to see their messages on different apps or websites. One Messenger solve this problem, you can chat with your friends on Skype, FB Messenger, WhatsApp without having to switch to different app or websites on PC.
Well you can say it is a web wrapper but it will give you more personalized web experience than just opening websites in your Browser! You can try it yourself and I am sure you'll like it! You will also get Notifications* when you get messages from facebook messenger, skype, Group me… We also have bunch to settings to personalize your experience, all you want!
Gallery
Beautifully Designed for Windows 10. It also gives you better privacy protection than your browser because you are using it sandboxed(safer) mode which is secure than most browser. We assure you that we don't save any kind of information about you. We store nothing about you. All are saved in your own machine if it is needed to be saved!
One Messenger let you view sites side by side without having to switch! One Messenger Helps you to Connect to everyone easily and efficiently . You will never have to go to different apps to use them! You don't have to sign-in every time you open One Messenger too. Give it a try, Maybe you will love it! If you have any feedback about the app, Please contact us via mail or via twitter, we will love to hear your feedback!
*Due to limitations, this app does not have all the capabilities you might expect from a native app. The app must be running to receive notifications.
As said above We do not save Any information about you, You can See our Privacy Policy Below. if you are still concerned about the privacy policy Mail us and we will do our best to explain you! Thank You!
Microsoft today released an update to Groove on PC, Phone, and HoloLens in Windows Store. This updated version 3.6.2298.0 is available for the Windows Insiders in the Fast ring and it includes visual changes for Your Groove. Find the full change log below.
Change log:
– Design improvements to make Your Groove and Explore more colorful and vibrant.
– Unplayable tracks won't be added to Now Playing to give you a better playback experience.
– The app retries loading streaming songs a few times when it used to try only once.
– 23 UX tweaks including messaging improvements, updates for Narrator, and updates to the accuracy of playlists lengths.
– Fixes for crashes when using scroll wheel while viewing an artist detail page and when clicking on "more" in artist details.
Download Groove app for Windows 10 PCs, phones and Hololens using the below link.
Vito Technology, the publisher of Star Walk, has released the sequel for mobile viewers everywhere. The popular go to app for stargazers to view more than over 200,000 celestial bodies has finally landed in the Windows Store for both mobile and PC users.
This interactive app comes with exclusive artwork and 3D constellations, as well as extensive information about the stars, planets, satellites and constellations that you come across, all you have to do it's point your device at the sky. The app features an all new stunning design, Times of sunset and moon phases, and real-time motion tracking.
The app has already been available on iOS and Android for free, and cost $2.99 in the Windows Store. The app also features other in-app purchases. Download below.
Marvel: Avengers Alliance 2 was updated in the Windows Store in celebration of Captain America's 75th anniversary, with a new Captain America exclusive to this game (earned by completing special tasks). The update also features AutoPlay, allowing you to turn your heroes loose and take a high-level tactical role as your team battles super villains, and tutorial improvements. The update also brings system improvements and updates including faster menu loading times and redesigned power cell stores for improved speed and usability.
Read the game description below.
ASSEMBLE, STRATEGIZE, FIGHT! Marvel: Avengers Alliance 2 is the massive sequel to the smash hit Marvel: Avengers Alliance, with a robust mobile gaming experience, greater customization, and amazing high quality visuals. Assemble a team with the Avengers, Daredevil, Guardians of the Galaxy, Spider-Man, and other Super Heroes to battle Ultron, Baron Strucker, and more epic Super Villains! A mysterious series of galactic collisions, known as Incursions, threaten the fate of Earth. You must use the powerful energy of Iso-8 to stop the destruction of every universe. Team up with friends and other players from around the globe to face deadly foes and prevail.
• Assemble the ultimate team to defeat notorious Super Villains
• Strategize and defeat evil forces in epic 3-on-3 combat
• Level-up and customize Super Heroes
• Collect and equip unique abilities for each Super Hero
• Take on dozens of replayable missions
• Win bonus rewards for completing Daily Operations
• Get powerful rewards in PVP tournaments
• Team up with friends' Super Heroes to conquer missions
Before you download this experience, please consider that this app contains:
• Social media links to connect with others
• In-app purchases that cost real money
• The option to accept push notifications to let you know when we have exciting updates like new content
• Advertising for some third parties, including the option to watch ads for rewards • Advertising for The Walt Disney Family of Companies
Player DVD was created with all the features to provide a really comfortable use. The app allows you to watch video with subtitles, choose audio track for video, adjust EQ, create playlists and also supports all new Windows 10 features like Windows Hello, Cortana and Ink. Discover a new perfect way to watch movies and listening to music with Player DVD.
