Awesome Microsoft

Microsoft turned up at E3 2019 not with an actual new console, but with a description of what they’re working on. The next-gen system will support up to 8K resolution, 120fps, real-time ray tracing, packs a custom SSD to reduce load times, and will play thousands of titles from prior-gen Xboxes. Drops late 2020.

While Excel is a great tool for calculations, it’s also a wonder at crunching data and analyzing it. Learn to get the most out of the spreadsheet with this online training covering data manipulation, analytics, and visualization. Another great deal from The Awesomer Shop.

Who would’ve thought that the coolest ugly sweater would come from Microsoft? Over the holidays, the software giant gave away Windows 95 sweaters to folks who tweeted messages love for their OS. We hope they bring it back so more of us can have one.

Microsoft’s Project xCloud is an upcoming video game streaming service that will allow people to play Xbox One games on their PC, tablets or phones. It will work with the Xbox One controller and supports streaming via 4G connections. Public tests will begin in 2019.

Microsoft improves its premium all-in-one PC. It’s faster, and the Surface Studio 2’s 28″, 4500 x 3000 resolution touchscreen display is now brighter and has more contrast. Its storage maxes out with a 2TB SSD, while its GPU can be either a GTX 1060 or a GTX 1070.

Microsoft’s powerful and beautiful Surface Laptop has been upgraded with 8th gen Intel CPUs, twice as much RAM – now 8GB – on the base model and improved cooling. Its unique alcantara cover now comes has a slick matte black option.

Xbox and Make-A-Wish’s Consoles for Kids charity auction lets you bid for one-of-a-kind autographed and custom painted Xbox One X consoles, each one signed by a celebrity or game developers. All of the proceeds go to Make-A-Wish. The auction runs until 10/3/18.

Microsoft’s Xbox All Access is a subscription plan that lets you own an Xbox One X or Xbox One S, 24 months of Xbox Live Gold and 24 months of Xbox Game Pass for a low monthly fee that you pay spread over 2 years. There’s no upfront cost.

Microsoft is out to make tablets look like a bad deal with the new Surface Go. It’s a Windows-based 2-in-1 that has a 10″ 1800×1200 screen, 9h battery life, a USB-C port, and a microSD slot. It will be available starting 7/10/18 for $399. An LTE model will arrive late 2018.

Quick Look is one of the most useful features on Macs, letting you preview a file’s content just by pressing the spacebar while you’re on a Finder window. Paddy Xu’s QuickLook imports the exact same feature to Windows 10. It works with both documents and media files.

Microsoft might have hung up its mobile OS ambitions for now, but that didn’t stop 4096 from envisioning what things might have been like if they decided to port one of their most popular operating systems ever directly to smartphone screens.

The Xbox Adaptive Controller is a plug-and-play Xbox One and Windows 10 controller for gamers with limited mobility. It has two large programmable buttons, a large d-pad, two USB ports, and 19 3.5mm inputs for plugging in adaptive switches. Drops 2018 for $100.

The Surface Hub 2 was designed to help teams collaborate and communicate. It’s a PC with a 4K 50.5″ touchscreen display that can be used in landscape or portrait. Up to four Hub 2s can be connected to each other, and multiple Windows users can log in to access their files.

Microsoft Research shows off a tabletop mat that uses capacitive sensors and near-field communication (NFC) to detect the shape and position of objects, as well as touch, and gestures above its surface. It could be used for interactive games and other tangible interfaces.

The latest version of Microsoft’s high-end laptop/tablet hybrid now comes in a 15″ model alongside the 13.5″. Both models are equipped with the 8th gen Intel Core i5/i7 CPUs. The 13.5″ can be bought with a GTX 1050 GPU, while the 15″ can have a GTX 1060.

Costing just as much as the standard Xbox One X, the console’s limited Project Scorpio Edition has a graphic pattern on the exterior and “Project Scorpio” printed on the console and the included controller. It also comes with an exclusive vertical stand.

MS Paint is dead, long live MS Paint! With the arrival of Paint 3D, Microsoft will no longer update or support its predecessor. Lazy Game Reviews traces the origins and evolution of the beloved application, which started as a clone of a Mac program.

Order a custom Xbox Wireless Controller for the Xbox One and Windows PCs. You can customize 8 different sections of the controller. They recently added new colors, metallic finishes and rubberized grips. You can even engrave up to 16 characters free of charge.

Microsoft’s next console sports an 8-core CPU, a 6-teraflop GPU, 12GB of GDDR5 RAM, and a 1TB HDD. It can run games in 4K HDR at 60fps, plays 4K HDR Blu-Ray discs, and is compatible with Xbox One games and accessories. Launches 11/7/17. Amazon pre-order page here.

What could have been the Surface Pro 5 does away with the numbers. The new model has a more versatile hinge, up to 2.5x faster CPU, quieter cooling, and up to 13.5 hours of battery life. It’s compatible with the Surface Dial and the new Surface Pen is much more capable.

Web developer unt1tled made his own virtual assistant based on Windows’ Cortana. What makes it stand out is that he built an accompanying holographic image by reflecting a custom-made 3D animation from a monitor to three panes of glass.

The successor to Windows Movie Maker. Story Remix analyzes the location, subject and more about your photos and videos so you can create a short film with just a few clicks. It also has lots of easily customizable audio and visual effects. Coming to Windows 10 this fall.

A $10/mo. video game subscription service for Xbox One. Unlike PlayStation Now and other similar services, Xbox Game Pass will let you download games so you can play offline. If you want to own a game that’s in its catalog, you can buy it at 20% off. Launches Spring 2017.