Redmond’s annual science fair is literally a sneak peek into the future. Going from booth to booth, one gets a sense of where computing is headed, from new ways of viewing data and interacting machines to better ways of fighting spam and viruses.

But as mind-bending and enlighting as the event always is, it also can leave one scratching one’s head.

How can the company be doing such pioneering work and yet not be better at being the first one to succeed in many of these same areas?

There are areas where Microsoft has been successfully first, of course. The Xbox team’s Kinect is a great example of that.

“That’s a whole new product that was created … based around Microsoft Research technology,” says Rick Rashid, who has led Microsoft Research since its inception in 1991.

In addition to whole products that have shifted from labs into consumers’ hands, many individual features also trace their roots to the labs.

And Microsoft clearly gets a lot of bang for its research buck. The company’s 22-year-old research arm employs just 1 percent of the company’s workforce but accounts for a quarter of the company’s patents. It’s also designed to be an “early warning” system for impending new technologies.

“We need to be constantly pushing the envelope,” Rashid said.

A Microsoft tool called GeoFlow presents Excel data visually — in this case, Chicago drug arrest data.

On Tuesday, Microsoft showed off GeoFlow — a new way to visualize data from Microsoft Excel. Researcher Curtis Wong, who created the Worldwide Telescope, used drug-arrest data to show how Seattle Chicago police are actually spending a lot of time busting people for small amounts of pot.

Tracking pot arrests is interesting, of course, but the idea is to use it for all kinds of large data sets. Retailers, for example, can break down sales data in much the same way.

Wong has been working on what is now GeoFlow since his earliest days creating the global online telescope. He told me years ago that the space project was itself built on a platform he one day hoped to share with others.

GeoFlow is just one of a few dozen projects that Microsoft is showing publicly ahead of the internal portion of the Science Fair later this week. There, the main work of TechFest will take place — showing the research work to product teams, in the hope that they will see how things that work in the labs can be added to future products.

But Redmond also needs to be not just commercializing its research efforts but using them to deliver the next generation of mainstream products that consumers will want. Apple, by contrast, doesn’t have a basic research lab. They do years-out work, of course, but not in the academic way that Rashid and his team do.

And yet it is their research efforts, when brought to market, that have been doing a better job of capturing consumer attention.

AllThingsD will be checking out some of the research projects in Redmond all day Tuesday — at least those being shown publicly — and we’ll report back on some of the most interesting.

There’s no doubt about it’s strength in the U.S., but internationally, it’s not so clear how the seven-year old game console is faring, especially in comparison to Sony’s PlayStation. 

Microsoft sold 281,000 Xbox 360 units in January, up 4.1 percent from 270,000 a year ago, according to the NPD Group, which tracks sales of video-game software, hardware and accessories in the U.S. that occur at retail.

Earlier this week at D: Dive Into Media, Yusuf Mehdi, who leads Microsoft’s interactive entertainment business, also provided an update based on internal data.

He said the overall Xbox installed base is now at 76 million, up from 70 million at the end of September of last year. Also, 24 million Kinects have been sold, up from 20 million last year, and there are 46 million Xbox Live accounts, up from 40 million.

Sales continue to be brisk because the company has been successful at moving beyond a hard-core gaming audience to serve members of the family who like other forms of entertainment, such as streaming video or music.

But the rivalry between the different console makers is particularly intense right now as the industry waits for the next-generation devices to launch.

The Nintendo Wii U was the first to launch this holiday season, but has had a relatively lackluster performance. Next week, Sony is planning to unveil its new home videogame console at an event in New York. But Microsoft has remained mum on its plans for any potential Xbox 720. Earlier this week, Mehdi refused to budge on the subject. “I’ll politely decline any comment,” he said.

So, the question is, will Sony’s PlayStation 4 be well received?

If global trends are any indication, it’s possible. Based on numbers culled from the three company’s earnings reports, Geekwire was able to determine that the PlayStation 3 was the best-selling home console worldwide during the holidays.

Sales of the PS2 and PS3 totaled 6.8 million units for the December quarter to beat the number of Nintendo Wii and Wii U units sold (5.3 million), and the number of units reported by Microsoft for the Xbox 360 (5.9 million).

For the full year, the two PlayStation devices together sold 15.6 million units worldwide, compared with 8 million for Nintendo and about 11 million for the Xbox 360.