Popular news app Dailyhunt got updated in Windows Store today. This v5.4 update comes with support for offline reading, data saver mode and more. Find the full change log below.
Change log:
Saved articles for offline reading – View news articles offline by saving the ones you wish to read
Wide Tile – Pin Dailyhunt's new wide-tile to your Start menu and get your updates right there!
Data Saver Mode – Turn off news images from the settings menu for quicker performance on slow networks
We worked really hard to make your app experience amazing by making several UI & performance Improvements.
Screenshots:
Gallery
Dailyhunt (formerly NewsHunt) provides latest news about politics, sports, technology, business, entertainment & more for India & World. Stay updated with live breaking news, daily news headlines & today's top stories. Read news in local Indian languages – Hindi, Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, Bangla, Gujarati, Urdu, Oriya & Punjabi. Also, find free & paid eBooks & magazines on Dailyhunt.
Download the update from Windows Store using below link.
New builds of Windows 10 and Windows 10 Mobile have been coming at a rather torrid pace, and with the official release of the Windows 10 Anniversary Update only a month away the pressure is only increasing.
The next few days are however a rather major holiday in the US, when the country celebrates its own Brexit from UK.
On the Windows Blog Dona Sarkar has said the team will be taking the 4th July long weekend off, and will presumably not be pushing out any builds over the next 4 days.
That will I think give both us and them a chance to have a rest before the final sprint to the 2nd August finishing line.
As per the latest ironSource insights on the industry's top apps and fastest growing categories, Microsoft OneDrive and Microsoft Word are among the top 10 fastest growing apps in the 50 million to 100 million category.
Last year, Microsoft Word was named one of the "Best Apps of 2015" by Google Play. Word has the familiar look, feel and quality of Office with an intuitive touch experience designed for Android phones and tablets. More importantly, it is available for free. Also I want to highlight that Microsoft Word now has more reviews than Google Docs on Play Store.
You can download Microsoft Word here and Microsoft OneDrive here from Play Store.
Microsoft has just released Windows 10 Build 14379 to Windows Insiders in the Fast Ring for PCs and Mobile. As you may have already guessed, the latest build does not introduce any new features, meaning that it only comes with bug fixes and improvements. With the latest build, the Windows 10 Insider Preview should run pretty smoothly on your main machine, so if you really want to try out the Anniversary Update right now, you might want to check out build 14379.
Here is what's fixed and improved in build 14379 for PCs:
We fixed an issue where the size of the Credential UI might not be big enough to display the contents on a PC with High DPI.
We fixed an issue where Action Center might crash after dismissing a large number of notifications.
We fixed an issue where Centennial app launches from Start or Cortana wouldn't count towards those apps bubbling up in Start's "Most used" list.
We fixed an issue where no note would have keyboard focus after minimizing then reopening the Sticky Notes app.
And here's what's improved in this build for Mobile:
We fixed an issue that could result in a stray focus rectangle becoming visible in certain apps, such as Groove or Cortana, after bringing up the keyboard.
We fixed an issue where the aspect ratio of images on live tile wasn't preserved if they need to be shrunk, leading to them appearing stretched.
Lastly, here's what's broken in this build for PC:
Using Continuum from your phone on your PC via the Connect app will not work. This should be fixed in the next build.
…and here are the known issues for Mobile:
You can open PDFs in Microsoft Edge but won't be able to use touch to interact with the PDF (such as scrolling, pan or zoom). When you try to use touch to interact with a PDF, it will constantly reload the PDF.
We've heard you and we are investigating decreases in battery life on older devices such as the Lumia 830, 930, and 1520.
We're also investigating Wi-Fi disconnect issues – if you are experiencing an issue with your Wi-Fi disconnecting, please see this forum post and make sure to upvote Wi-Fi disconnecting issues in the Feedback Hub.
REMINDER: We have changed the backup format for Windows 10 Mobile devices to reduce the size of the backup stored in OneDrive. As a result, if you do a backup on a device running the latest Windows 10 Mobile Insider Preview builds and move back to the released version of Windows 10 Mobile (Build 10586) and restore from your backup – your Start screen layout won't restore and remain the default Start layout. Your previous backup also gets overwritten. If you need to go back to Build 10586 temporarily, once you are on Build 10586 you should disable backup so it doesn't overwrite the good backup from Windows 10 Mobile Insider Preview builds.
In case you are wondering, the latest build is available to Insiders in the Fast Ring and you can get it by heading over to Settings > Update & Security and checking for updates.
Microsoft has pushed out yet another build of Windows 10 to Windows Insiders in the Fast Ring. Just like most of the recent Windows 10 Insider Preview builds, the latest build does not include any new features and it only packs several bug fixes and improvements. Microsoft has released a total of 15 builds this month, which is fantastic.
