Items tagged with Metro
T-Mobile has confirmed that beginning in January 2021, it will require all devices on its network to be VoLTE capable. T-Mobile issued a statement that it's trying to reduce the impact of the change to new customers and won't be activating new devices on its network after August 4 that lack VoLTE compatibility. It still puzzling, however, that T-Mobile would confirm that the devices won't work with its network within six months and continue to activate those devices. T-Mobile isn't currently selling devices that lack VoLTE support to new customers and this policy refers to users who bring their own paid-for devices to its network. The carrier says that the change will benefit customers by...
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Since the launch of Metro in Windows 8, Microsoft has iterated on its "Microsoft Design Language" a few times, with MDL2 being the most recent version to grace Windows 10. According to fresh rumor, it looks like a third iteration is en route for Windows 10, and it's called "Project NEON". What NEON ultimately is likely to become is "Metro 2", the overarching design of Windows and its apps (and the Windows Phone UI) that adheres to very strict guidelines. It's modern, clean and attractive. Microsoft's Metro design language was first introduced with Windows 8 While we're still a ways out from "Metro 2" making its debut, it's rumored to iterate on Metro rather than dramatically overhaul...
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In dribbles and drips, we’re (allegedly) learning more about the next Microsoft OS, Windows 9 “Threshold”. The latest bit to leak out is a screenshot that purports to show the new desktop environment, including a remade Start screen. The screen grab comes from My Digital Life forum user DUF_, and you can see that the Start menu is back in force in Windows 9. In addition to having something resembling the traditional look of the Start menu, Microsoft has also added Metro apps to it, which is a reasonable way of unifying the two environments in a much more sensible way than in Windows 8.1. Assuming this is a real shot and not an elaborate fake, it’s yet an early version...
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New rumors on an upcoming release of Windows could be sweet tidings for users who either aren't satisfied with the OS's current state or who have refused to upgrade to the present version. Microsoft is reportedly planning a new release of the operating system, codenamed Threshold -- and it contains two huge changes. According to long-time Windows guru Paul Thurrott, Windows Threshold will offer the following: Metro applications running in windowed mode on the desktop. A genuine Start Menu If true, these are features I'd upgrade for. Hurrah! It's 1987! Let's start with windowed more for Metro applications. One of the improvements to Windows 8.1 was that tiles could be two sizes (up from just one)...
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For months, there've been questions regarding just how secure Skype's encryption was. After Microsoft bought the VOIP company it began moving to a more centralized node structure that made it easier to scale the product but at the cost of intrinsic security. Now, it seems such concerns were valid -- new leaked documents from The Guardian allege that the NSA has an effective backdoor to all of Microsoft's online products including Skype, Outlook, and SkyDrive. While The Guardian doesn't have any slides to show this time around, it suggests that Microsoft has gone beyond the minimal amount of grudging cooperation mandated by law. The company has reportedly helped the NSA "understand" certain alias...
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In 2010, a game came along that should have put to rest the popular meme, "Can it run Crysis?" Despite being graphically superior - it was the first major title to include DirectX 11's tessellation feature - Metro 2033 didn't get the respect it deserved on the graphics front. On the gameplay front, things were different. It was immersive, the world was convincing and never knowing what was right around the corner helped make the game stand out to FPS fans all over. Metro: Last Light looks to replicate all of the successes of the original, both with regards to graphics and gameplay, when it hits the shelves on May 14th. On the official site, it's being described as a game that offers "thrilling...
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It feels like Windows 8 has hardly had time to breathe since being let loose by Microsoft in late October, but already the rumors for the company's next OS, "Windows 9", codenamed "Blue", are beginning to spread. On Chinese forum PCBeta, member and Microsoft alpha/beta tester Maxy has given some insight of where the OS currently stands. For those who are not too happy with what Windows 8 brought to the table, you may not be too pleased with 9, either. According to the post, Windows 9 will share the same Metro interface - or "Modern UI" - as Windows 9. It also appears from the post that the general aesthetics of the OS will remain largely unchanged as well, with no Aero in sight, and...
