Posts Tagged ‘Microsoft’
Wednesday, October 24th, 2012
Two days before General Availability of Microsoft Windows 8, ASUS unveils its lineup of new Windows 8 touch-enabled devices, which includes full gaming desktops, All-in-Ones, notebooks, tablets – as well as notebook/tablet convertibles/transformers. Prices within.
Update (17 January, 2013):
The ASUS VivoTab Smart detachable tablet will be available in Singapore from 18 January onwards at S$699 for the WiFi model.
Update (9 January, 2013):
The ASUS VivoTab RT 3G is now available in Singapore from 9 January for S$1,049.
ASUS has unveiled a comprehensive lineup of Windows 8 computers ranging from powerful gaming desktops, All-in-One desktops, notebooks, tablets, as well as convertible and transformer notebook/tablethybrids.
Among the major computer manufacturers, I consider Asus as one of the most innovative.
Innovative pioneers
The Taiwanese company created the Netbook genre with its Eee PCs back in 2007.
ASUS Transformer Book
Asus also the pioneered the tablet/notebook hybrid with the Asus Transformer TF101 – offering a hardware keyboard that the Android tablet could be docked into for serious work that involves typing – plus added battery life and connectors.
Now every other major computer maker offers notebook/tablet hybrids in their lineup.
Either as a “Transformer” hybrid where the keyboard can be totally detached.
Or in a “Convertible” format where the keyboard cannot be detached but can be manipulated such that the machine can be held as a tablet or used like a traditional laptop.
Asus has continued its innovation with products such as the Transformer Padfone and now the Taichi – a convertible with dual screens.
Below is a summary of the new Windows 8 lineup unveiled by ASUS.
(more…)
Tags:AIO, Asus, Clarke Quay, convertibles, desktops, launch, Microsoft, notebooks, Singapore, tablets, TAICHI, transformers, VivoBook, VivoTab, Windows, Windows 8, Zenbook
Posted in All-in-One, Asus, Desktops, Eee Pad Transformer Prime, Eee Pad Transformer TF101, Events, Exhibition, Gadgets, Gaming, Launch, Microsoft, Notebooks, Prices, Software, Specifications, Tablets, Ultrabooks, Windows 8 | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, October 23rd, 2012
Here’s a selection of interesting tech events happening this week (21-27 October 2012). It is not an exhaustive list and represents only a sampling of events that gives a taste of the tech pulse in Singapore.
What are some of the more interesting tech events happening in Singapore?
This week sees the culmination of weeks of anticipation building up to the General Availability of Windows 8. CNET reports that Microsoft is holding a special event in New York City on the eve to as a pre-launch celebration. This is also being held in other major cities as well.
Event listing on tech4tea.com
You can see this selection of events in the right sidebar on every page.
Event organisers can submit your events for listing to johntan@tech4tea.com – but there are no promises that your event will be featured.
Asus is showcasing its Windows 8 lineup while Samsung is setting up a “Samsung Experience Corner” in the Challenger store in Funan DigitaLife Mall.
In parallel is similar levels of excitement with Apple holding a special event with the usual cryptic message. This time the invite reads “We’ve got a little more to show you”, which everyone sees as pointing to the launch of the 7.85-inch iPad Mini.
For Rounding off an exciting week is a public holiday for countries in the region for Muslims – Hari Raya Haji. Take the chance to check out the new range of Loewe televisions launched by Atlas Sound & Vision in Singapore.
23 October (Tuesday)
The invite says “We’ve got a little more to show you” – everybody’s expecting the 7.85-inch version of the iPad.
We’ll find out at 1am Singapore time on 24 October (Wednesday).
Venue: San Jose
24 October (Wednesday)
Asus Windows 8 showcase
Another major PC maker showcases its lineup of Windows 8 desktops, laptops and tablets.
Venue: Calrke Quay
24 October (Wednesday)
Loewe TV launch
Atlas Sound & Vision is launching a new range of Loewe Televisions in Singapore.
Venue: Palais Renaissance
25 October (Thursday)
Samsung Experience Corner
Touch, feel and play with Samsung products, especially its latest Windows 8 devices.
Venue: Challenger @ Funan
25 October (Thursday)
Microsoft is holding launch events in 15 cities around the world prior to the General Availability of Windows 8 on the next day.
Venue: Singapore, New York etc.
26 October (Friday)
General Availability of Windows 8, marking the official release of much anticipated new operating system from Microsoft
26 October (Friday)
“Selamat Hari Raya Haji” to Muslims celebrating this religious festival.