In the coming weeks, Windows Insiders will keep getting a lot of new builds for Windows 10 — however, they probably will not include any major new features as we are getting pretty close to the release of Windows 10 Anniversary Update. In case you don't know, Microsoft is going to release Windows 10 Anniversary Update for PCs and Mobile on August 2, which is just about one month away.
As usual, the latest build is available to Insiders in the Fast Ring. If you happen to be in the Fast Ring, you can get the latest build by heading over to Settings > Update & Security, and then checking for updates. Happy downloading!
Microsoft UK's current CEO, Michel Van der Bel today announced on Twitter that he will soon step down from the role. His successor will be Cindy Rose who previously worked at Vodafone UK, where she served for less than three years. At Vodafone UK, Ms Rose was responsible for launching new products, branding, retail and online stores. Ms Rose launched the Vodafone Connect service which apparently had only 75 thousand customers in the UK, which isn't too impressive considering the fact that Vodafone has 12 million broadband customers accross Europe.
Really excited to congratulate Cindy Rose on joining Microsoft UK where she will officially takeover from me on Nov 1st as UK CEO
It will be interesting to see what Cindy Rose will be doing at Microsoft UK. For now, there isn't much information, but hopefully she will work to bring a Microsoft Store to the UK which would be very nice to see.
Microsoft is working on wooing more customers to Groove this week it seems. After its Windows store promotion in the USA yesterday, the firm is sending round emails to some users, alerting them of a 14 days of free Groove Music service, no credit card required. After the 14 days, users will be required to sign up for a free month of Groove if they would like to continue. after the month is over, then the monthly fee of £8.99 applies if you're interested in the service.
While Groove didn't exactly blow us way at first, it's now become an almost indispensable app for music, especially for Windows 10 and Windows 10 Mobile users for whom the app has become better than Spotify's offering on the platform, especially with the way it takes advantage of platform specific features like tiles, integration with the volume button, playing under the lockscreen etc.
To qualify for the deal, there isn't anything apparent you need to do, just check your inbox and see if you're one of the lucky ones.
You can download Groove Music from the Windows store here, and if you didn't get the email but still want to try Groove – get the pass here.
Amazon has been slowly withdrawing their app from the Windows Store, with the app currently saying:
The Windows Phone App will be retired on July 25, 2016. Please visit our website.
The short missive in the app unfortunately does not explain Amazon's motivations, but Softpedia reports that the company has delivered a short statement which explains a bit more.
"Thanks for reaching out and your interest in the Amazon App for Windows Phone. Regarding your questions below, we cannot comment on our product roadmap. The current Amazon App was built on Windows 8 and it does not provide the most customer obsessed experience for Windows 10. We encourage customers to visit Amazon.com in their mobile browser where they will have access to our newest shopping features and customer experience."
A generous reading of the statement suggests that Amazon is planning to deliver "the most customer obsessed experience for Windows 10" that we are apparently demanding and of course the company did not deny any plans for a Windows 10 app.
In recent months we have seen a number of once missing apps return to the Windows Store stronger and better as Universal Windows Apps, and given the 350 million people on Windows 10 I am sure the company will be happy to have an even closer connection with their customers while they use their PCs, not to mention having free advertising space on your start menu and notification centre.
Do our readers think Amazon will be back? Let us know below.
Microsoft is discontinuing the Messaging everywhere app feature in the Windows 10 anniversary update in exchange for an app experience built on Skype itself.
While the full experience is yet to arrive, we may have gotten a glimpse of what Microsoft plans to offer from taking a look at the Skype app leaked weeks ago.
While poking and prodding at the app, it came to our attention that the Skype app for Windows 10 is capable of sending SMS to non Skype contacts.
To reproduce this, you would have o first sync your phone book with Skype. The app would then display a selection of contacts, both with Skype and SMS only. When an SMS only contact is selected, the user can then use the app to tap out a message and press send. Unfortunately that's as far as it goes for now. Upon sending the message, the Skype app offers no indication that anything has occurred, and only upon either receiving a reply to the message or checking the SMS app is the user alerted the app did indeed send a text message.
Gallery
Note that the Skype messaging app is actually not officially released to insiders, and it becomes clear that the Skype team were at least planning to offer SMS capabilities in their app later on.
In checking the Microsoft app store, the Skype app for Windows 10 requires the follwing permissions:
Read contact information
Project the screen on another device
Read and delete Text Messages
Access all the phone lines on your device
Access your settings from when you first signed in to your device
Access your Windows Phone identification data
Have control over your Windows Phone
Make use of SMS and RCS
It's still not clear whether Microsoft is intending to build in SMS support into Skype (Microsoft giveth and Microsoft taketh away) in the style of Facebook messenger whereby the IM is the main feature of the app and the SMS is separate, or copy Apple's inefficient and confusing iMessage method.
