Microsoft

Microsoft's promotional pricing for its new Windows 8 operating system (OS) has come to an end. However, the company has announced that, starting February 1, 2013, students in the United States will have access to a special Windows 8 upgrade rate. ... Microsoft on Wednesday announced that the deal will allow students to purchase the Windows 8 upgrade edition for just $69.99. Students can access the bargain by visiting the Microsoft Store. Windows Campus Tour to Visit 150 Universities To promote the deal, Microsoft says that, starting February 18, it will be kicking off a Windows Campus Tour. That ... (view more)

After months of hype, Microsoft has finally released a subscription edition of Office 365. The new package represents a huge change from the past, when consumers simply bought a physical copy of the Office software and installed it on their machine ... using a disc. Instead, buying Office 365 means signing up to pay an annual subscription fee. Currently, it costs $99 for the Office 365 Home Premium edition. Subscribers will automatically receive any software updates released during this time (and this could include significant new features in addition to bug and security fixes). Access Your ... (view more)

According to a new report, Microsoft's Surface Pro tablet, which costs almost $900 and is due for release on February 9, 2013, suffers from some serious disk space problems. Specifically, the software that ships with the device leaves precious ... little room for a user's own software. In a new report, CNET says that, out of the box, the $899 64GB edition of the Surface Pro provides users with only 23GB of available storage space. CNET says it learned that information from Microsoft itself. Microsoft also admits that the $999 128GB version of the Surface Pro suffers from this issue. When first ... (view more)

Microsoft has revealed it plans to expand its range of Surface tablet computers. The Redmond, Washington-based firm says that building multiple Surface devices will increase the number of consumers who can afford to purchase the product. The ... revelations came during an investors conference call to discuss Microsoft's latest financial figures. The company's chief financial officer, Peter Klein, said the Surface range of tablet PCs had been one of the three main reasons -- alongside Windows upgrades and licensing to businesses -- that Microsoft's revenue has increased. According to Klein, when ... (view more)

Several prominent privacy groups say they're now concerned about the amount of user information that Skype, purchased by Microsoft in October 2011 for $8.5 billion, is collecting and sharing with other parties. In a recent open letter to Microsoft ... officials, a large number of privacy groups, including the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), Reporters Without Borders, and GreatFire.org, have pressed Microsoft to publicly discuss exactly how much Skype user information it currently shares with third parties. The letter makes clear that those third parties to which Microsoft is handing private ... (view more)

Microsoft has announced its Surface Pro tablet computer will be available for purchase in the United States and Canada starting Saturday, February 9, 2013. The Surface Pro is an enhanced version of the standard Surface tablet PC that Microsoft ... released late in 2012. The original Surface, called the Surface RT , runs Windows RT, a trimmed-down version of Windows 8. Priced at $499 (and up), the Surface RT's hardware specifications include 16GB or 32GB of main storage, 2GB of RAM, and an ARM-architecture processor. Surface Pro: Core i5 CPU, Windows 8 Pro The Surface Pro, by contrast, includes ... (view more)

Upgrading from an older Microsoft operating system (OS), like Windows 7, to Windows 8 is about to get a whole lot more expensive. The changes are set to take effect on February 1, 2013. Right now, it costs just $39.99 to upgrade from Windows 7, ... Windows Vista, or Windows XP to Microsoft's newest OS, Windows 8. People who tried beta versions of Windows 8 can also upgrade from that test edition to the commercial release of the new OS for the same price. This promotional price was first announced last July, several months prior to Windows 8's October 2013 launch. (Source: zdnet.com ) Upgrading ... (view more)

A hacker has figured out how to run Windows 8 software on the Windows RT operating system, installed on Microsoft's Surface and other tablet computers. According to the hacker, any differences between Windows RT and Windows 8 are entirely artificial ... and for marketing purposes only. Windows RT is described as similar to Windows 8 but is supposedly designed exclusively for portable devices built around ARM processors. These chips can greatly extend battery life, but are said to lack the computing power needed for a robust operating system like Windows 8. Users of Windows RT notice one major ... (view more)

Microsoft says it has now sold more than 60 million licenses for its new Windows 8 operating system (OS). However, some observers still contend consumers are receiving the new OS more slowly than they did Windows 7. Windows Chief Marketing Officer ... and Chief Financial Officer Tami Reller recently made her announcement about sales of the new OS at a J.P. Morgan Tech Forum that was part of the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Reller claimed the 60 million Windows 8 licenses include those sold directly to home and business users, as well as upgrades and bulk sales to computer ... (view more)

People looking for proof that Microsoft is having a hard time convincing consumers to choose its Surface tablet over the Apple iPad can point to the recent actions of a California cat burglar, who broke into a Microsoft Silicon Valley office and ... stole only Apple products. According to reports, the burglar entered Microsoft's Mountain View, California, research and development center sometime during the company's Christmas break (December 19 to December 26, 2012) and stole five Apple iPads worth a total of $3,000. Reports indicate the thief took two iPad 2s, two iPad 3s, and one iPad 4. The ... (view more)