For consumers in the United States, the Xbox One X now costs $399, a sizeable $100 reduction from its usual $499 tag. As for the Xbox One X bundled with Fallout 76, there is a $70 discount available. The Xbox One X is Microsoft’s latest gaming machine, billed as the most powerful console ever made. If you are looking for something more affordable than the high-end X, the Xbox One S with Minecraft bundled now costs just $199....
John M. Clark, a cross-domain solution architect for Microsoft, says only large organizations can effectively adopt multi-cloud. The reasons is a lack of leverage to make the most of cost benefits in smaller businesses. “Attempting to play vendors off against each other for advantaged pricing usually doesn’t yield anticipated saving because of current state IT procurement processes. This only works if you are an enormous cloud consumer like Netflix as pricing is fixed based on features, and most companies have insufficient leverage....
Manifest V3 changes the way in which browser extensions work on browsers. Other Chromium-based services, such as Brave, Opera, and Chrome already support the API. Microsoft Edge is the latest to adopt it. Google insists Manifest V3 is meant to boost browser extension performance, improve security, and give users more management options for extensions. Many developers were unhappy with the API because they found it also prevents the use of ad blockers....
According to a report, Microsoft is working on a beta test for an ad-blocker on Edge for Android. With the new feature, Microsoft is introducing a content blocker which will be powered by AdBlock Plus. We guess this means it will be able to block the same ads and have the same capabilities of AdBlock Plus for desktop. On Windows 10, Microsoft Edge users implement AdBlock through the developed extension....
In January, it clocked in at 16 hours versus Google’s 13 and a half during HD video playback. This month, Edge managed 14:20:07 versus Chrome’s 12:32:58. That’s a 14% difference versus 19% in the last test, and 35% in the one before that. In June 2016, there’s was a huge 60% difference. It’s clear that Google is making significant headway via backend changes, while Edge still fails to support many features and extensions....
It is unclear if those services will be replaced or whether Microsoft Endpoint Manager is a standalone suite. The latter seems more likely as the product contains other services. For example, it provides Device Management Admin Center (DMAC) and Desktop Analytics. Furthermore, there is a feature called co-management, which allows devices using SCCM or Intune to be managed. Microsoft has promised Endpoint Manager will include intelligent features such as actions....
The company has announced localized Surface for Business support in Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovenia and Slovakia. This is an effort to expand availability for organizations and education locations in 11 new European markets. David Alexander, senior product manager for Surface, made the announcement through a blog post on Monday. He says the expansion will open on May 1, 2019. He says the Surface Pro 6 and Surface Laptop 2 will be available through business sales distribution....
Microsoft had originally planned to cut off the promotional introduction on March 31st. Outlook Premium subscribers have been enjoying a $19.95 per year offer to sign up for the service. After the cut-off date, new subscribers were expected to pay $49.95, the full price for the service. The premium email service is now still available at the reduced price through June. This is actually very good news. Like most subscription services, Microsoft will automatically take payment to renew the service when the yearly subscription ends....
According to Bloomberg, Microsoft is shipping a batch of “high tech combat goggles” to the US military. Known as Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS), the technology is essentially tweaked versions of the HoloLens and HoloLens 2. The location data from soldiers over a tactical range to provide visualizations of where other soldiers in a squadron are. This will be valuable in low-visibility situations such as in smoke, sandstorms, or jungle....
Scopis has announced a new Holographic Navigation Platform that leverages Microsoft HoloLens. The company says the surgery-focused platform is the first of its kind. It uses mixed reality and uses the headset for minor open and minimally-invasive spine surgery. In a press release to announce the platform, Scopis says it was created to “offer surgeons greater precision, and speed, and better outcomes for patients undergoing open and minimally-invasive spinal procedures....
Before getting to that, there is plenty of back story here. Back in February, Google Project Zero announced it had discovered two zero day vulnerabilities, one in Windows 10 and one in Internet Explorer. Project Zero gives software companies 90 days to fix these issues before going public. Microsoft missed the cut off. The company also cancelled its February Patch Tuesday cumulative updates due to an unnamed late issue. Perhaps this was to concentrate on solving the zero-day vulnerabilities....
For an additional $13, they can upgrade that to an Xbox One X, enabling the latest titles in 4K HDR. Payments happen over the course of 24 months at 0% APR, and you’ll own the console outright at the end. Of course, while all these services would be more expensive individually, it’s unlikely you’d have them two years straight. The value of Game Pass is dependent on its variety over time, and you wouldn’t need Xbox Live Gold if you play primarily single player....
Deceptive UI design, known as ‘dark patterns’, is extremely effective. With users being constantly bombarded by information, the buttons that stand out the most are the ones they’re most likely to click. Microsoft was using this previously, but it’s now switching to more aggressive tactics. Some users, in both the US and Germany, are reporting that the offline account option only shows up when they aren’t connected to the internet....
The information comes from Thurrott’s ever-reliable Brad Sams, who recently published his book on the brand, Beneath a Surface. However, it’s clear that though ARM-based Windows devices have made significant progress, they’re not yet able to provide the same stability and power as Intel. “Make no mistake, the days of everyone using an ARM-powered laptop or desktop is still several years, or longer, away,” said Sams. “…but as both Microsoft and Qualcomm continue to push forward, there is no doubt that they’re making serious progress in terms of performance at the chip and OS level....
Detailed by Twitter user Florian B, Microsoft has already started development of the integration and it is working in some accounts. Florian B was able to access the Google services and screenshot them for his tweet. Users can link their Google Account to Outlook.com, allowing, Gmail, Drive documents, and Google Calendar to appear in Microsoft’s client. When information from those Google services is available, they will be automatically included in Outlook....
Starting with the regular Surface Go. Microsoft says the latest firmware patch solves several security vulnerabilities. Looking at the Surface Go LTE, it receives the same security patches while also getting a fix for a separate security issue that was unique to the device. You can check out the full changelogs below Microsoft releases a new firmware update for the Surface Go, and Surface Go LTE, the most affordable members of the Surface family....
The company usually rolls out Fast Ring releases on a weekly basis, while reserving Slow Ring updates for monthly launches. However, Microsoft has been sporadic with its Windows 10 Slow Ring updates in recent months. Why that has happened is not clear. The company has been working on Fast Ring upgrades for the Creators Update. Indeed, Slow Ring releases have been an afterthought. The last PC release was Windows 10 build 14986 back in December....
Several features have been added to Microsoft Launcher 5.8, including improved app install tools. Users will now see that the Launcher adds new app icons automatically when an application is installed. The icons are added onto the smartphone homescreen. Microsoft says the feature is available for devices running Android 8.0 and newer. Also bundled into Microsoft Launcher 8.8 is integration with Microsoft’s Intune service to IT admins. With this latest beta update, the Launcher works on Intune Fully Managed Devices....
“Today, we are announcing the first AI for Accessibility grantee, Zyrobotics,” Microsoft says. “They are developing unique solutions for accessible science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education, like ReadAble Storiez, that are adaptive to the diverse needs of students. We are thrilled to have them as part of our program and we can’t wait to see the impact they will have!” Zyrobotics is an Atlanta-based will now benefit from funds and guidance coming from the AI for Accessibility program....
In its announcement (delivered via email), Microsoft says the cut-off date for the service is May 1, 2018. Despite that being seven months away, Microsoft is urging users to start saving files now and prepare for the exodus from Mix. If you are unfamiliar with Office Mix, it was a free add-in for PowerPoint. It allowed users to turn presentations in interactive online recordings. Because Microsoft is integrating the same features directly into Office 365, there is no need for the separate extension....