No matter which way Microsoft chooses to go, we'll keep you posted and share new details as they arise.
Download Skype for Windows 10 Anniversary update from the link below;
If you own a Xbox One Kinect sensor, you might want to buy this upcoming indie game called FRU. FRU is a puzzle platformer that features an innovative use of Kinect, in which your silhouette becomes a "portal" between two worlds. You will find yourself solving puzzles by strategically positioning your body, combining physical interaction with traditional platforming.
The game features four completely different chapters, all based around our innovative use of the silhouette, with a unique twist to each one of them. In addition to moving and balancing your body to solve levels, you'll also find yourself swimming inside your silhouette, striking crazy poses to activate contraptions, and awkwardly tiptoeing to avoid dangerous hazards!
Features:
Innovative, never seen before use of Kinect
Four different chapters, with completely unique ways of using the main mechanic
110 Levels there to prove that, and 24 Extra Collectibles as if the game wasn't challenging enough!
Our original E3 2014 Co-op Build ready to be unlocked!
Achievements that ask you to move muscles you didn't even know you had!
FRU is coming to Xbox One on July 13, 2016 for $15. Do you still have your Kinect sensor? Are you using it often?
Back in May, Microsoft Bing team changed homepage hotspots into homepage trivia. When you visit Bing.com, you'll see a graduation cap icon and when you hover over it, the first question about the image of the day appears. You can select an answer and you'll find out whether you guessed correctly.
Complete the three-question quiz, and you'll get a score you can share on your fave social media site—or you can keep going with the quiz fun by taking quizzes from previous days.
After a month out from the launch of the feature, Microsoft saw a 65 percent increase in engagement in home page because of this design change. Another addition you may have noticed over the past few months on Bing home page Popular Now carousel is the weekly trends quiz.
That's when you can test your news smarts and see how closely you've been following Popular Now on the homepage during the week. On average, more than 80 percent of users who start the quiz finish all seven questions, which tells us that users enjoy knowing what to talk about at the water cooler—and that they're paying attention to what's running in Popular Now.
Bing Rewards memberscan take a three-question quiz while earning credits on topics ranging from seasonal themes and holiday fare to historical and pop culture events twice a week. Bing team is betting on the quiz format as the means of driving deeper exploration and serendipitous discovery.
Another new feature which Microsoft recently added on Bing is Polls. It enables users and fans a chance to weigh in on current events and trending topics.
For example, the killing of Harambe, a gorilla at the Cincinnati Zoo, after a child fell into his enclosure, drove impassioned debates, online and off—and resulted in one of our most-engaging polls to date. We've also used polls to get a read on what our users were getting mom for Mother's Day—and whether they spent more on her than dad when Father's Day rolled around.
Do you visit Bing home page everyday? Have you tried any of the above experiences?
In a blog post Dell has announced that they will be discontinuing their Venue line of Android tablets in favour of 2-in-1 devices, which they explained were more suitable for enterprise. They note that they believe 2-in-1s are starting to become the preferred device for those in the workplace who occasionally want to operate the device in tablet mode, which is why they were investing in that space, while beginning to divest from the slate tablet market.
They said that the 2:1 trend was catching on globally detachable tablets reached an all-time high of 8.1 million devices in the fourth quarter of 2015 and more than doubled their shipments since the fourth quarter of last year, while traditional tablets experienced their greatest annual decline to date of -21.1 percent last quarter, according to the IDC.
Dell noted that their 2-in-1 devices offered:
Productivity: 2-in-1s should focus on being a laptop first, then a tablet, which is the only way they fit in a commercial environment. Dell notes their newest Latitude lineup boasts business-class features like Intel's latest processors, large and rich screens for viewing content, full-size ports and keyboards and more, all to help you work on the go.
Flexibility: while the standard issued work device is typically a laptop or desktop, it can be nice to have a tablet for some business functions – but is it worth carrying two systems? Our fully flexible lineup of Dell 2-in-1s are designed to go wherever work takes you.
Value: on-the-go professionals and corridor warriors will love the way 2-in-1s enhance their workflows, but IT decision makers can truly appreciate the value in a system that can be both a laptop and tablet. Gone are the days of purchasing multiple devices for workers, or compromising by choosing only one.
Security, Manageability & Support: Our commitment to customers is to deliver the most secure, most manageable and most reliable solutions in the industry. The Dell Data Protection | Endpoint Security Suite Enterprise is now available and encompasses encryption, authentication and now greater advanced threat protection. And with ProSupport Plus for PCs and tablets, Dell is the only OEM to provide automated proactive and predictive support capabilities across PCs, tablets, servers, storage and networking.
