Microsoft directly attacks Google in new video

Microsoft has posted a new video to its YouTube account that directly attacks Google's "lack" of non-experimental products. The company focused on the number of high-profile changes Google has been making over the past eight months, and the fact that end-users are affected in a major way.

The video follows "Googlighting Stranger," who tries to convince a company to use Google products, despite the fact that they are ever-changing.

We've got to give credit to Microsoft to this one - they've got a sense of humor.

Microsoft Office suite spotted on an iPad – release in “coming weeks”?

The Daily has posted a lone screenshot of what appears to be the Microsoft Office productivity suite running as a native app on the iPad, something that has been rumored numerous times now. The report claims that development on the app has been completed, and a submission to Apple for approval into the App Store is coming "soon." A release could come as soon as next month.

Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files can be opened and edited (both locally and online) through the app, which seems to have a taste of Microsoft's "Metro UI."

On a side note, the report states that no Android app for Office is currently in development.

[UPDATE: GOOGLE RESPONSE] Microsoft accuses Google of bypassing security settings on Internet Explorer too

Over the weekend, we brought you the news that Google had been caught bypassing user security settings of Safari on iOS devices, which allowed the Internet giant to track users' behavior while browsing the Web. Google was using cookies in order to track how people browse the Internet.

Today, Microsoft announced via its IEBlog that it has caught Google using the same tactic to track users' behavior on Internet Explorer. "Google is employing similar methods to get around the default privacy protections in IE and track IE users with cookies," the company says.

We’ve found that Google bypasses the P3P Privacy Protection feature in IE. The result is similar to the recent reports of Google’s circumvention of privacy protections in Apple’s Safari Web browser, even though the actual bypass mechanism Google uses is different.

Microsoft recommends that users who don't want to be tracked by Google update to Internet Explorer 9 and begin to use the Tracking Protection list feature in the web browser.

UPDATE: Google has issued a statement to The Verge, responding to Microsoft's claim. The Internet giant says that Microsoft is using older technology in Internet Explorer, causing the "issue" with cookies.

Full statement:

Microsoft omitted important information from its blog post today.

Microsoft uses a "self-declaration" protocol (known as "P3P") dating from 2002 under which Microsoft asks websites to represent their privacy practices in machine-readable form. It is well known - including by Microsoft - that it is impractical to comply with Microsoft’s request while providing modern web functionality. We have been open about our approach, as have many other websites.

Today the Microsoft policy is widely non-operational. A 2010 research report indicated that over 11,000 websites were not issuing valid P3P policies as requested by Microsoft...

Microsoft extends support dates for Windows Vista, 7

This week, Microsoft revealed its plans to extend the support dates of both Windows Vista and Windows 7 by several years. The company was initially planning to support Vista until April of 2012, but this has been pushed back to 2017. This means that users still on the aging version of Windows can expect to see patch updates, but no new feature additions after April of this year.

On the Windows 7 side of things, Microsoft will be offering "extended support" of the newest version of the desktop operating system until January 14, 2020. This date has been extended from the initial January of 2015. Users of Windows 7 can expect to see new feature additions up until January 2015, and after that only patch updates.

Microsoft is planning to launch Windows 8, which is currently under development and testing with consumers, before the end of 2012.

Microsoft unveils new Windows 8 logo

Going for a more modern look with actual windows, Microsoft showed off the newly designed Windows 8 logo Friday.

The logo sports 3D style windows with a simple modern font showing "Windows 8." Microsoft's Windows Team Blog explains that since Windows 8 is a complete new look on an operating system they are going for a complete new look on the logo as well.

It has long been noted that in the recent past Microsoft has used a "flag" type look to the logo. The company brought in Paula Scher from the Pentagram design agency and she simply asked "your name is Windows. Why are you a flag?"

