Items tagged with Micro
Remember that neat little Micro 3D printer that we covered a few days ago? The one that was looking for $50,000 in funding via its Kickstarter campaign? It was doing well out of the gate, nabbing about $1 million on its first day, but that frenetic pace has not abated much. The current total in pledges is at $2.28 million and counting, and the campaign still has 25 days left to go. The Micro 3D Printer’s appeal is obvious. It promises incredibly simple functionality, at least reasonable quality, a small size to fit comfortably in the home or office, and--most importantly--a relatively low price point. It appears that the Micro 3D Printer could cost as little as $299, but that number is...
Read more...
In the race to drive down costs for and increase the capabilities of 3D printers, the team behind the Micro 3D printer believe they’re among the frontrunners. The Micro is designed to be inexpensive and incredibly easy to use while also offering reliability and consistency. “It is the most affordable 3D printer that can be used right out of the box. Perfect for beginners and experts alike, just plug in the printer, download or create models, hit print, and watch your custom creations form right before your eyes,” reads the team’s Kickstarter pitch. The Micro features auto leveling and auto calibration with a Micro motion chip; it’s quiet and consumes little power;...
Read more...
Microsoft introduced its latest Zune models, as well as the version 3.0 update of its software in September. And here we are, already facing a price cut, and a pretty good one at that. Although Microsoft would like to call it a holiday price cut, one would have to wonder if the difficult economy, which has led to some pretty sad forecasts from retailers, has anything to do with this.Just FYI, these cuts are only for flash-based Zunes and accessories. According to the official Zune blog, the prices, starting tomorrow, will be as follows:Zune 4GB - $99.99 (-$30)Zune 8GB - $139.99 (-$10)Zune 16GB - $179.99 (-$20)Car Pack - $69.99 (-$10)Home/AV Pack - $59.99 (-$20)Dock Pack - $39.99 (-$10)Note that...
Read more...
Malware writers sobbed Tuesday as Microsoft announced that it will cease sales of its security product, Windows Live OneCare, as of June 30th, 2009. Instead, Microsoft announced that it would begin shipping a free product, codenamed "Morro," in the second half of 2009. The new offering will be less of a resource hog, according to the press release, which would obviously enable Microsoft to protect PCs in developing nations more effectively. In other words, they want to make sure they have some sort of product covering all the security holes in their OSes. But seriously, let's face it, the product never really gained a large market share, as it was buggy and performed poorly in various antivirus...
Read more...
Like many enthusiast system manufacturers, Velocity Micro makes hand-built, high-end gaming rigs using the latest components, such as Intel’s Core i7 processors. Velocity Micro claims that they pride themselves on their extensive customization options, meticulous assembly procedures, a technically trained staff, and in-house US-based support.Velocity Micro offers two series of gaming rigs—the Raptor and Edge series. The Raptor is “the best of the best” with more customization and tweaking options along with higher-end specs. The Raptor line offers two models: the Raptor Signature Edition (starting at $5,499) and the Raptor Z90 (starting at $3,599). The Edge series is also geared...
Read more...
Whenever AMD or Intel release a new processor and chipset platform, you can bet there’s going to be a good amount of excitement surrounding the release, along with anticipation as we eagerly await the arrival of systems that incorporate the new technologies. Velocity Micro’s new Edge Z55 Intel Core i7 Gaming System is out and we’ve had the chance to run it through our tests to see just how it stacks up. As you’ll see, the new Intel Core i7 CPU and X58 chipset enables the Velocity Micro Edge Z55 Gaming System to hold its own against the elite PCs of just a few months ago.The new Core i7 brings with it new chipsets, motherboards, and a new LGA1366 processor socket. What sets the Core i7 processor...
Read more...
In an attempt to gain a stronger foothold in internet "cloud", Microsoft has revamped their Windows Live services with new applications and third-party integration. By providing a hub for web access to e-mail, instant messaging, photos, and other web applications, Microsoft hopes to enhance the consumer experience by consolidating the digital content scattered throughout the PC. Not only is it a one-stop interface for users, but it also hopes to be the point of contact between friends. This service puts Microsoft into competition with social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace. “Our customers have friends across the Web. They communicate through many unconnected...
Read more...