Dell put forward their Dell Latitude 12 7000 Series 2-in-1 as the perfect hybrid device for enterprise, noting it was slim, light and versatile, while still offering full-sized ports and a good keyboard.
While the move is good news for Microsoft and its Windows 10 ambitions, it still important to note that the hybrid market is still smaller than the tablet market, and that Apple's iPad Pro was a major factor in the recent improved stats. It is however clear that for enterprise a Windows 10 2-in-1 is much more suitable than an iOS device, which will hopefully drive the whole Windows ecosystem to be more successful in the coming years.
Later this year, Microsoft will be releasing a new app in Windows Store named "Microsoft Whiteboard" for students and teachers. Microsoft Whiteboard is a new tool for teachers and students to create, discover, and share ideas together on the big screen.
App Features:
Write and draw naturally– Multiple people can write on Whiteboard at the same time with a digital pen or using their own fingers. Whiteboard is also designed for the big screen which means getting around feels natural on large, interactive whiteboards when connected with a Windows 10 PC.
Bring doodles, sketches, and ideas to life– Handwriting and shape recognition is built-in which makes drawing basic shapes and angles a breeze.
Create interactive lessons on the big screen– Whiteboard makes it easy to pull in web content, videos, and content from your own library and place them front and center helping keep students engaged.
Share and collaborate in real time– Connect Whiteboard with a Collaboration space in OneNote Class Notebook to share content with a whole class and make changes together in real time from the devices you already use. Creating assignments is easy too. With a quick gesture, any text or content can be made into an assignment in Microsoft Classroom. Assignments flow into the learning management system (LMS) you already use when connected with School Data Sync. Students can also access assignments from Microsoft Classroom web and mobile apps.
With the upcoming Windows 10 Anniversary Update, Microsoft is releasing no. of new features for educators and students. They are releasing faster, simpler set up with all new tools to help educators get up and running quickly. They are releasing all-new "Take a Test" app offers simplified options for test-taking. Also, Office 365 Education now includes Microsoft Classroom, a single experience for managing all classes and assignment workflow for teachers and students. With all these new features and improvements, Windows 10 will continue to be the best OS for teachers and students.
Popular file sharing app SHAREit was recently updated for Windows Phone 8.1 devices to v1.7.0. This update brings the popular "Connect to PC" feature which was already available for Windows 10 Mobile devices to WP8.1 devices.
"Connect to PC" features allows you to transfer files between phone and PC. When you want to connect your phone to PC, you have to scan the QR Code displayed on the SHAREit PC app using your SHAREit mobile app. Once the devices are connected, you can begin transferring files between devices in seconds. It uses WiFi to transfer files between devices, so you don't need data connection to transfer files across your devices.
Earlier today Baconit, a popular third-party Reddit client for Windows 10, today picked up small update taking it to version 4.8.17, fixing the i.redditupload picture issue.
Now a few hours later the developer Quinn has released another update, taking it to version 4.9.
The update has the following change log:
Bugs
Fixed the issue where reddit upload links fail to show (if not it will be fixed shortly)
Fixed the issue where some profiles won't load
Xbox
Added a few features to make the app run smoothly on Xbox
Paul Bartum's has done some truly amazing work on the markdown parser and render that I pulled into this release. He fixed tons of bugs, added way more features, and improved the perf quite a lot. Due to this – post will load faster and format way better than before. Many thanks to him for his great work!
Users are reporting that the app is faster and more stable, which is always good news.
The latest update is available on the Windows Store right now. If you want to grab it, head over to the following link.
High Dynamic Range Imaging (HDR) is a technique used in imaging and photography to reproduce a greater dynamic range of luminosity than is possible with standard digital imaging or photographic techniques. In the past, HDR was typically done in post-processing with photo-imaging software. Today, it can be done in real-time using modern smartphones like Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL. Microsoft's Universal Windows Platform (UWP) supports HDR photographs and videos and allows developers to use it in their apps. Microsoft today highlighted on their blog about how developers can add HDR functionality to their custom camera app in UWP,
Benedikt Lehnert, Chief Design Officer for Wunderlist, today announced that he is transitioning to a new role inside Microsoft. He is moving to New York to join the Outlook team as Director of Product Design for iOS, Android and Mac.
In August, I'll be joining the Outlook team to work on the next generation email and calendar service. I'll be leading the product design teams for Outlook on iOS, Android and the Mac, and spend my time in New York, San Francisco and Redmond. The remarkable worldwide footprint and relevance of Outlook combined with a strong new focus on delivering excellent experiences across all platforms is going to be a big and exciting challenge. The team has done an amazing job so far, and I can't wait to share the things we are working on.