Microsoft releases Xbox 360 update to address color issues with recent Dashboard overhaul

Announced via the Major Nelson blog, Microsoft has begun rolling out an update to Xbox 360 consoles that attempts to address a nasty color issue that has been plaguing a number of gamers since the company overhauled the Xbox 360 Dashboard late last year. The software giant says that the update is mandatory and that users who were affected by the issue should notice immediate improvements.

This update will increase performance and is part of our continued effort to provide the best possible Xbox LIVE experience. In this update, we are providing a fix to a color issue that some were experiencing, and it will be immediately notable in the dashboard. The fix is also being applied by partners to their apps on Xbox LIVE, which we expect to roll out over the coming months.

Microsoft released an update to the Xbox 360 in December of last year that overhauled the game console's Dashboard with a user interface similar to Windows Phone. The update also introduced the Apps Marketplace, which allows gamers to download apps that can then be used on the console.

Updated Facebook for Windows Phone app released

Today, an updated version of the Facebook for Windows Phone app was released to the Marketplace (link to download), featuring improved performance, a refreshed design, and new features. The app sports a new "panorama design," a new profile design, improved navigation, and the ability to view Pages, Groups, and "Likes."

The update is available in the Windows Phone Marketplace now.

Focus areas for the v2.3 release:

• News feed performance improvements
• New panorama design.
• New profile design.
• Banner Images.
• Improved navigation.
• Pages
• Groups
• View “likes”.
• Feed filters.
• Posting privacy.
• Bug fixing

Deal of the Day: Xbox LIVE 12-month Gold membership for $36

Normally costing $59.99, Microsoft is now offering up a twelve-month Gold subscription to Xbox LIVE for $35.99, which saves you a sweet $24. The offer is available online only via the Microsoft Store website and gives you all of the features of a Gold subscription, which includes multiplayer capabilities, chatting with friends, and more, for a cheaper price than normal.

This is a pretty good deal, so we recommend picking it up if you're a serious gamer. Let us know if you do in the comments below!

Microsoft: 270,000 Xbox 360 units sold in January 2012

Microsoft yesterday announced that over 270,000 Xbox 360 units were sold in January, marking the thirteenth (13) straight month that the Xbox 360 has been the top-selling game console in the United States. The company also says that the Xbox 360, which is currently in its seventh (7) year of existence, made retail stores $301 million last month between console, accessories, and game sales.

Last week, Xbox 360 was revealed as the number-one selling console worldwide in 2011, according to publicly disclosed financial data from Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo. Historically, after several years in a console’s lifecycle, demand softens, but Xbox 360 continues to defy that convention.

Microsoft provides more details on ARM version of Windows 8, and Office 15

Earlier today, Microsoft posted a lengthy blog post on its Building Windows 8 blog that gives consumers more information regarding the software giant's plans for ARM (WOA) support in Windows 8. Microsoft says that both Windows 8 for x86 PCs and ARM is still under development, but both will be available at the same time. The ARM based version of Windows, however, will come preinstalled with Microsoft Office 15, which was briefly shown off in a video embedded in the blog post. 

"Metro-style" that will be available in the Windows Store will support both Windows for ARM and Windows for x86/64, but it doesn't appear that Windows on ARM will support the ability to run current desktop applications built in x84/64. 

As far as Office 15 goes, Microsoft didn't provide any specific details on the next version of its productivity suite in the blog post. The company did, however, give a few quick glimpses at Office 15 in the video below, and it does appear to be sporting that "Metro" UI Microsoft is switching all of its products over to. We've included some screenshots of Office 15 below.

LG ‘Miracle’ is a Windows Phone 7-powered smartphone, to be announced at MWC 2012

According to PocketNow, LG is planning to announce the "LG Miracle" Windows Phone 7-powered smartphone at this year's Mobile World Congress (MWC), which will be kicking off on February 27. The Miracle is said to be powered by a 1 GHz Snapdragon processor and sport 8 GB of onboard storage. The device will feature a 4-inch WVGA display, a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera that's capable of shooting up to 720p video, and a VGA-resolution front-facing camera. 