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There are plenty of great game trailers out there, but the one that just hit YouTube for Metro: Last Light will really make your trigger finger itch. Great graphics are to be expected, but they’re nothing without compelling imagery, and this game has that in spades. Subway tunnels that make you feel claustrophobic? Check. Haunting wreckage that points to an end-of-the-world struggle? Got it. Monsters that make you wonder about the people who thought them up? You bet. Metro: Last Light, which has the tagline “Last Bullet. Last Breath. Last Chance.” is a first-person shooter that follows Metro 2033, a post-apocalyptic story that takes place in Moscow. With the new...
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To help make sure that Windows 8 is as polished as can be when it launches on October 26th, Microsoft will tomorrow being rolling out updates for the OS' built-in apps - more specifically, those inside of the 'Modern UI' interface. A couple of days ago, we relayed the thoughts that Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen had regarding the OS, and at the same time mentioned that a common complaint from consumers is that the OS is "for a tablet". How you update these apps will further that fact, as the Store icon automatically tracks available updates and notifies you when one is available. Once you click (or tap) the icon, you'll be brought to the main Store page which will have an updates option...
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Don't particularly enjoy some of the design decisions Microsoft has made with Windows 8? You're in good company - even Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen finds things to complain about, especially with regards to multi-monitor usage. One of the more common complaints about Windows 8 made by the general public is that it's "made for a tablet", and if that's something that personally drives you nuts, you'll love the fact that every one of Paul's complaints is the direct result of that being the case. Love it or hate it - Metro interface for Windows 8 With multi-monitor setups, Allen finds it challenging to raise the "charms" bar inside of the Metro interface due to the fact that your cursor,...
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The Big 4 may get the lion's share of attention these days, but prepaid carriers are making a serious play for market share, too. Just look at MetroPCS -- it's an operator that few have heard of, but the LTE footprint is large enough to make even Sprint cringe. Today, the prepaid outlet is announcing the LG Motion 4G, which is powered by Android 4.0.4 and can be activated on full-blown plans that start at just $40 per month. Moreover, it supports LTE, and there's a 1.2GHz dual-core CPU, 5MP still camera, 1080p video more and a 3.5" touchpanel. It'll sell for just $150 without a contract, and if you're looking for a solid gift, you can snag another for just $99 after rebate. MetroPCS Delivers...
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When a review of a product is titled Windows 8 review: Yes, it's that bad," there's not much to do but brace yourself and push on. InfoWorld is running one of the first reviews of the operating system's RTM. While we're still two months away from formal launch, it's the version of the OS that'll ship out to customers when the gate opens on October 26th. The author notes that he's spent nearly a year with Windows 8, and that's one point where Microsoft deserves some real credit -- the company's Building Windows 8 blog and multiple pre-release builds have been great. It's a formula we hope the company sticks with when it's time to build Windows 9. As for Windows 8, the complaints hit home exactly...
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Well, this is strange. It seems that "Metro," the design language that just about everyone associated with the 'tiled' system used in Windows Phone and Windows 8, can no longer be used to reference precisely that. As part of some trademark spat, Microsoft has seemingly been forced to ditch what is largely regarded as its most intelligent naming scheme in years for something else. And that "something else" is far less enticing. According to ZDNet, Microsoft is ditching Metro and will instead call those 'tiled' things... Windows 8. Confused yet? You should be. Windows 8 will now be used to refer to what was previously known as Metro. What will the "conventional" desktop be called in Windows 8?...
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Believe it or not, Microsoft is taking a shovel to Metro, with plans to whack it over the head and then then bury it in the desert. How can that be with just a two months to go before Windows 8 reaches general availability, and with the RTM (Release to Manufacturers) now out in the wild? It's simple -- Microsoft is scrapping the Metro name, not the user interface. You can almost hear the 'Aw, shucks!' emanating from Valve and Blizzard. According to various reports, the name change may have something to do with overseas copyright concerns. In a statement to Mary Jo Foley at ZDNet, a Microsoft spokesperson was a bit cagey regarding the reason, saying only "We have used Metro style as a code name...
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At the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC) today, Steve Ballmer formally announced the launch date for Windows 8 -- the OS will be RTM'd (Released To Manufacturing) the first week of August, with an estimated ship date in October. Microsoft's own ARM-flavored Windows 8 Surface will supposedly go on sale "around" that time frame; the company mostly showed off demo units and ultrabooks from the likes of HP, Lenovo, and Acer. Microsoft is forecasting a sales target of 375 million new Windows devices in the next twelve months and took paints at the conference to tell everyone that Surface -- the company's own tablet/ultrabook hybrid -- will only account for a "few million" of those devices....