Last year, Microsoft acquired 6Wunderkinder, the creator of the to-do list app, Wunderlist. You can download Wunderlist app here for free.
Microsoft today announced that they will work with Sprinklr, one of the world's leading enterprise social media management solutions, to provide clients with a cloud-based experience management suite that will streamline business processes across sales, marketing, and customer service. Sprinklr will be extending its platform to Microsoft Azure, to power new, joint Microsoft-Sprinklr customers.
Sprinklr's upcoming solution will be hosted on Azure, to streamline business processes across sales, marketing and customer service. It will integrate Sprinklr's experience management platform with Microsoft's customer relationship management (CRM) solution, Microsoft Dynamics, business analytics suite, Power BI, and productivity suite, Office 365 to power a next-generation experience management suite – all hosted in the Microsoft cloud.
Here's an overview of what the news means for joint Microsoft and Sprinklr customers:
Leading developer tools. Azure's development capabilities will enable Sprinklr to move even faster with future platform enhancements and integrations.
Intelligent cloud. Sprinklr will leverage Azure's elastic search capabilities and advanced compute modules, including key elements of its reporting product and user interface.
Massive global scale for new joint Sprinklr and Azure customers. Azure has announced 32 regions globally with 24 regions currently generally available – more than any other major cloud provider combined and all backed by Microsoft's $15 billion (USD) investment in global datacenter infrastructure.
Trusted and secure platform. Azure has 37 major certifications and attestations – also more than any other major public cloud provider, enabling our customers to operate globally and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. A full list can be found on the Microsoft Trust Center at http://ift.tt/1OcklMR.
It seems like an official Titanfall 2 controller is being made for the Xbox One. A writer over at Rectify Gaming originally spotted the listing, and it looks legitimate.
The controller in question – note the d-pad markings
The controller features a custom skin that makes it look like one of the titular titans. The controller's d-pad is also marked with icons for specific actions in the game. It looks like a pretty good controller design, and it currently has a release date of December 30th, 2016. It's unknown if this is a placeholder, but it might be.
The store page also lists some features of the controller. These are listed below, along with the official description.
Bring down the sky yet again in the fast-paced warfare of the sequel to Titanfall with the Titanfall 2 Official Wired Controller for Xbox One & PC. Experience enhanced gameplay with vibration feedback and impulse triggers and the audio control button located directly on the front of the controller, so you can adjust game and chat audio levels without interruptions. Plug in your headset to the 3.5mm audio jack and you're ready to chat with friends. The 10 foot detachable cable gives you plenty of room to get comfortable. The Dual Multi-Function wheels are what really take this controller to the next level. You can customize up to 6 different actions, so you don't have to worry about taking your thumbs off the premium ALPS analog sticks during gameplay. With an officially licensed Titanfall 2 inspired design, get ready to join in on the fun.
Officially licensed Titanfall 2 inspired design
Audio support and controls
Multi-Function wheels
Premium ALPS analog sticks
Vibration feedback and impulse triggers and detachable 10′ cable
Like all Xbox One controllers, this one will work with Windows, so PC gamers can use it, too.
Titanfall 2 will launch later this year, and this controller might launch alongside it. You can check out the Amazon listing and pre-order the controller here.
What do you think of this controller? Do you like the design? Let us know in the comments below!
Microsoft is reportedly working on an all-in-one device under the Surface brand. The report comes from Digitimes, which states that the company will be announcing the Surface AIO in Q3 2016. According to the report, the device will be an alternative to the company's Surface Book 2 device.
The report also states that Microsoft will be delaying the launch of the Surface Book 2 to the first half of 2017 (originally planned for second-half of 2016). Apparently, Microsoft is delaying the device due to delayed shipment of Intel's Kaby Lake CPUs.
The Surface AIO PC is apparently an alternative for Microsoft's second-generation Surface Book, which will be delayed to the first half of 2017 instead of the original schedule set in the second half of 2016 due to delayed shipments of Intel's Kaby Lake CPUs, said the sources.
Of course, as this is just a rumor, take it with a grain of salt. However, an all-in-one device from Microsoft's Surface brand will, indeed, be very interesting to see as it will go head to head with the Apple iMac. For now, there is no info on the device's specs, but we'll likely know more about that later this year.
With the release of Xbox One Backward Compatibility, consumers can play some of their favorite Xbox 360 titles on their Xbox One, with more titles being added regularly to the list of available games. Microsoft today added Bloodforge, Mars: War Logs, Gripshift and Go! Go! Break Steady as Xbox One Backward Compatibility titles.
