Awesome Microsoft

Microsoft’s HoloLens tech is one of the most promising augmented reality systems we’ve seen. KennyWdev shows off a version of Portal that’s been modded to work with the goggles in the real world. It’s not perfect, but it’s a cool glimpse at the shape of things to come.

The most powerful version of Microsoft’s hybrid portable computer packs a more powerful Intel Core i7 CPU, GTX GeForce 965M GPU, up to 16GB RAM, up to 1TB SSD storage and a battery that lasts up to 16h. It also works with the new Surface Dial control peripheral.

Microsoft’s new all-in-one PC has a 28″ 4500×3000 touchscreen that can be angled nearly flat, and a precision stylus, turning it into a digital drafting table. The $100 Surface Dial (free for the first pre-orders) adds an intuitive way to scroll, zoom and access shortcuts.

It’s been on sale for a couple of months, but now the Xbox One’s starting price has officially been permanently reduced to $299 from $349. The affected bundles are the Name Your Game bundle, the Gears of War bundle and the Quantum Break bundle.

Microsoft’s vision for holographic communication uses a ton of 3D cameras and its HoloLens augmented reality headset. The scanning and transmission of 3D models happens in real time with just a slight lag.

Microsoft’s upstart Garage initiative released Fetch!, a fun iOS app which uses sophisticated AI tech to identify the breed of dogs using photos you upload. It’s pretty accurate when it comes to dogs – though the results when uploading human portraits are pretty silly.

Microsoft reminds Apple what a pro tablet looks like. Like its predecessors, the Surface Pro 4 runs a desktop OS – in this case Windows 10 – and has a (pseudo) optional keyboard cover, which has better spacing and a larger touchpad than the Pro 3.

Microsoft once again improves on the laptop-tablet hybrid. The Surface Book has a 13.5″ 3000×2000 display that can be used as a tablet when undocked from its laptop-grade keyboard. The latter also has additional battery and an optional discrete GPU.

Microsoft and Warner Bros. are giving away 10 Xbox One digital game codes of the Mad Max game and one custom Mad Max-themed Xbox One console. To enter, all you have to do is answer a question on Major Nelson’s blog.

The myriad menus in Microsoft Word can be confusing, so if you’re struggling to change font sizes, watch this brief tutorial from Marek Larwood, who has sorted the whole thing out for us. Assuming you’re working below 16pt.

Microsoft Sway is the new PowerPoint. It’s an easy to use but flexible app for making interactive and embeddable notes, presentations, simple websites and more. Available online, on Windows 10 and on iOS devices. More here.

This limited edition console has features inspired by the new Ford GT, such as the on, off and eject disc car sound effects, for the same price as the new 1TB Xbox One. The controller is also available separately for $65.

Microsoft showed off its augmented reality headset HoloLens by demonstrating a new version of Minecraft made especially for the device. It will let you play on a virtual flat display on walls or project a 3D world on your desk.

The 1TB Xbox One has a matte finish and the updated Xbox One controller, which now has a 3.5mm audio input. A new USB dongle (sold separately) will let you use the controller wirelessly with Windows 10 devices.

Microsoft’s time-lapse smoothing technology is now in open beta. Use the mobile app to create hyperlapses on your Android or Windows phone or get the Windows desktop version for videos taken from a variety of cameras.

Like the Surface Pro 3, the Surface 3 runs the desktop version of Windows 8.1. It has a 10.8″ 1920×1280 touchscreen, an Atom CPU, a USB 3.0 port, DisplayPort and a microSD reader. The keyboard cover and stylus are sold separately.

The foul-mouthed, red-haired squirrel is coming to Xbox One and Windows 8.1 this April, but this time he’s starring in an episodic adventure game built in Microsoft’s Project Spark game engine – which shockingly wasn’t built by Rare.

Microsoft boldly predicts enterprise technology 5 to 10 years from now. Aside from wall-sized and borderless touchscreens, the company imagines we’ll have more mature augmented reality and wearable devices.

The new Outlook app (formerly Acompli) for iOS and Android (beta) supports multiple email providers. It lets you schedule emails for later reading and is integrated to your calendar, OneDrive, Dropbox and Google Drive accounts.

Microsoft offers incentives for Xbox One owners to get a Windows 10 device and vice versa. You’ll be able to stream Xbox One games to a Windows 10 PC or tablet, chat with your Xbox friends and easily record and share gameplay videos.

Microsoft wants to take augmented reality to a whole new level, with see-through goggles which can project full color interactive 3D objects into your field of vision. It’s still a prototype, but early hands-on users are impressed.

A slim smartwatch that tracks heart rate, steps, calories burned, UV exposure, sleep and has a guided workout. It also receives text messages and other notifications, and has a built in GPS. Works w/ Windows Phone, iOS and Android.

Adobe’s concept video shows what it thinks will be the future of its applications in a world filled with touchscreens and mobile devices. The apps shown have convenient multitouch shortcuts and wireless interaction between devices.