26 October (Friday)
Nubox to re-launch Nubox@Funan DigitaLife Mall, with store opening promotions. It will also hold the finals of the Nubox Super Size Challenge at the store.
Tags:Apple, Asus, desktops, DigitaLife, Funan, iPad, iPad Mini, laptops, Loewe, Microsoft, Microsoft Windows 8, notebooks, Nubox, Samsung, Singapore, tablets, televisions, Windows, Windows 8
Posted in Asus, Atlas, Desktops, Event forecast, Events, Gadgets, Microsoft, Notebooks, Samsung, Tablets, TV | No Comments »
Sunday, October 14th, 2012
Here’s a selection of interesting tech events happening this week (14-20 October 2012). It is not an exhaustive list and represents only a sampling of events that gives a taste of the tech pulse in Singapore.
What are some of the more interesting tech events happening in Singapore?
This week sees the continuation of buzz building up to the General Availability of Windows 8. Intel, Samsung, HP and Sony have already showcased their respective offerings. Next week, Microsoft will be releasing Windows 8 on 26 October 2012.
Event listing on tech4tea.com
You can see this selection of events in the right sidebar.
Event organisers can submit your events for listing to johntan@tech4tea.com – but there are no promises that your event will be featured.
Audiophiles can look forward to the launch of Swiss Piega handmade speakers by Atlas Singapore, while photographers finally see the Lytro light field camera officially launched in Singapore.
The much anticipated Samsung GALAXY Note II and GALAXY Camera will be launched at the Ritz-Carlton; while BlackBerry and ZALORA join hands to present a fashion show inspired by the BlackBerry Bold smartphones.
On the enterprise side, Progress Software and NCS are talks about growth in big data and the realtime analytic industries, while DPM Teo Chee Hean opens Techventure 2012.
Finally, wrap up the week with a bit of fun and learning at Canon Imaging Academy, shooting out-and-about Singapore and learning about shooting stock photos along the way.
15 October (Sunday)
BlackBerry JamHack 2012
5-city, 3-day, 40-hour hackathon organised by 5 developer groups & communities in Asia Pacific, supported by RIM.
Culminates in App Pitches on the last day on 15 Oct.
Venue: Delhi, Bangalore, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Manila
15 October (Monday)
Realtime analytics for business
Progress Software and NCS talks about growth in big data and realtime analytic industries.
16 October (Tuesday)
Lytro launch
Official launch of the Lytro light field camera in Singapore.
Venue: Clarke Quay
17 October (Wednesday)
Samsung launch of GALAXY Note II and GALAXY Camera
Launch of Samsung’s latest products in Singapore.
Venue: Ritz-Carlton
17-18 October (Wednesday to Thursday)
Techventure 2012
This year’s theme, “Äsia.Innovation.Renaisance”, highlights the economic transformation in Asia and opportunities for businesses from technological innovation.
Venue: Marina Bay Sands
18 October (Thursday)
Fashionably Bold
BlackBerry and ZALORA collaborates on a fashion show inspired by the BlackBerry Bold smartphones.
Venue: 72-13 Mohammed Sultan Road
19 October (Friday)
Piega launch by Atlas
Swiss Piega launching a range of exclusive handmade speakers in Singapore.
Venue: Atlas Showroom @ Windstedt
20-22 October (Saturday to Monday)
Singapore iStockalypse
iStockphoto and Getty Images are partnering with Canon Singapore to organise this 3-day photo-workshop to shoot Singapore.
Theory on Saturday, followed by portfolio review on Sunday and out-and-about shooting on Monday.
Venue: Canon Imaging Academy
Tags:BlackBerry, Bold, cameras, Canon, Galaxy, Getty Images, HP, Intel, iStockphoto, Lytro, Microsoft, Microsoft Windows 8, NCS, Note, Piega, Progress, Research In Motion, RIM, Samsung, Singapore, smartphones, Sony, speakers, tablets, Windows, Windows 8, ZALORA
Posted in Android, Audio, BlackBerry, Bold, Cameras, Canon, Event forecast, Events, Gadgets, Galaxy, HP, Intel, Microsoft, Notebooks, Phones, RIM, Samsung, Sony, Tablets, Windows 8 | No Comments »
Monday, September 17th, 2012
You can get the new Office 2013 either through a traditional one-time purchase, or via an annual subscription. Microsoft has unveiled its subscription price plans for consumers and small businesses.
Microsoft has unveiled its Office 365 subscription and one-time-purchase price plans for Office 2013.