The report also claims that the Miracle will support some form of near field communication (NFC), but it's unclear how this will be integrated considering the latest version of Windows Phone 7, dubbed "Mango," doesn't support NFC at this time. 

The phone is expected to be released sometime this Spring. 

Microsoft releases OneNote for Android OS

Yesterday, Microsoft announced the release of a version of OneNote for Android OS (Android Market link) devices. With this release, OneNote is now available on Windows Phone, iOS, and Android.

The app allows users to use text formatting, create to-do lists, photo capturing, quick notes, "OneNote notebooks," offline access to notes, and syncing notes between a device and a computer over Wi-Fi.

If you're already using OneNote on your PC, the mobile versions of OneNote let you take your notes with you — from simple lists and to-dos to full-fledged notebooks which you can share with your friends, family, co-workers, or classmates. With a free Microsoft SkyDrive account, you can easily sync all of your OneNote notebooks so they're always up-to-date and accessible from your mobile device, your Web browser, or your computer.

Microsoft notes that OneNote is free to use until a max of 500 notes, at which point you'll have to pay a one-time fee of $4.99 for unlimited usage.

Microsoft launches new Internet Explorer 9 version dedicated to child safety

Microsoft has teamed up with the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) to develop a child-friendly version of its latest web browser, Internet Explorer 9. The browser contains features, such as a homepage dedicated to information on how to stay safe online, that will protect child safety on the Internet. There are also several pre-installed favorites that will allow children to stay safe online. 

It's available for download here. 

Microsoft France: No new Xbox coming this year

According to French website Le Point, Microsoft's French marketing director, Cedrick Delma, has stated that he is "certain" the company will not be releasing a next-generation Xbox game console to consumers anytime this year. This news doesn't come as a surprise to many, but it's always nice to have some confirmation, right?

Despite this news, gamers should not completely rule out seeing a preview of the next-generation Xbox (whatever it may be called) sometime this year, possibly at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in June. 

A recent report claimed that the future Xbox model will feature six times the processing power of the current Xbox 360 model. The same rumor claimed a late 2013 release for the game console. 

Report: Microsoft plans to axe its virtual “points” system by the end of 2012

According to Inside Mobile Apps, a source is claiming that Microsoft currently plans to phase out its proprietary virtual points system that's used to pay for something on Windows Phone, the Zune Market, and Xbox LIVE. Instead, the software giant will switch over to a money-based system that is based on the region your account is setup in. Users that currently have "Microsoft Points" on their account will have them converted to a money value by the end of this year. 

While the move to eliminate the system comes as a surprise, it will certainly be good news for many Microsoft product owners. Why? The main reason is because of the inconsistency Microsoft has with Points - some things in the Xbox LIVE Marketplace are marked with points, while others with monetary values. The same goes for the PC and Windows Phone Marketplace. 

What do you think about this decision? 

Next-generation Xbox scheduled to ship in late 2013 with 6x the processing power of Xbox 360

According to a report from IGN, the next-generation Xbox model will begin shipping to customers in late October or early November of 2013 with about six times the processing power of the current-generation Xbox 360. 

The game console's graphics processing unit (GPU) will reportedly begin being produced in late 2012, and will be based off of AMD's 6000 GPU series. "In real terms, the Xbox 720's raw graphics processing power is expected to be six times that of the Xbox 360 and will yield 20-percent greater performance than Nintendo's forthcoming console, the Wii U."

Game developers will receive development kits based on the console's final specifications in August 2012, according to the report.  

Microsoft cancels MIX 2012 conference

Today, Microsoft revealed its plans to cancel the MIX 2012 conference that was originally scheduled to occur sometime in the Spring of this year. Instead, Microsoft will be merging the developer-focused conference with another event that will be occurring sometime within the next year. 

