Microsoft Windows Phone handset with Kinect-like gesture support reportedly in the works

Amazon is expected to launch its 3D gesture based smartphone on June 18th. Now, several reports are suggesting that Microsoft is eyeing to introduce Kinect like motion tracking technology in next Windows Phones.

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Skype for iPhone to undergo major facelift within a week

Microsoft has announced that it will soon give Skype for iPhone a major makeover in about a week’s time. The latest 5.0 update will make the Skype app for iPhone five times faster than the current app along with fewer lags.

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Nokia Lumia 630 Camera Samples

lumia-630-camera-samples

The Lumia 630 Dual SIM  from Nokia is one of the first devices to be launched with Windows Phone 8.1 out of the box, and of course, with a Dual SIM setup. It is a direct successor to the Lumia 620, but takes a different route in terms of the pricing strategy, moving closer to the Lumia 520 rather than the 620. Priced at Rs. 11,500, the device comes with a 5 megapixel camera, but without a LED flash or a secondary microphone to support it. Nokia have clearly gone for price conscious sourcing here, but will the performance beat our expectations? Here is our camera review that will answer this question, but skip past the video to find the full resolution samples.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxweFjx_b3w

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Microsoft to debut Skype Translator app with Real-Time Speech Translation by the end of 2014

In a bid to connect people from different continents with different language, Microsoft is bringing real-time speech translation functionality to Skype by the end of this year. The feature was demonstrated by Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella at Re/code’s Code Conference in the US.

Skype Translator
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Microsoft’s Surface mini was killed off at the last minute, says report

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Microsoft’s plans for introducing a smaller version of the Surface were killed off at the last minute, according to a report from Bloomberg. Initial reports claimed that Microsoft was all set to introduce a 8 inch Surface tablet, tailored for note taking. It was definitely in a bid to compete against all the other small tablets, but Satya Nadella, the Chief Executive Officer at Microsoft, and Stephen Elop, heading the Devices and Services group, had apparently decided to kill the “almost-ready” tablet since it purportedly didn’t prove to be different enough to be a hit, in their eyes. That’s obviously a bold position, considering the product was reportedly in the works already.

What Microsoft really announced – Surface Pro 3 with a 12″ screen

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Microsoft Surface Pro 3 announced: 12″ screen, 9.1mm, Inking and starts at 799$

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The Surface Pro 3 has officially been unveiled at Microsoft’s event today, in New York. The latest addition to the family of Windows 8 powered devices from the company has decidedly gone larger with a 12 inch screen, gotten a lot thinner at 9.1mm and relatively lighter at 800g, for its size. This will officially succeed the Surface Pro 2, which was just a rehash of the original, with improvements mainly under the hood, and of course, the kick stand. The Surface Pro 3 on the other hand, is almost a whole new device, with a shift in ideas and it is indeed pushing the message of a “laptop” replacement a lot harder this time. How? Here is a promo video to get you upto speed, and do go past the break for all the new additions, detailed in text –

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1t7rSZT_77E

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Watch Microsoft unveil new Surface devices live

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Microsoft is all set to unveil its new Surface devices at an event in New York today. Looking from some of the pictures being tweeted from the event, a lot of decorations at the site are related to inking, which is rumoured to get a huge push in the company’s latest push in the tablet market. This means that the Redmond company will unveil the 8 inch variant of the Surface with special inking capabilities, like a Wacom digitizer with stylus on the Surface Pro. Microsoft Research is said to have orchestrated a push for digital inking across microsoft’s services and devices, and we might just start seeing this vision take form, at this live event. If you’re interested on having a look at all the new devices Microsoft is set to launch, here is the live stream – Continue reading “Watch Microsoft unveil new Surface devices live”

Now you can play Assassin Creed Pirates in your browser

Popular mobile game Assassin Creed can now be played as a free game in your browser. Microsoft has teamed up with Ubisoft to bring the game to the web that can be played using either touch input or a mouse and keyboard. The game was launched on Android, iPhone and iPad in December 2013.

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Nokia Lumia 630 with TV tuner launched in Brazil

Lumia 630 Brazil DTV

Nokia released Lumia 630 and Lumia 630 dual sim in India earlier this month. These devices are the first one to be shipped with latest Windows 8.1.  The company has launched a special edition of the Lumia 630 smartphone in Brazil with an additional feature of built-in television receiver.

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Microsoft adds two more OEMs to the Windows Phone lineup – Blu and Amagatarai K-Touch

windows-phone-oem-blu-k-touchMicrosoft had some strategic announcements during the Mobile World Congress, in which they announced the addition of new OEM partners that had signed up for making Windows Phone devices. Some of the new additions were Indian manufacturers like Lava, Xolo, Karbonn and later Micromax. In that lineup, we have two more OEMs added to the lineup today, and they are BLU and K-Touch. BLU is possibly the Micromax of the US while K-Touch is known for being an OEM as well as a ODM, which does contract manufacturing for other companies. The addition of these two new OEMs means a wider range of Windows Phone 8.1 devices that are all set to be released in the coming months. Will the third ecosystem finally pick up some steam?

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LG Uni8 Running Windows Phone 8.1 Leaked

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If today’s leak is to be believed, LG might be getting ready to re-enter the Windows Phone device market with it’s new device dubbed the LG Uni8. The first smartphone from LG running Microsoft’s mobile operating system since their effort on WP7, the LG Uni8 seems to be using capacitive buttons. This lines up with the theory that certain hardware requirements were lifted from the chassis spec to allow OEMs to easily port Windows Phone 8.1 to existing hardware. Continue reading “LG Uni8 Running Windows Phone 8.1 Leaked”

Microsoft planning to launch fitness focused smartwatch?

Microsoft is the latest company that is entering the wearable market which is flooded with devices from companies like Samsung, Pebble, and others. The software and tech giant has patented a smartwatch which highlights fitness tracing.

microsoft smartwatch patent
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Microsoft’s Surface mini reportedly uses a Qualcomm processor

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Microsoft is all set to unveil the Surface mini, a 8 inch Windows tablet at an event in New York City on the 20th of May. It is just 13 more days until the announcement, and we don’t even know how it looks, but are finally starting to see some bits and pieces of information floating around the internet. Bloomberg’s Dina Bass reports that the Surface Mini will come with a Qualcomm processor, unlike its bigger brothers Surface RT and Surface 2, which run on rival Nvidia’s chips. Nokia was the only other OEM to come out with a ARM based Windows tablet in 2013, which coincidentally ran on the Qualcomm Snapdragon processor.

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Nokia completes sale of Device & Services business to Microsoft

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Announced first on 3rd September 2013, the sale of Nokia’s Devices & Services business to Microsoft is now complete. With the completion of the deal, Nokia will cease to manufacture smartphones and will also transfer the Asha and Lumia brand name to Microsoft. The Finnish company will retain the name Nokia and will be allowed to use it on feature phones. Continue reading “Nokia completes sale of Device & Services business to Microsoft”

Nokia to complete it’s sale to Microsoft on 25th April

nokia-microsoft-acquisition

The long drawn affair of Nokia’s sale to Microsoft will finally come to a close on 25th April. Having received the go ahead from all regulatory bodies, the company today announced that the transaction will finally be completed on 25th April when Nokia Oy will be rebranded as Microsoft Mobile Oyj. The acquisition is meant to help Microsoft have a stronger foothold in the mobile space and to help push adoption of Windows Phone running devices. As is evident, it is also a push towards using Microsoft services which was also seen on the Android based Nokia X.  Continue reading “Nokia to complete it’s sale to Microsoft on 25th April”