It's no secret that most radio talk shows have a slight delay before a caller's audio reaches the air. The obvious reason: to make sure no "f-bombs" reach the sensitive ears of the public --- or the FCC. Well, Microsoft has been awarded a patent that might eliminate the need for that delay. The patent, 7437290, is for "Automatic censorship of audio data for broadcast" was first filed in 2004. Here's how it's described: An input audio data stream comprising speech is processed by an automatic censoring filter in either a real-time mode, or a batch mode, producing censored speech that has been altered so that undesired words or phrases are either unintelligible or inaudible. The automatic censoring...
Read more...
Microsoft Kicks Off Competition for Developers Who “Dare to Dream Different”Contest provides developers with opportunity to create simple yet powerful embedded devices based on the .NET Micro Framework. REDMOND, Wash. - Microsoft Corp. today announced a call for entries for the Microsoft Dare to Dream Different challenge, a skills-based competition for software developers to design and build innovative devices on the Microsoft .NET Micro Framework, Microsoft’s smallest embedded platform for resource-constrained devices. The Microsoft Dare to Dream Different competition is designed to recognize the many unique and creative ways that developers can use the .NET Micro Framework to spur the innovation...
Read more...
Earlier this month Steve Ballmer spoke about a cloud-based development environment, though he wouldn't go into detail, saving it for the Professional Developers Conference (PDC) at the end of this month. However, a look at the PDC sessions on Wednesday would have revealed a possible clue to the name of it: Windows Strata. There were eight sessions tagged with Windows Strata early on Wednesday. If you checked back later in the day, you would have seen that tag vanish from the list of PDC sessions, however. Ooops. The eight sessions originally tagged Strata were also tagged Cloud Computing, and that is where they sit now. Yes, yes, we know strata is a geological term, but our guess is it's a take-off...
Read more...
At a conference in London on Wednesday, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer told attendees that Microsoft later this month will show off its new development environment for Internet-based applications dubbed "Windows Cloud."Now, it was already expected that Microsoft would show its cloud-based developer platform at the Professional Developer's Conference (PDC) toward the end of the month. However, the terminology, "Windows Cloud," hadn't been used before. Windows Cloud is a separate project from Windows 7, and is an OS targeted at those developing for cloud computing. Ballmer was pretty close-mouthed about it, saying he didn't want to ruin the announcement. What he was clear on was that Microsoft doesn't...
Read more...
The third ad in Microsoft's massive ad campaign designed to enhance the image of the company and Windows has hit the web. If you remember, the first ad featured Jerry Seinfeld stumbling upon Bill Gates shopping in a Shoe Circus store for some discount shoes. The second ad also featured Bill and Jerry, but this time as houseguests trying to connect with an ordinary family.The first couple of ads didn't resonate well with the general populace, however, and Seinfeld has been nixed--at least for now... This latest ad (finally) directly addresses Apple's "Get a Mac" ads, and features a myriad of Windows users saying that they're PCs, and talking about what they do with their systems. The ad isn't...
Read more...
Large corporations, universities, and research labs have relied on high-performance computers (HPC)--or "supercomputers"--for years to solve complex problems in science, engineering, financial modeling, and other similar uses requiring advanced, heavy-duty computations. The high cost of these systems and their complexity have often kept them out of the hands of smaller companies, institutions, and departments that don't have the budget or resources to purchase and maintain them. Cray ("The Supercomputer Company"--yes, that supercomputer company) in partnership with Microsoft, hope to rectify that with today's announcement of an "affordable" supercomputer, the Cray CX1. Credit: Cray...
Read more...
Microsoft and Pioneer Enter Into Patent Cross-Licensing Agreement to Foster Mutual Innovation in Consumer TechnologyAgreement covers a broad range of consumer products for both companies. REDMOND, Wash., and TOKYO — Sept. 16, 2008 — Microsoft Corp. and Pioneer Corp. signed a patent cross-licensing agreement that furthers the development of each company’s product lines and will expand technological innovation to enhance the overall customer experience. The cross-licensing agreement covers a broad range of consumer products, including Pioneer’s auto navigation products and televisions, as well as Microsoft’s software products. The agreement allows greater mutual access to each partner’s respective...
Read more...
Today, Microsoft Hardware introduced NINE innovative new products – all designed with the theme of “Hardware Anywhere.” It's not just about the office. People are using webcams at the coffee shop down the street and laptops on the kitchen counter, and Microsoft is making that experience easier than ever before. Leading the new lineup is a groundbreaking new mouse technology: BlueTrack Technology. This new tracking technology – available only from Microsoft – lets consumers use a mouse almost anywhere and work with confidence on more surfaces than ever before. BlueTrack Technology is better than optical, better than laser, and it allows consumers to mouse on virtually any surface – from a granite...