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Earlier this week, Microsoft principal program manager Chaitanya Sareen dished out information on why Microsoft ultimately decided to kill the Start Menu and replace it with the polarizing Start Screen. According to her, killing the Start Menu wasn't seen as a big deal, given that consumers and businesses had largely stopped using it. We’d seen the trend in Windows 7. When we evolved the taskbar we saw awesome adoption of pinning [applications] on the taskbar. We are seeing people pin like crazy. And so we saw the Start menu usage dramatically dropping, and that gave us an option... So I’m a desktop user, I pin the browser, Explorer, whatever my apps are. I don’t go the Start...
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Want to try out the Windows 8 Metro interface on your Android tablet? Splashtop wants that for you as well. The company previously released a Windows 8 Metro testbed for the iPad back in April, and now it has one for Android devices, which is available in the Google Play Store. To try it out for yourself, you’ll need a PC with the Windows 8 Release Preview installed, but once you have that taken care of, you’ll be able to poke around (pun!) Microsoft’s new touch interface. Swipe from the left for multitask app switching Swiping slowly from the left will two apps side-by-side Among the features available for perusal is swiping to the left to switch apps, pulling up the Charms...
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Ah, the wide world of Windows 8 is opening up even further this week, and in a major way. Computex is the launching ground for quite a few new Win8-based devices, with Asus in particular introducing the Windows RT Tablet. It's a 10.1" convertible device with an optional keyboard dock, using NVIDIA's Tegra 3 quad-core mobile processor. There's plenty of power here, for sure. ASUS didn’t disclose pricing or availability for what they described for now as a product preview, but that seems to be the norm with these Windows 8-based rigs. The companies are aiming for a "no-compromise, touch-first Windows experience," with both NVIDIA and Asus working tightly with Microsoft to perfect the Metro...
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Metro has become quite the buzzword these days, but what does it mean for developers? Microsoft, with only months to go before Windows 8 is released, is taking the chance to address that head-on. In a new post over at the MSDN Blogs, the company has stated that porting apps to Metro will be fairly easy, and the "hardest part is coming up with an app idea." They've laid out a number of valued links that explain how the porting process works, from design goals to migration of web app to Metro app. There's even a section that covers the migration of a Windows Phone app to XAML Metro, as well as WP7 to JavaScript Metro. Sadly, there's no resource listed for XNA or Silverlight porting just yet, but...
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We've been looking forward to Windows 8's Consumer Preview for months. This, after all, is Microsoft's big chance to show what they've been working on and unveiling bit by bit for the past year; a chance to evaluate the sum total of changes and advancements baked into the next-generation operating system. We'll discuss some of the features of Metro and Desktop (aka Classic) separately, but our overall focus will be on how the two environments interact with each other. Metro, Microsoft's new UI, is bold, a dramatic departure from anything the company has previously done in the desktop/laptop space, and absolutely great. It's tangible proof that Redmond really can design and build its own unique...
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We've been looking forward to Windows 8's Consumer Preview for months. This, after all, is Microsoft's big chance to show what they've been working on and unveiling bit by bit for the past year; a chance to evaluate the sum total of changes and advancements baked into the next-generation operating system. We'll discuss some of the features of Metro and Desktop (aka Classic) separately, but our overall focus will be on how the two environments interact with each other. Understanding Metro: Metro, Microsoft's new UI, is bold, a dramatic departure from anything the company has previously done in the desktop/laptop space, and absolutely great. It's tangible proof that Redmond really can design and...
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Get ready to see Firefox like you've never seen it before. Mozilla is working on an all new version of its popular browser for Windows 8, which will include a new Firefox front end and system integration points that will better integrate with the Metro UI environment. It will be a full-screen browser focused on touch interactions, and it will connect to the rest of the Metro environment through Windows 8 contracts, Mozilla says. The rebuilt browser will support three so-called 'snap' states, including full screen, 1/6th screen, and 5/6th screen, which will all depend on how the user docks two full screen apps. Firefox's UI will automatically adjust to present the most relevant content for each...
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