Microsoft just introduced InstaLoad, a new battery technology that allows batteries to be placed in any direction without regard to positive or negative polarity. Meaning you can put a battery in however you want and it'll just work. It's genius.
InstaLoad uses a new, patented contact design that doesn't drain battery power or require expensive circuitry. Plus, it's compatible with off-the-shelf batteries used in flashlights, toys, battery chargers, and really anything that uses CR123, AA, AAA, C or D size batteries. We'll never have to look at + or - signs again.
I’m betting Microsoft is a little disappointed with USA Today, who let slip today that the name for what was previously known as Project Natal, will be released under the name “Kinect.”
In their Game Hunters column, they also revealed some of the likely titles that we’ll see for the controller-free game control system. According to the article, the games in development include:
Kinectimals lets you train and play with 20 different virtual cats, including a lion, cheetah and tiger.
Joyride, a racing game, lets players use their hands to hold an imaginary steering wheel — pull your hands toward you and push back out for an acceleration boost — and their bodies to execute jumps and tricks.
Kinect Sports has six activities including boxing, bowling, beach volleyball, track and field, soccer and table tennis. To serve a volleyball, you mimic the real motion; in soccer, you can kick the ball or do a header.
Kinect Adventures includes a river-raft time trial and obstacle course, playable by up to four players. On the raft, playing as a duo, you and a partner must lean one way or another to steer. Jumping helps the raft reach special areas for extra points.
Dance Central, in development by MTV Games, brings a So You Think You Can Dance experience home.
Star Wars characters and iconic Disney favorites will be featured in separate new games being developed at Microsoft in conjunction with LucasArts and Disney.
There’s still no word on the pricing or release date for Kinect, but Microsoft plans on a big gala reveal during their Cirque Du Soleil spectacular, scheduled for Tuesday, 6/15 at 3:30pm ET on MTV.
Ever since we saw those first leaked shotsand videos of Microsoft’s Courier, we’ve all been itching for more. I personally thought it was particularly wonderful, and was dismayed when they decided to show off a lackluster Windows 7 tablet at CES. I’ve asked about the Courier at very nearly every Microsoft event I’ve gone to, and asked all my contacts to keep their ears to the ground… but Engadget, damn their eyes, got to them first! Well, I’m just happy to see my baby again.
The real surprise here is the size; I’m not sure exactly what size I thought it was from the previous demos, but the sizes quoted are that each half is about 5×7″, making the whole thing about 10×7″… or almost exactly the size of the iPad. Now, I can’t be the only one that thinks it would be nice to be able to fold my iPad in half and put it in my pocket. Oh, and it weighs just over a pound. Want?
It was in vain for us to speculate on what the little thing ran before, since it was a totally custom interface, but I think Microsoft has decided that it’s better to make it a “big small device” rather than a “small big device.” You understand? They’re not shrinking a Windows 7 tablet, they’re making something new driven by a Tegra 2, which actually puts it ahead of the iPad in terms of processing power. The dual input (touch/stylus) I think is also a bonus, though of course Apple seems to have the market cornered on really nice touchscreens, so we’ll have to wait and see how it actually responds. Depending on the resolution, handwriting might be weird, too. Again, until we have a hands-on, it’s hard to say.
They’re saying a late-2010 release. I’m liking the form factor for an e-book reader, but it might get in the way of the creative aspirations of next-generation bookmakers. Either way I’m sold on this thing right now. More shots and video (most of which you’ve seen, but still) over at Engadget.
[CrunchGear via Engadget]
The folks at PPCGeeks and MobileTechWorld got their hands on what they claim are some of the initial details on Windows Mobile 7. Without citing any sources other than their inbox, both websites claim that Windows Mobile 7 will be introduced at MWC 2010 on February 15th in Barcelona. The official unveiling will reportedly focus primarily on the UI and in depth features will not be shown. Some of the leaked information include the following snippets :
WM7 will have a user interface derived from codename “METRO” and will be similar to the Zune HD
The traditional Home Screen will get a whole new look and will not support custom interfaces like Sense and TouchFLO
No Flash support as time constraints prevented its inclusion
Will include Silverlight 3.0 with some aspects of SL 4.0 and mobile-specific features
Applications will be installed through the Windows Mobile Marketplace only, manual installation from a storage card will not be allowed
Say no to multitasking and yes to push notifications which may be provided by a Microsoft hosted push notifications environment
Windows Mobile Marketplace will include a “Try before you Buy” feature and offer API support
No .NET Compact Framework backwards compatibility so all those old apps will not work, but a portion of the data and business logic .NET CF may be ported at some point
Browser is based upon desktop IE7 codebase, but with some IE8 functionality and is currently faster / better than the iPhone 3G
MS is actually ahead of schedule which will surprise the analysts / journalists (seriously?)