Read more...
It appears that Microsoft is doing a lot more than having Jerry Seinfeld munching churros and going shoe shopping with Bill Gates to help bolster the company's image. Part of Microsoft's $300 million marketing campaign includes placing Microsoft customer service representatives in select consumer electronics retail outlets across the U.S. Similar in nature to "Apple Geniuses," Microsoft will be placing 155 "Microsoft Gurus" at Best Buy, Circuit City, and similar stores before the end of this year--presumably in time for the holiday shopping season. While the Microsoft Gurus will "be answering questions about PCs and Microsoft products, as well as giving demos of how the company's products work...
Read more...
To think that prior to 2005 there wasn't any page up / page down functionality. After all, that's when Microsoft filed a patent application for "Method and system for navigating paginated content in page-based increments." To be exact, March 4, 2005 was the date of the application, and the patent was granted on Tuesday. And it's:A method and system in a document viewer for scrolling a substantially exact increment in a document, such as one page, regardless of whether the zoom is such that some, all or one page is currently being viewed. In one implementation, pressing a Page Down or Page Up keyboard key/button allows a user to begin at any starting vertical location within a page, and navigate...
Read more...
Let's be honest: even if you use a PC you have to admit the Apple "Get a Mac" ads are hip, funny, and clever. Despite our PVR, we will stop in the middle of a commercial skip and watch a new "Get a Mac" ad. The latest "Get a Mac" ad, "Off the Air," ratchets up the rhetoric somewhat by saying that "fear of switching is the foundation of customer loyalty for PCs." Microsoft's apparently grown weary of these ads and, according to the Wall Street Journal (paid subscription required), Microsoft is ready to unveil a new ad campaign, with the slogan "Windows, Not Walls" as its tagline, and with Jerry Seinfeld as one of the key celebrities involved. Those people say the point is to stress breaking down...
Read more...
Microsoft's Office Labs puts out projects that (hopefully) improve Office. One such early project was "Search Commands" which helps users find Office commands that the Ribbon wants to hide from them. Here's another one, which purports to be a "pause button" for email, but actually offers a lot more than that. It's called Email Prioritizer, and as Microsoft says: Our latest prototype, Email Prioritizer, includes these features: A "Do Not Disturb" button that stops incoming mail delivery so you can work without interruptions. Email priorities are assigned to incoming mail so you can focus on the most important mail first. With a “0-3 stars” ranking system, you can focus on email messages...
Read more...
Early this morning, Microsoft will reveal two new additions to the SideWinder gaming line – the SideWinder X6 Keyboard and SideWinder X5 Mouse. The SideWinder X6 Keyboard is the first gaming keyboard created by Microsoft from the ground up, and the only gaming keyboard on the market with a switchable key pad for powerful versatility. The X6 Keyboard’s key pad does double duty, with connectors on either side of the keyboard that allow gamers to attach it on the right or left side. Mode switching lets gamers manually toggle the keyboard from standard mode to either of two gaming modes, where the Windows Key is deactivated and the key pad becomes a fully-programmable Macro pad. The X6 Keyboard...
Read more...
Is microvideoblogging the next big thing? "Micro-what?" you say. Picture Twitter, but with video posts instead of text. That's microvideoblogging. Now limit each video post to only 12 seconds long, and that's the idea behind 12seconds.tv. Like Twitter, you can post pretty much anything you want, as long as it doesn't violate the site's terms of service (TOS). "12seconds.tv allows friends and family to record and share short video updates about what they are doing or where they are. You can use a webcam or a cellphone. It's a FREE, easy, and fun way to stay in touch." The site is currently in "public alpha," and membership is available by invitation only. You can request a membership login on...
Read more...
It's always amusing to read blog comments and hear just how unpopular Microsoft is. Of course a 90+ percent market share in their core business would seem to indicate a certain level of popularity, but apparently popularity is measured in a different way than simple arithmetic. It really doesn't matter if your average websurfer likes the guy on the left or the guy on the right in the Apple ads, because as we all know, hate is free on the Internet. But it's beginning to cost big companies big bucks to indulge in Microsoft hate in the boardroom. Google hated Microsoft enough to sink a billion dollars into moribund AOL in 2005, likely simply to keep Microsoft from getting any sort of toehold in...
Read more...