Looking at the price plans, it’s a no-brainer that Microsoft wants customers to move from a traditional one-time purchase model to the new annual subscription plan.
View the detailed features and price comparisons for the different purchase models and price plans.
The cheaper Office 365 Home Premium subscription costs US$100 per year and gives you the same main component software as the top-end version for traditional purchase – the Professional version which sets you back US$400. (all prices rounded to the nearest dollar).
The subscription, however, allows for up to 5 PCs or Macs while the one-time-purchase version is only for one PC.
So the US$400 you dole out for one PC’s worth of the latter is enough to pay for four year’s worth of the essentially the same software for 5 computers.
If you renew your one-time-purchase Office every four years, the annual subscription model still works out to 20% of the one-time-purchase rate because you get five seats instead of one.
If you renew every eight years, you would still be paying only 40% of the one-time-purchase price in terms of cost per seat.
Plus the subscription model constantly keeps your version at the latest and offers additional 20 GB of SkyDrive storage, 60 Skype minutes, and other cloud-based features.
Tags:Microsoft, Office, Office 2013, Office 365
Posted in Announce, Microsoft, Office, Prices, Software, Specifications | No Comments »
Thursday, September 6th, 2012
Nokia has unveiled its new flagship smartphone – the Windows Phone 8 Nokia Lumia 920.
Together with the mid-range Nokia Lumia 820, these are its first Windows Phone 8 smartphones to be unveiled. Both will start shipping later this year.
Nokia Lumia 920 and Nokia Lumia 820 – the new Microsoft Windows Phone 8 smartphones.
Both phones will be available in pentaband LTE and HSPA+ variants and are expected to start shipping in select markets later in the year.
Nokia will announce pricing and specific roll-out dates country by country when sales are due to begin.
The Nokia flagship Lumia 920 comes in yellow, red, grey, white or black
The Nokia Lumia 920 incorporates the latest Nokia PureView imaging innovation.
It uses advanced floating lens technology that claims to take in “five times more light than competing smartphones without using flash, making it possible to capture clear, bright pictures and video indoors and at night”.
The mid-range Nokia Lumia 820 comes in red, yellow, grey, cyan, purple, white and black.
The touch-screen is able to differentiate between a bare finger and a glove one. You can still use the screen while wearing a ski glove.
Yellow Nokia Lumia 920 smartphone.
And it sports the same curved screen design I like in the Lumia 800.
The Nokia Lumia 820 comes with an exchangeable shell design that allows a range of colors, and enables wireless charging.
Beneath the shell is room to insert a microSD memory card.
Although both will feature a new faster 1.5GHz Dual Core Snapdragon S4 processor, the latest phones from Samsung, LG and Huawei will have Quad core processors, as will the iPhone 5 probably.
Nokia location suite
The Nokia Lumia 920 also comes with Nokia City Lens, the latest addition to the Nokia location suite.
The red and yellow Nokia Lumia 820.
By pointing the camera at a city street, City Lens overlays information about restaurants, shops, hotels and more on the surfaces of buildings, for the most intuitive way to explore surroundings.
Nokia City Lens is the start of a new augmented reality experience that also enhances Nokia Maps, making it possible to move between maps view and augmented reality view to help people check their direction and surroundings.
Nokia Drive and Nokia Transport have also been enhanced.
The Nokia Lumia 920 also comes with a large 2000mAh battery and features built-in wireless charging.
Wireless charging partners
Nokia Lumia 820 covers.
Nokia also announced a range of wireless charging accessories and partnerships.
The Fatboy Recharge Pillow provides a fun way to recharge, while JBL introduced the JBL PowerUP, a wireless charging docking station with high quality audio in retro styling.
Deals with Virgin Atlantic to put wireless charging stations in the London Heathrow Clubhouse lounge and Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf to put charging plates on tables in some of their cafés, were the first of many deals Nokia intends to sign to take wireless charging outside the home and office.