Full Zune and Xbox 360 Integration (Gamer tag, achievements, friends, avatars, merchandising, etc)
No more active sync or Windows Mobile Device center. Zune software will handle all syncing
Full support for social networking
Devices are expected to ship by September 2010
All these details are consistent with what we have been hearing about the rumored Zune phone, though it is not clear whether the Zune Phone represents the next generation of Windows Mobile or is a completely separate entity. If this above information is indeed accurate (and that is a big “if”) and the aforementioned phone is indeed Windows Mobile 7, then there are lot of changes in store for those who are tied to the Windows Mobile platform.
Coming mid-2010 there will be a new Wi-Fi standard that will allow any Wi-Fi gadget to connect wirelessly with each other without having to go through a wireless router. The best thing: It will only require a software update.
The new standard is called Wi-Fi Direct and—unlike Bluetooth—the technology will enjoy exactly the same speed and range as Wi-Fi. The Wi-Fi Alliance—which includes Intel, Microsoft, and Apple—says that it will automatically detect and hitch any device equipped with Wi-Fi within a 300 feet range, from computers to cameras to TVs to printers to anything in between. All peer-to-peer.
The Wi-Fi Alliance and everyone else—including myself—are pretty excited about this. So excited that they are planning a big advertising campaign to make people move to it. And since it will only require a downloadable software patch, you can expect the technology to become ubiquitous pretty fast.
Farewell, Bluetooth. It was not a pleasure to meet you. [Gizmodo via Wi-Fi Alliance]
The other day, I went on a short tour of some of Microsoft’s Labs, where they do everything from rapid prototypes of new products to acoustic testing in anechoic chambers. Most of my time was spent in the Applied Sciences group’s labs, where they are working on some seriously interesting devices. And they’re not just into mice; in fact, the lab’s specialty seemed to be anything to do with optics and/or input. This lab worked on Project Natal, and also on the pressure-sensitive keyboard I wrote about a while back.
They were kind enough to show me all these crazy multi-touch mice, and, when I was too inept to demo even one of them solo, offered to go through them with me on video. Remember that none of these devices are final in any way! The side mouse, for instance, would be much smaller if it were a product, and these weren’t really sculpted at all to fit in your hand.
Let’s just go through them again in text form so you know what you saw. Click the legend here to embiggen.
The Cap mouse is the one I picked as the most ready for deployment. The curved capacitive sensor that makes up the “head” of the mouse is known technology despite being one of the only curved sensors out there, and the form factor of the mouse will be familiar to anyone.
The Side mouse is perhaps the most unorthodox of all the mice shown. It throws out a swath of IR light and watches what it hits; it sounds strange but watching video of the sensor’s view, you can tell that it’s a perfectly good way of telling depth and so on. I personally thought this would do better at the top of a mousepad, to be activated at will while you have a normal mouse for everyday stuff. Here’s that video:
Frustrated Total Internal Reflection, or FTIR, isn’t a catchy name for a mouse, but as a technology it’s quite interesting. The arched acrylic sheet you see has IR LEDs shining light into it at all times. It’ll travel along the sheet and dissipate harmlessly, but if you touch the sheet anywhere, it’ll reflect off your finger and be picked up by the camera that’s underneath. It’s extremely high-resolution and can detect the tiniest movements. This one retained the mouse shape almost as well as the Cap mouse. As he notes, it does remind one of the Arc mouse, which I liked a lot.
One I thought might come out as a completely different product was the Orb mouse. Like the FTIR mouse, it has a camera, but this camera is pointed at a chrome dome that allows it to see every part of the frosted orb. This means it can detect touches anywhere on the thing’s surface. It works as well as you’d expect, but what set me off was the idea that you could actually have a little projector in there that could rear-project images and controls onto the frosted surface of the orb. It’s a bit like the way the Surface display works. I mentioned this and they implied that they were “aware of the possibilities” (I think I hit something good).
Lastly, you have the Arty mouse, short for articulated. This thing is like a cross between a regular mouse and the Novint Falcon. Its little limbs are for resting your thumb and forefinger on, and each is equipped with an optical mouse sensor. It’s like a regular mouse with arms, and it’s a bit disturbing to use. But it is cool — I can see this kind of thing being used for perhaps 3D model editing, but it seemed foreign and fragile, not very easy to sell. Does it matter?
Multi-touch mice, eh? With laptops ascendant, touchscreens multiplying, and stuff like Natal on the horizon, isn’t it barking up the wrong tree to be putting this stuff on a mouse? A little bit, but not entirely. The mouse is still the standard interface for probably 90% of computers out there, and if they can improve it, they can both extend the life of the decades-old device and introduce multi-touch controls softly into both the OS and the user’s mind. If Microsoft can make a device that is as easy to use as a normal mouse, but with the added benefit of multi-touch (I see the Cap mouse doing this in the shortest time), people will eat it up, provided it’s not too expensive.
At any rate, it’s projects like this that push the boundaries of input technology. If multi-touch mice aren’t be a hit, there were advances made and experiments done that will enable or ease other advanced input techniques.