With a brutal combat system, stunning art style, and a deeply compelling story, Bloodforge empowers you to slaughter hordes of demonic soldiers, deformed worshippers, and the gods themselves, using ferocious Rage Kills, devastating Rune attacks, and furious Weapon Combos. Help seal Crom's fate – and the fate of the rest of the world – in this dark, visceral story of revenge, betrayal, and destiny.
Local Multiplayer 2, Xbox LIVE Multiplayer 2, HD (High Definition). Upgrade to the full version of Go! Go! Break Steady and unlock all 30 rounds of the Break Steady Tournament. Play solo, cooperate with friends, or challenge the world with your rhythm and smarts!
Buy now to experience high-flying platform gaming combined with extreme stunt driving action in GripShift! Test your reflexes and bend your brain as you stunt your way through 120 insane, twisting Challenge Mode levels. Or deploy an arsenal of funky weapons and go head-to-head across 25 Race Mode tracks and 20 Deathmatch arenas. GripShift is a gravity-defying thrill ride you need to own today.
An intense cyberpunk RPG on the red planet! Mars War Logs takes you to Mars, nearly a century after the cataclysm that threw the planet and its colonists into chaos. Water has become the most precious resource on the arid red planet, with a few companies fighting a perpetual war for its control. In the middle of this struggle, play as Roy, a renegade with multiple talents who finds himself dragged in an epic story where every choice counts. Develop your character and your combat style by choosing among many skills and perks: melee, ranged combat, stealth, or the devastating Technomants powers.
Craft armors and weapons, recruit companions to help you in your quest, and plunge in a thrilling adventure offering a huge variety of quests. In dynamic, real-time combat, face formidable opponents and the most fearsome creatures of Mars. The fate of all colonies of Mars now lies in your hands…
How to install and play Xbox 360 backward compatible games on your Xbox One
Disc: For disc-based games that are a part of the Back Compat game catalog, simply insert the disc and the console will begin downloading the game to your hard drive. After the game has finished downloading, you will still need to keep the game disc in the drive to play.
Digital: The digital titles that you own and are part of the Back Compat game catalog will automatically show up in the "Ready to Install" section on your Xbox One, and once they are installed they will show up in the Games section of your Xbox One.
Microsoft Channel Chief Phil Sorgen moved into a new position within Microsoft last month. He transitioned from his previous role as corporate vice president of Worldwide Partner Group to a new role at Microsoft as corporate vice president of U.S. Enterprise and Partner Group. Following his transition, Gavriella Schuster, General Manager, WW Partner Programs was announced as interim vice president of Worldwide Partner Group until the permanent replacement is hired.
Today, Microsoft announced that Gavriella Schuster has been named the new Corporate Vice President for Microsoft's Worldwide Partner Group (WPG).
"There has never been a more exciting time to help our partners capitalize on the explosive demand for cloud services," Schuster says. "Our partners are vital in helping us deliver on our promise to customers, and I'm deeply committed to helping them build successful businesses in support of our mutual customers."
During her 20-year Microsoft career, Schuster has successfully managed and deployed program and product initiatives as well as licensing, pricing and go-to-market strategies. During her tenure she has delivered consistently high business growth through the commercial segments, ranging from small businesses to global enterprises.
At Microsoft, Schuster has led sales and marketing teams across the Server and Cloud business, the Windows Client Commercial business, Enterprise Services, licensing sales and marketing, field business development, training initiative development, segment marketing, worldwide partner marketing and training strategies, and worldwide operations. Through all of her experiences, partners have been at the core.
Serif Ltd today announced the beta release of Windows version of its award-winning vector design program Affinity Designer. You'll need Windows 7 64-bit and above to run this program. This Windows version is basically a replica of their app which is already available on Mac. It comes with 100% file compatibility with Mac edition, so it should improve adoption and file sharing ability for everyone in the future.
In the latest preview build of Windows 10, a file named UpgradeSubscription.exe was spotted inside Windows directory. Time stamp of the file shows that it was created last week and description says "Windows Upgrade to Subscription Tool". Does this mean Microsoft is working on a subscription service for Windows similar to Office 365? ZDNet spoke with Microsoft and got the following response,
The Windows Upgrade to Subscription tool, found in the latest Windows Insider builds, helps to manage certain volume licensing upgrades from Windows 10 Pro Anniversary Update to Windows 10 Enterprise. This binary file is not associated with the free consumer upgrade offering nor is it applicable to consumer Windows editions.
Microsoft is not willing to share any other info regarding this tool at the moment. As free upgrade to Windows 10 ends next month, do you think Microsoft will come up with a subscription plan for consumers allowing them to upgrade to Windows 10 and have latest updates all the time?
