Now that Microsoft has finished seeding initial developers, the company is opening up availability for a first wave of commercial customers. Go to hololens.com and you can pick up as many as five of the AR visors, for a mere $3,000 each. Along with the developer's software, there's a Commercial Suite that adds enterprise features like a kiosk mode, device management, an app … [Read more...]
Clothes Make the Man and Woman Feel Better
How would you like clothing that would not only make you look, but also feel, like a million bucks? Microsoft—the original grey suit people—is thinking about doing something about that. The company recently applied for a patent for a shirt that can detect your “affective state” and if it’s a downer, send you feedback to perk you up or cool you off. There is so much room for … [Read more...]
Microsoft Buzzes with Project X Ray and HoloLens
Although it seems clear that Microsoft’s HoloLens is geared more to the real, grown-up world, Project X Ray is a sure sign that they remember the rest of us. It’s an AR (Augmented Reality) game that uses the HoloLens to bring 3-D images into play, with images a player can grab, wear, and use to blow up things. You can designate any object in your house as your weapon. (Let’s … [Read more...]
Outlook Comes to the Apple Watch
It's not you'll be doing most of your work on it (unless you're really obsessed), but Microsoft has brought a new version of Outlook to the Apple Watch. We haven't tried it out yet, but this new version apparently works more or less like any e-mail notification on the watch, with the addition of quick replies and the ability to dictate responses. As good as the watch's voice … [Read more...]
Microsoft Expands Distribution of the Band
Microsoft, which seemed to be using the first round of shipments of its Band wearable as market research, says it's expanding availability of the $200 device. Starting today, you'll be able to get the Microsoft Band at BestBuy, Amazon, and Target -- though the company says it'll be ramping shipments to them over the next few weeks, so don't freak if there's backorders. The … [Read more...]
Improvements to Microsoft Band, But You Still Can’t Buy One
Microsoft continues to tweak the software behind its Band health tracker, Paul Thurott reports, but you still can't actually buy one. The software and gaming giant put a limited number of Band devices on sale at the end of last year as part of what it is now saying was a soft launch. There's no word on when more of them will be available, or through what channels. If … [Read more...]
Microsoft Announces Band Wearable, Health App, and Cloud
With Microsoft moving so aggressively toward cloud services and mobile technology, you could have seen this a mile away, even without the recent leak: the company has announced the Microsoft Band wearable and the Microsoft Health cloud service. First, the band. It's a full-featured device most closely resembling the Samsung Gear Fit. Black plastic, touch-sensitive color … [Read more...]
Forbes Says Microsoft Will Ship a Wristband This Year
Microsoft, by some measures, was the first company to sell a piece of wearable technology: the Data Link watch, developed with Timex, and first put on sale in 1994. Twenty years later, Forbes reports, the company is ready to ship another. The report is strikingly short on details, but does say that the device will be a smartwatch with a heart-rate monitor, will work with … [Read more...]
Will the Fall Bring a Microsoft Wristband?
... and now comes Microsoft. Paul Thurrott's Supersite, long a gold-standard source for Microsoft software news, is picking up vibrations that Microsoft will launch a fitness band late this year. The differentiator: it will work with all platforms: iOS, Android, and Windows Phone. Actually, the "big" news here is Windows Phone -- not many other fitness trackers work with … [Read more...]
Microsoft Smartwatch Coming Soon, Says Forbes
Forbes is reporting that Microsoft is prepping a smartwatch for launch as soon as this summer. The device will draw on optical engineering expertise from Microsoft’s Xbox Kinect division to continuously measure heart rate through the day and night, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the company’s plans, while the battery will last for two days, roughly on par with … [Read more...]