Regular readers will know that the demonstration of these mice follows closely on the rumor that Apple is creating a new Mighty Mouse, perhaps to be multi-touch as well. That’s all well and good, but there are two reasons why that really doesn’t matter. First, Apple has never made a good mouse. Never. Every mouse they’ve ever made has been bad, from the puck mouse to the clear “pro” mouse to the Mighty Mouse, they’re awful one and all. So I don’t think these guys, who could design a better mouse than Apple in their sleep, are worried about that. Secondly, Microsoft sells mice to Windows users primarily. The software and optimizations are for Windows 7 with its touch support built-in. The Mac mouse market isn’t big enough or important enough to worry about.
Thanks to the Applied Science teams for letting me into their lair. The mice are all very interesting devices, and it’s fun to see them in their larval forms.
There’s more video and documentation of the mice and project here if you’re interested.
[CrunchGear]
There are 2,000 in that container. And there are 112 such containers in Microsoft's $500 million Chicago data center. It may seem somewhat ridiculous, but this container-based data center design is absolutely brilliant (and environmentally sustainable to boot).
While we haven't seen Microsoft's newest data center, we hear that it has 700,000 square feet of space, really, really high ceilings, and 40-foot stacks of server-filled containers. Thinking about the stacks may leave me with vertigo, but thinking about the ingenuity of the design leaves me impressed: Microsoft has built something which'll 'deliver huge benefits in cost, energy efficiency and environmental sustainability.'
All those containers are plug-and-play in a way, complete with corresponding bays, and can be set up by 'as few as four employees' in hours. Yes, they've designed it so that moving 60 ton stacks of servers requires only four people. If that's not incredible then let's consider that the place has a huge focus on being energy efficient: Despite the facility having a 30-megawatt power capacity, steps have been taken to make it as economical and sustainable as possible:
The Chicago site employs water-side economization [which takes] advantage of cool outside air to reduce the data center's reliance upon power-hungry chillers to produce chilled water. Air economizers introduce fresh air into the data center, while water-side economizers use cooling towers to remove waste heat.
Basically Microsoft is cutting down energy waste, saving on labor, and being all-around economical. While the modular, server-in-a-box approach might not get the stamp of revolutionary, the way Microsoft is approaching it is something worth paying attention to because it might just be what'll help 'meet the demand for cloud computing at scale.' [Gizmodo via Data Center Knowledge]
Project Pink is Microsoft's secret new phone, their first major phone play since the iPhone. Here are the first pictures of Pink phones, Turtle and Pure. These phones are going to be made by Sharp, who'll get to share branding with Microsoft. Sharp produced the Sidekick hardware for Danger, who was bought by Microsoft almost two years ago. Pink will be primarily aimed at the same market as the Sidekick, and the branding and identity for it is highly developed, pointing toward a later stage in the development cycle.
The prior relationship between Danger and Sharp is the only reason we can think of why Microsoft stuck with Sharp for the new phones, and perhaps why they look so much like remixed Sidekicks. (Kind of yucky, that is.) The youth bent is somewhat surprising, if Pink is going to be their big consumer phone play, building off the expertise of Danger and members of the Zune team.
The hardware design has a definite younger feeling: Turtle looks like a chunky child's version of a Palm Pre, while Pure seems like a standard slider, and both are clearly plastic, with an overall sense of roundedness, thanks to lots of soft angles and circular keys.
It's been reported elsewhere that Pink phones will include Zune services, and have its own app store, making it as close to the Zune phone as we may get. We'll see if it's close enough in the coming months, though these are the only facts our source will let us safely publish for now.
[Gizmodo]
Well, that’s it, I guess. The CrunchPad and Apple Tablet had a good run (in their mysterious ways), but Microsoft has come out of left field to deliver what appears to be the coolest tablet-like computer we’ve ever seen. Those lucky ducks over at Gizmodo appear to have a pretty solid exclusive on it, though, but I’m burning through my little black book of Microsoft guys to get more info.
What they’ve got in place looks fun, practical, and damned good-looking. Although currently in “late prototype” phase, and only available in renders at the moment, it is a real thing and it will come out. It’s probably best for you to just head over there and watch the video (the curs have made it un-embeddable).
As the Zune HD launch looms ever closer, a smorgasbord of purported launch videos have offered up what appears to be the best demonstration yet of the sleek, sexy portable's 3D gaming capabilities.
The 3D gaming example, Forza 3, debuts at about the 30 second mark in the video above. It's a fleeting glimpse, but it's solid evidence nevertheless.
For authenticity's sake, we tell you that Microsoft PR reportedly asked the leak's originator, Buy TV, to take the videos down, but not before brigands at sites like Neowin were able to upload them to YouTube, where they spread like a New York Times homepage virus.
Zune HD drops in two days. [Neowin, Buy TV via ars technica]
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