Microsoft released a new build of Windows 10 for the Release Preview ring just yesterday. The released build 10586.456 (KB3170411) to Insiders yesterday on both PC and Mobile. As usual, the update doesn't introduce any new features, but it includes several bug fixes and improvements. Today, Microsoft shared the official changelog for build 10586.456. According to the changelog, Microsoft has improved reliability for some of the key features of Windows, including the Windows Explorer, Kernel, Miracast, and the Windows Media Player. Here is the full changelog:
Improved reliability in a number of areas including Windows Media player, Internet Explorer 11, Windows Explorer, Miracast, and Windows kernel.
Fixed an issue with some users noticing a black screen instead of the lock screen, when resuming from connected standby.
Fixed issue where the DirectAccess Disconnect button appears sometimes even when the connection is not fully established.
Fixed issue where local user accounts weren't locked out after a number of failed sign in attempts.
Improved support for playback of video in certain applications that did not render the video while the audio continued after resuming from sleep.
Fixed issue where the Windows Phone sometimes loses user authentication certificates after upgrading to Windows 10 Mobile.
Improved support to honor the data backup settings of applications on Windows 10 Mobile.
Fixed issue where Microsoft Silverlight based application won't install on Windows 10 Mobile, after joining Azure Active Directory.
Fixed additional issues in .NET, Windows Kernel, Windows Update, Authentication, revised daylight saving time, support for PDF files, Bluetooth, Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer, Networking and Wi-Fi connectivity.
As you may notice, Microsoft has also fixed a few issues on Windows 10 Mobile wth build 10586.456. It is worth noting that this build will be coming to the public if it passes internal testing and Microsoft doesn't find any critical bugs. If this happens, Microsoft may release this to the public next Tuesday for both PC and Mobile.
While WhatsApp updated its Windows app late last night to introduce quote support for replies and a slightly redesigned UI, it also introduced a bug into the app.
Users will note that the new multi-select feature added in the last updated was buggy, and when invoked would render the chat screen unresponsive until the back button was pushed to return to the WhatsApp home.
WhatsApp has pushed out a new build of their app to resolve this, so if you're still experiencing any issues, it may be worth updating your app from the store.
The version number is 2.16.108 and you can find it here.
2K games today announced that BioShock: The Collection is coming to Xbox One and PC on Sep 13th.
Working with Blind Squirrel Games, they have remastered BioShock, BioShock 2, and BioShock Infinite for Xbox One and PC making them look better than ever. BioShock: The Collection brings the three titles together for the first time, complete with all single-player DLC and a never-before-seen video series, "Director's Commentary: Imagining BioShock," which includes insights from Ken Levine – over $100 of content – for only $59.99. The bundled content for BioShock: The Collection includes:
BioShock:
The video series, "Director's Commentary: Imagining BioShock," featuring Ken Levine, creative director on BioShock and BioShock Infinite and Shawn Robertson, animation lead on BioShock and animation director on BioShock Infinite.
Museum of Orphaned Concepts: Walk through a Rapture-inspired virtual museum that gives you a behind-the-scenes look at discarded concepts that never made it into the original game.
Challenge Rooms: Outside the story of BioShock, tackle puzzles, splicers and Big Daddies. And achievements, of course.
BioShock 2 (**Multiplayer will not be included)
Minerva's Den: A self-contained BioShock story, presenting a side of Rapture you've never seen before. Use expanded combat abilities with the experimental Ion Laser and chaotic Gravity Well Plasmid, unique to Minerva's Den, as you face off against the Lancer Big Daddy.
Protector Trials: Take control of an Alpha Series Big Daddy woken out of hibernation just before the events of BioShock 2.
BioShock Infinite:
Burial at Sea – Episode 1 & 2 Add-On Packs: This major two-part DLC pack completes the BioShock trilogy by taking the series back to where it all began. Return to Rapture just before the events of the original BioShock!
Clash in the Clouds Add-On Pack: Face 60 waves of challenges across four additional maps for leaderboard glory and unlock areas to explore in The Columbian Archaeological Society hub museum.
Columbia's Finest Pack: Combines the contents of the Industrial Revolution Pack and the Upgrade Pack and includes 500 Silver Eagles, five Lock Picks, six unique Gear items, and two weapon upgrades: Comstock's China Broom Shotgun and Comstock's Eagle Eye Sniper Rifle.
PC cult classic Kerbal Space Program will be making its way to the Xbox One and Playstation 4 next month.
The game allows users to design and assemble space craft, either in a freeform sandbox, or in science or career modes, in which you research tech to advance and manage the entire space program for your Kerbals, and even explore other planets.
Squad has said the game should hit the consoles in July 2016.