The software giant says that it had many factors in making this decision. First, the company believes that web development should be considered normal development today. Also, because of confusion between developers, choosing which conference to attend was becoming difficult. 

So what happens going forward? As we look ahead to 2012 and beyond, the goal is to ensure that global Microsoft developer events are of the caliber that many of you experienced at BUILD last September, in addition to the thousands of online and local developer events we host around the world to support communities and connect directly with developers. We will share more details of our next developer event later this year. In the meantime, know that we are we are hard at work and will look forward to seeing many of you there.

Microsoft hasn't provided any information on when this new event will be taking place. 

Microsoft reports Q4 2011 financial results – record-breaking $20.9 billion revenue

Today, Microsoft reported its financial results for the fourth quarter of 2011, which ended December 31. The company announced a record-breaking revenue of $20.9 billion, a 5% increase year-over-year. Operating income and net income are listed at $7.99 billion and $6.62 billion, respectively. 

“We delivered solid financial results, even as we prepare for a launch year that will accelerate many of our key products and services,” said Steve Ballmer, chief executive officer at Microsoft. “Coming out of the Consumer Electronics Show, we’re seeing very positive reviews for our new phones and PCs, and a strong response to our new Metro style design that will unify consumer experiences across our phones, PCs, tablets, and television in 2012.”

Microsoft's Business Division reported $6.28 billion in revenue for the quarter. The Redmond-based software giant also announced that nearly 200 million licenses of Office 2010 have been sold since the productivity suite launched 18 months ago. 525 million Windows 7 licenses have been sold since the OS' launch a couple of years back as well.

On the entertainment and gaming side of things, Microsoft posted a revenue of $4.24 billion, a 15% increase from the prior period. 66 million Xbox 360 consoles and 18 million Kinect sensors have been sold, with 40 million Xbox LIVE users currently active on the service. 

Microsoft officially opposes SOPA “as currently drafted”

Microsoft has issued a statement to The Seattle Times that states the company is against the Stop Online Piracy Act (a.k.a. "SOPA"), which is currently in debate in the United States House of Representatives. Saying that it opposes the bill "as currently drafted," Microsoft has finally issued its stance on SOPA, something that many people have been waiting to hear for weeks now. 

The full statement from the company is below:

We oppose the passage of the SOPA bill as currently drafted. We think the White House statement points in a constructive way to problems with the current legislation, the need to fix them, and the opportunity for people on all sides to talk together about a better path forward."

The news came just hours before a number of the Internet's most popular websites announced that they would be "going dark" for 24 hours to protest SOPA. Wikipedia, Google, Reddit, and others are all participating in the Internet-wide protest today. 

Microsoft: More than 1.7 million Xbox 360 units sold in December 2011 in U.S.

Microsoft announced via a blog post earlier today that it sold a market-leading 1.7 million units of the Xbox 360 in December of 2011 in the United States. In 2011 as a whole, the Xbox 360 captured $6.7 billion in sales - $2.1 billion in console sales and $4.6 billion in games, accessories, etc. - and 49% of consumer retail spending. 

Microsoft also announced that it currently has more than 40 million Xbox LIVE subscribers worldwide, but didn't go into how many are actually paying for the service as oppose to those using the free LIVE Silver edition. 

The strong December capped an impressive year during which Xbox 360 was the fastest-growing console. It also captured 49 percent of consumer retail spending, with an industry-leading $6.7 billion in sales in the U.S. for the calendar year—more than $2.1 billion on consoles and $4.6 billion on games and accessories, NPD data shows.

Xbox 360 was the must-have gift this holiday season with about half of December’s retail spend on games, consoles and accessories going toward Xbox 360 products, totaling more than $1.5 billion, NPD data shows. According to internal Microsoft figures, the company has now sold more than 66 million Xbox 360 consoles and more than 18 million Kinect sensors worldwide, and has nearly 40 million Xbox LIVE members. 

The Xbox 360 now holds a commanding 46% market share in current-generation game consoles.