Net Applications has just released its monthly NetMarketShare statistics, and with Windows 8.1 on the horizon, it throws up some rather interesting findings regarding adoption rates of currently available versions of the Redmond company's platform. Notably, Windows 8 usage seems to have seen a significant upturn, with a leap from 5.42 percent to 7.65 percent worldwide during the month of August alone. Meanwhile, Windows XP, which still enjoys a healthy market share despite its age, dipped from 37.19 percent to 33.66 percent.
Windows 8 may still be considerably bereft when it comes to popular apps, but in a fortnight that has seen a working Instagram app arrive on the mobile version of Microsoft's fledgling platform, Foursquare for Windows 8 has just made its long-awaited appearance over at the Windows Store. First unveiled at Microsoft's BUILD dev conference back in June, the turnaround has been fairly swift, and now fans of the social check-in service can collect their badges, make and view recommendations, and strive for mayorship using the new app.
Late last week, we heard through the grapevine that Windows 8.1 RTM had been finalized, and today, the process has begun. New devices and machines bundled with Windows 8.1 will become available from October 18th, with manufacturers now being issued with licenses to pre-install the software, everything appears to be running tidily to schedule.
Windows 8.1 has spent the past few months being primed and prepared for its October 17th release date, and with build number 9600 now confirmed as the Release to manufacturing (RTM), the process of assembling Windows 8.1 for public consumption is all-but complete. In a week that has seen CEO Steve Ballmer announce his imminent retirement after 13 years at the helm, it's critical that this transitional phase has only a positive effect on the Redmond company's product range, and with Windows 8.1 now getting its RTM, the stage is set for a new wave of corresponding products.
Every once in a while, there comes a new idea that truly makes consumers go crazy over the product that has been delivered (or proposed, for that matter). Ubi Interactive, a company that has no link whatsoever to Ubisoft, by the way, has come up with the new application that works in conjunction with Microsoft’s Kinect for Xbox, and has the ability to convert any flat surface into a virtual “touch-screen” that works with a projector.
Microsoft has just confirmed that its upcoming Windows 8.1 will begin rolling out on 17th October to consumers, which ties in nicely with previous reports. The update, which will hit the various markets across the world periodically over the course of the 24 hours thereafter, brings a whole host of small changes from Windows 8 that collectively make for a better overall user experience.
In its efforts to remain relevant in light of Google Chrome's emergence over the past couple of years, Mozilla has continued to pump out the updates to its famed Firefox browser. Today brings another fleet of new features and improvements to the major desktop platforms as well as Android, capped off with an ever-so-slight alteration to the logo. Details after the break.
Microsoft has worked hard to establish itself in the tablet space, and its first effort, the Surface, has been the subject of much critical acclaim. Yet the estimated sales figures posted by the Redmond at its annual Form 10-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing suggests there's much work to be done if the company is to compete with some of the big players in the game. With Surface, Microsoft took the hybrid approach to target both iPad like form factor and the Ultrabook market, but with less than impressive sales as demonstrated here, neither field will be feeling the heat from the Surface range.
A few weeks back, it was announced that Halo: Spartan Assault would be hitting the Windows Store and Windows Phone Store in the near future and today, the title has just appeared for both Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8. Costing $6.99, it would seem a must-have for anybody claiming to be a legitimate Halo fan, and we've got all of the details after the break!
As part of Microsoft's continued endeavor to boost sales of its Surface RT, the Redmond company has slashed the price of the tablet across markets in Europe following a similar move across North America just a short while ago. The deal sees the cost of the ARM-powered slate reduced by up to a third, with prices ranging from £279 in UK, or €329 in Germany.
