In the News

Microsoft believes its Windows Phone and Windows 10 Mobile ecosystem has enough apps in the Windows Store to convince an Android handset user to switch to its platforms. The company has released an Android app called AppComparison to help an Android user find alternatives for all their favourite Android apps they use on Microsoft’s mobile platforms.

Windows 10 is poised to become the most widely installed version of Windows ever, following on the path of Windows XP and Windows 7 before it, according to Gartner, Inc. Gartner predicts that 50 percent of enterprises will have started Windows 10 deployments by January 2017. “In the consumer market, a free upgrade coupled with broad legacy device support and automatic over-the-air upgrades ensures that there will be tens of millions of users familiar with the operating system (OS) before the end of 2015,” said Steve Kleynhans, Research Vice President at Gartner.

New data from Strategy Analytics, published shows that Windows tablets, from entry level devices to the flagship Surface Pro are rapidly gaining in popularity. Microsoft has finally got its formula right and consumers are starting to take interest in its tablets. Shipments are already up 58 per cent this year and represent 10 per cent of the market, and, according to research firm Strategy Analytics, this growth could lead to Microsoft and Microsoft-powered devices accounting for 18 per cent of tablet sales by 2019, just behind Apple on 23 per cent.

Microsoft Corp. and Volvo Car Group, are working together to bring Microsoft’s HoloLens augmented-reality goggles to Volvo showrooms next year to spruce up safety-feature demonstrations, car customization — and yes, test drives. In a prototype demonstration at Microsoft’s headquarters in Redmond, Washington, the companies used HoloLens to show off Volvo’s new S90 mid-size luxury sedan, announced in September and set to be unveiled to the public at this year’s Detroit Auto Show.

Earlier this year, Microsoft invited a group of science fiction writers into its research department, giving them unfettered access to its people and resources with the purpose of inspiring a collection of short stories. That collection — titled Future Visions: Original Science Fiction Stories Inspired by Microsoft — is now out, featuring stories from nine award-winning authors on topics from translation to teleportation.

Enterprise customers will also be interested in the next generation of Dynamics AX, which has been redesigned for cloud and integrated with machine learning and Power BI capabilities. The flagship ERP software, now available for public preview, has also undergone a user experience overhaul to emphasize productivity. Microsoft also delivered its fourth technical preview for Windows Server 2016, which now includes Hyper-V container support.

With its new smartphone OS, Microsoft has doubled down on the productivity message, crafting a utilitarian OS with occasional flashes of magic—most notably its new PC-like Continuum feature. Windows 10 ties together phones, PCs, and tablets far more seamlessly than, say, the Apple MacBook and iOS. Own a PC and a Windows phone, Microsoft seems to say, and you’ll be far more productive than if you owned any other platform.

Pantel Technologies has launched a Windows 10 tablet called Penta T-Pad WS802X. The tablet launched exclusively in partnership with Intel and Microsoft is priced at Rs 5,499.Penta T-Pad WS802X has an 8-inch (1280x800p) IPS display and is powered by 1.3GHz Intel Atom quad-core processor and 1GB RAM. The tablet comes with 16GB of internal storage and can support microSD card of up to 64GB.

Microsoft could be about to bring desktop Windows apps (known as Win32 programmes) to Windows 10 Mobile phones running in Continuum mode, according to Kevin Gallo, vice president of the Windows developer platform. CEO Satya Nadella has publicly stated that Continuum is aimed at countries that are “smartphone only,” replacing the need for a PC with a portable device that can be taken anywhere and do things beyond work.

Microsoft and Hewlett Packard Enterprise are broadening their partnership to sell business applications and storage tools. The companies said that they would jointly build industry-specific business applications for Windows 10, Microsoft’s new operating system. They also announced a slate of new business information technology advisory services to sell both companies’ suite of business tools to potential clients.