Below are the key technical specifications for the Nokia Lumia 920 and Nokia Lumia 820, as well as their respective detailed datasheets.
|
Nokia Lumia 920 |
Nokia Lumia 820 |
| Display |
4.5 inch Nokia PureMotion HD+ WXGA IPS LCD
Super Sensitive touch
ClearBlack technology with high brightness mode and Sunlight Readability Enhancements |
4.3 inch ClearBlack OLED WVGA 800×480
SuperSensitive touch
ClearBlack technology with high brightness mode and Sunlight Readability Enhancements |
| Battery |
2000mAh with integrated Qi wireless charging |
1650mAh with support for Qi wireless charging |
| Processor |
1.5GHz Dual Core Snapdragon S4 |
1.5GHz Dual Core Snapdragon S4 |
| Main camera |
8.7MP with Nokia PureView advanced optical imaging stabilization and Carl Zeiss optics
Full 1080p HD video capture at 30fps |
8MP Auto Focus with Carl Zeiss opticsDual LED flash
Full HD 1080p video capture at 30fps |
| Front facing camera |
1.2MP with 720p HD video |
VGA |
| Memory |
1GB RAM32GB mass memory with 7GB free SkyDrive storage |
1GB RAM8GB mass memory with microSD memory card support and 7GB free SkyDrive storage |
Datasheet for Nokia Lumia 920
Datasheet for Nokia Lumia 820
Tags:Lumia, Microsoft, Nokia, smartphones, Windows Phone, Windows Phone 8
Posted in Announce, App, Brochures, Gadgets, GPS, Lumia, Microsoft, Nokia, Operating Systems, Phones, Software, Specifications, Tech news, Tickers, Windows Phone 8 | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, September 5th, 2012
Nokia has unveiled its first hardware running the new mobile operating system from Microsoft.
The Finnish phone maker launched two Windows Phone 8 smartphones – Lumia 920 and Lumia 820 – in a joint media event between Nokia and Microsoft in New York today.
Steve Ballmer (CEO Microsoft) and Stephen Elop (CEO Nokia) brandishing the new Windows Phone 8 Lumia 920 and Lumia 820 smartphones at Manhattan today.
The one-and-a-half hour session just ended five minutes ago.
The joint media event saw the unveiling of the Lumia 920 (with PureView) and Lumia 820, with NFC, more powerful processors (1.5GHz Dual Core Snapdragon S4), better displays and new augmented reality apps (City Lens) for its location suite and enhancements to existing apps (Nokia Drive, Maps and Transport).
Check back at this space for more updates on new features of the two new smartphones.
Tags:Lumia, Microsoft, Nokia, Stephen Elop, Steve Ballmer, webcast, Windows Phone, Windows Phone 8
Posted in Announce, App, Gadgets, GPS, Launch, Live Event, Lumia, Microsoft, Nokia, Operating Systems, Phones, Software, Tech news, Tickers, Windows Phone 8 | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, September 5th, 2012
The Singapore White Spaces Pilot Group (SWSPG) added six new members today, and launched three commercial pilot deployments of TV White Spaces (TVWS) smart radio technology.
The three founding members of the SWSPG added six new members today.
The three founding members (Institute for Infocomm Research (I2R), Microsoft Singapore and StarHub) of the SWSPG introduced the following six members today.
- Neul Ltd, a Cambridge, UK-based TVWS Solutions and Services Company.
- Adaptrum, a Silicon Valley, US-based TVWS technology and solutions provider; whose TVWS System ACRS 1.0 was certified by the FCC and commercially deployed in the US.
- Power Automation Pte Ltd (a joint venture between Singapore Power and Siemens) which is a provider of smart grid solutions.
- Singapore Island Country Club, a golf and country club in Singapore.
- Spectrum Bridge Inc, a developer of spectrum management systems and a provider of spectrum sharing solutions, whose TVWS platform was the first to obtain FCC certification in the US.
- ZDW Systems Pte Ltd, an equipment manufacturer and solutions provider for wireless communications coverage enhancement networks.
The group also announced the first series of commercial pilot deployments of TVWS smart radio technology in Singapore.
“The Singapore TVWS pilots are very timely with the on-going digital TV transition and rising trends of the Internet of Things and Smart City regionally,” said Michael Thatcher, Chief Technology Officer, Public Sector, Microsoft Asia Pacific.
This will hopefully introduce a new class of wireless connectivity to Singapore, putting the island nation at the forefront of a new wave of wireless services innovation and Smart City applications.
With the support of IDA, these first three commercial pilot projects will attempt to demonstrate the characteristics and benefits of TVWS solutions in different environments and with different usage applications.
The first demo will penetrate the dense vegetation and challenging terrain of the SICC to enable wireless connectivity.
“IDA welcomes industry-led efforts such as the TVWS commercial pilots by the SWSPG. We will continue to support and provide regulatory guidance to industry initiatives looking at new and innovative ways to deploy TVWS,” said Aileen Chia, Deputy Diretor-General (Telecoms & Post), Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore.
The second demo will provide long-range wireless Internet coverage across the waters at the Singapore harbour.
The third demo will support smart grid applications that will impact the million households in Singapore.
