Special Event: #XboxReveal

Today the Xbox team from Microsoft took the stage to set the timeline for the next generation of living-room entertainment.

Their solution - XBOX ONE

Leveraging their work with Kinect, the system recognizes you and your voice, removing the need for logging in to your gamer tag.  

Fast voice control using what they call "Instant Switching", demo looking very cool.  It will also interact with WindowsPhone 8 devices and use them as remote controls using their SmartGlass system.  

Leveraging Skype for video calls, which can be used at the same time as the other apps in what they are calling "Snap Mode".  Simply saying "Xbox, snap "application name" which will bring it up along side whatever you are doing.

Hardware:

x86 architecture, 8GB RAM, USB 3.0, Blue-Ray drive, Wi-Fi Direct, 64-Bit, variable power states

Kinect leveraging USB 3.0 to stream 3Gb/sec of audio visual data to speed response.  Sensors are sensitive enough to read heart rate while using exercise applications.

Software:

3 operating systems:

1. Xbox OS

2. Windows Kernel

3. Custom switching OS to bridge the two kernels

New Xbox Live system will include personal DVR to record all game play, and allow you to save and share the recordings including a built-in video editing suite.

Developer support:

EA announcing new strategic partnership, more details coming soon (probably at E3).  New "Ignite" game engine for sports titles.  10x animation depth and detail, dubbed "True Player Motion".  Video demo from EA looks insanely realistic.

Microsoft studios was up next, showing off Forza Motosports 5.  Again the graphics look great.  Will be available at launch.  Huge emphasis on gaming experience and multi-player.

Trailers for other games were shown as well, concluding with the trailer for "Modern Warfare: Ghosts", which looked amazing.

Microsoft promises more details at E3 in 20 days, so stay tuned, this looks like it could knock Sony's PS4 announcement out of the water.

Review: Microsoft Surface with Windows RT - Drew's Take

The home screen of Windows RT on the new Surface from MicrosoftMicrosoft for the first time has released their own computer, and it could be a game changer.  Fed up with hardware partners failing to capture their vision of tablet computing they have this week released Surface, a bold new take on the world of mobile computing.  Featuring a power efficient Tegra 3 processor from NVIDIA and finally removing backward compatibility from windows they have been able to strip their vaunted operating system down to its bare essentials.  A complete re-imagining of Windows has been needed for a long time, and I think Microsoft has hit on a winning formula here.  What remains to be seen is how quickly software developers start writing programs that will run natively in Microsoft’s new “MODERN UI”.  Without developer support this grand experiment is destined to fail.

Hardware

With a new hardware and software platform, it is impossible to really compare specs for hardware.  The surface has some interesting design cues, and Microsoft’s design team has made some risky design choices that I think they have really pulled off here. 

The touch keyboard doesn’t seem like it would work.  3MM thick, no moving parts…it would seem to most to be a token gesture towards a physical keyboard.  However, after a few days using it I am writing this review using it and am more than happy with its responsiveness.  Unlike many of the netbook keyboards we have seen over the last few years, the touch keyboard cover that is available with Surface has a surprisingly roomy keyboard, with nice separation between keys and a decent feel.  It takes some getting used to, but once you do it is like a whole new world.

One thing that became clear when watching the official release keynote for Surface was how much thought went into the smallest features of this hardware.  From the sound made when the kickstand is deployed or stowed to the angle of the cameras being set to account for the slope of the Surface when using the kickstand, no aspect of this hardware design was not thought of and planned for a specific reason.

Surface with Windows RT features 2GB of RAM, a 1.5GHz Tegra 3 processor, and either 32GB or 64GBs of flash storage.  There is no benchmark software available in the Windows Store yet, and no other devices to compare it to anyway, so in depth numbers cannot be a part of this review.  What I can say is that while some software takes a bit to respond, it does not seem to be a resource issue.  With more than ten applications running programs had the same response issues as they did when running alone.  Surface is a very responsive system, and on I could see replacing an Ultra Book or Net Book in just about anyone’s workflow.

Software

Windows RT is a new and vastly different operating system than Windows 7, and that is easy to see when the Surface first comes on.  The live tiles are not just the first thing you see, they replace the start menu so crucial to previous versions of Windows.  Make no mistake though, this is Windows, right down to the command prompt.  The biggest difference is “legacy” software.  It can run under Windows 8 Pro, but not on Windows RT.  This makes getting software written for and offered through the newly minted Windows Store critical in the short term.  Without software, this platform is doomed to falter.

First Look: Microsoft Surface

OK, I've had 24 hours with the Surface at this point and I think Microsoft is on to something.  For years I have lamented how bloated Windows had become, due in large part to their unwillingness to abandon support for legacy software.  Building in support for software that goes back up to 20 years in some cases is bound to cause and operating system to bloat beyond all reason, and this makes for a sluggish resource hog.

With RT Microsoft has finally had an excuse to do what Apple did with the old Power-PC based software and start over.  This has allowed Microsoft to release a light, nimble, and responsive OS for the modern, mobile culture and I never expected to be able to say any of that about the guys from Redmond.

The surface is proof that Microsoft has been paying attention, and their hardware partners have not.  Light, portable, fully featured and well designed.  Who would have thought Microsoft was this good at designing hardware?  After decades of leaving hardware to others Surface is proof that Microsoft should have made this move a long time ago.

Stay tuned, we'll have reviews from the whole family ready to go by Monday.

Unboxing: Microsoft Surface RT

Just opened the box

Simplified, well designed packaging. Is this really from Microsoft?

Outside slip cover holds packaging for the Surface and the Touch Cover together

Simple, no frills packaging

Quick and simple setup...

On first launch there were fifteen apps that needed updating in the Modern UI

Even in their modern, stripped down new OS, a DOS prompt can be found...

Surface updated and ready to use....stay tuned for my first look

Windows 8 Launch Event - NYC

On Thursday, Oct. 25th Microsoft held a press event in New York City to formally launch their latest operating system, Windows 8.  A huge move forward from Windows 7, Windows 8 was built from the ground up to take advantage of touch screens and cloud services such as Microsoft's own SkyDrive service.  The big news, however is that for the first time Windows will run on an ARM processor much like those that power smart phones and tablets, while at the same time abandoning  all previous Windows software.  While the Pro version of windows 8 will allow older or "legacy" software to run as it did in older versions, the big push for Windows 8 is RT (Run-Time) which will only run new software available from the Windows App Store.

As with any new Windows release, this is a huge event.  The great news for consumers is that Windows 8 Pro will run on all Windows 7 personal computers, although in most cases without being able to take advantage of the new touch interface that makes it so great.  Upgrades start at $39.99 in the U.S. and are on sale as I write this post.  The big news however is all of the new computers built for the native touch interface, including all kinds of devices from large all-in-one desktop machines to portable tablets and literally every form factor in between.  All of the major PC manufacturers from Dell to Lenovo had new systems to announce, making this a big day for the whole industry.

The biggest news of the day was the release of the first Microsoft branded computer ever, Surface, a Windows RT tablet built from the ground up to bridge the gap between ultra-portables and tablets such as the iPad in the consumer space.  I'll have one today, and will post several items over the next few days while I put it through it's paces.

You can see the press events for both Windows 8 and the special event for the Surface tablet here.