These commercial pilots are conducted under a test licence from IDA and utilise a TVWS Geo-location Database developed by Microsoft, with the advice and inputs from IDA.
Tags:Adaptrum, broadband, demo, I2R, Microsoft, mobile, Neul, Power Automation, SICC, Singapore, Singapore Island Country Club, Spectrum Bridge, StarHub, SWSPG, TV White Spaces, TVWS, Wi-Fi, wireless, ZDW Systems
Posted in Announce, Enterprise IT, Events, Figures, Internet, Lists, Microsoft, StarHub, Tech news, Technology | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, September 5th, 2012
Nokia and Microsoft are hosting a media event in New York today – probably to launch one or more smartphones running on the Windows Phone 8 operating system.
Nokia and Microsoft joint media event: 9:30am (ET), 10pm (Singapore Time).
The joint conference from Nokia and Microsoft will take place at 9.30am (ET) today. That’s 10pm tonight in Singapore.
You can tune in here to follow the live webcast.
Tags:Lumia, Microsoft, Nokia, webcast, Windows Phone, Windows Phone 8
Posted in Announce, Gadgets, Lumia, Microsoft, Nokia, Operating Systems, Phones, Windows Phone 8 | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, August 29th, 2012
Microsoft will be at COMEX 2012 at Suntec Singapore at Booth 6126. Their hardware products will also be sold at the booths of other resellers.
Click to view or download Microsoft promotional flyers for COMEX 2012.
The Xbox 360 will be sold at Microsoft’s booth (6126), as well as those of Harvey Norman (6101) and Newstead (8498).
Microsoft’s range of keyboards, mice, webcam and headphones can be found at the above three booths, as well as those of Best Denki (6118), Cybermind (6868), Digital Asia (8361), and Video Pro (6137).
Tags:Best Denki, COMEX, COMEX 2012, COMEX 2012 accessories, Cybermind, Digital Asia, Harvey Norman, headphones, IT exhibition, keyboards, Microsoft, Mouse, Newstead, promotions, Singapore, Suntec, Video Pro, webcam, Xbox 360
Posted in Accessories, Audio, Events, Exhibition, Gadgets, headphones, Keyboards, Microsoft, Mouse, Prices, Promotions, Specifications | 1 Comment »
Saturday, August 11th, 2012
Utilising unused TV frequencies to provide wireless broadband connectivity increases the range and and penetration of coverage through foliage and reflective water surfaces that traditional Wi-Fi simply cannot penetrate.
Squeezing more more channels from the electromagnetic spectrum.
Currently, the radio spectrum in the TV broadcast bands have been reserved for use by licensed broadcasters and are out-of-bounds for wireless broadband networks.
“Broadband connectivity is the ‘oxygen’ to today’s digital economy, and is fundamental to the wide adoption of cloud computing services that are already part of our daily lives, whether at work, home or play,” observed Jessica Tan, General Manager, Enterprise & Partner Group, Microsoft Asia Pacific.
However, much of these reserved radio spectrum remain unused and are called TV White Spaces (TVWS).
For instance, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia shares out the TV broadcast bands in the region and there are certain bands allocated to Malaysia and Indonesia that Singapore cannot use for TV broadcast.
If these TV White Spaces can be harnessed effectively for wireless broadband connectivity without interfering with the quality of TV broadcast, it will translate to better coverage, lower power consumption and reduced network costs.
“TVWS radio technology will create a new generation of wireless connectivity by unlocking these large, unused chunks of spectrum that will enable more ubiquitous and affordable wireless broadband for all,” said Tan.
The physical characteristics of the 700 MHz band (as compared to the higher-frequency 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands used by traditional Wi-Fi), for example, means that it can reach further, penetrate thick foliage, and transmit across reflective water surfaces with less interference.
In terms of bandwidth, however, both TVWS and Wi-Fi are capable of roughly 2Mbps per MHz. It is the penetrative and low-power attributes of the former that makes it an attractive supplement to the latter.
The spectrum as a precious commodity
Globally, explosive growth of wireless data traffic is putting a severe strain on today’s mobile and Wi-Fi network infrastructure, signalling the need for more efficient management of the spectrum, through policy and technology innovations.
The exploitation of TVWS turns unused TV broadcast frequency bands into premium wireless broadband delivery channels.
Tags:broadband, communications, Microsoft, mobile, radio, spectrum, StarHub, TV White Spaces, White Spaces, Wi-Fi, wireless
Posted in Figures, Internet, Microsoft, Mobile, Network, Reference, StarHub, Technology | 1 Comment »