In other words, Sony continues to have a very strong worldwide presence for the PlayStation, compared to the Xbox which seems to dominate in the U.S.

Overall, however, the hardware sector remains fairly weak. Most executives in the videogame industry believe a new wave of hardware is needed to spur consumer interest again, while others believe that gamers are less attached to the living room than they were before and prefer gaming wherever they are from their phone or tablet.

NPD reported that sales of hardware in January were down 17 percent year over year when taking into account that the month had five weeks instead of four.

It’s a path the company has trotted down several times in the past — in its MSN business, for instance — usually to eventually retreat.

Microsoft now has a 125-person studio in Santa Monica devoted to making content for the Xbox.

“We’re certainly looking at a very robust production schedule,” Microsoft entertainment and digital media president Nancy Tellem said in an interview at D: Dive Into Media. Tellem declined to outline a budget for the effort she is overseeing at Microsoft, but said the company is looking at a range of scripted interactive content.

Pressed by interviewer Peter Kafka on why Microsoft needs to make content versus just partnering with studios, Tellem — formerly president of the CBS Network Television Entertainment Group — said that Microsoft has a unique opportunity to make content that is interactive rather than linear.

“Particularly when you are looking at the younger demographic,” Tellem said, “interactivity is a natural extension of what they do.”

The content could be 10 minutes or an hour and a half, Tellem said.

Microsoft-created content is likely to be part of the company’s existing paid Xbox Live subscription service.

So, when are we going to see this content?, Kafka asked.

“It’s a good question,” Tellem said.

This year?

“I’m hoping,” she said.

The Xbox installed base is now 76 million, up from 70 million at the end of September of last year, said Yusuf Mehdi, who leads Microsoft’s interactive entertainment business, speaking at D: Dive Into Media this afternoon.

It’s important to Mehdi and company that Xbox isn’t just perceived as a hard-core gaming device. He offered some usage numbers to combat that assumption: 38 percent of Xbox users are women, and more than 51 percent are people who have kids.

U.S. Xbox account holders use the devices for 87 hours per month. As of last March, non-game usage — fitness, entertainment content from partners like HBO and Netflix, etc. — started outpacing game usage on a yearly basis. There was 57 percent year-over-year growth in entertainment usage.

Microsoft also sent over some more stats: 24 million Kinects have been sold, up from 20 million last year, and there are 46 million Xbox Live accounts, up from 40 million.

This abbreviated history of human-computer interaction follows a clear trajectory of improvement, where each mode of communication with technology is demonstrably easier to use than the last. We are now entering an era of natural computing, where our interaction with technology becomes more like a conversation, effortless and ordinary, and less like a chore, clunky and difficult. Those of us working in the field are focused on teaching computers to understand and adapt to the most natural human actions, instead of forcing people to learn to understand and adapt to technology.

Three years ago, the industry’s only point of reference to explain this technology was science fiction, like the movie “Minority Report.” Then in November 2010, Microsoft’s Kinect for Xbox 360 sensor was released, and broad adoption of voice and gesture technology found its way into millions of living rooms. A year later, Microsoft launched Kinect for Windows, which gives researchers and businesses the ability to take the Kinect natural computing technology to market in a variety of industries.

Since then, major investments in the field have been made by established companies like Intel and Samsung, maturing natural user interface (NUI) players like Primesense and SoftKinetic, and new entrants like Leap Motion and Tobii. Natural computing is moving from the realms of researchers to the minds of marketers, and a true commercial category is starting to emerge.

But even just a year ago, there was no definition, no language and no data for the commercial category. Clearly a richer, more informed language was needed. To this end, my colleagues and I have developed a category framework: Kinect and other voice and gesture technologies are part of the Natural Computing category, defined as input devices that enable users to trigger computing events in the easiest, most efficient way possible. Understanding that the term Natural Computing has a variety of different meanings in academia, we found it was a helpful term to describe the business side of human-computer interaction technologies.

In some respects, there is evidence of natural computing all around us, and there has been for many years. Think of automatic doorways, which open up for you with no effort required on your part beyond walking toward them. Think of automatic faucets, soap dispensers and hand driers — all you have to do is offer them your hand.

These systems are the most rudimentary forms of natural computing. They each recognize a single set of data (your hand placement), automatically interpret your intent (to wash or dry your hands) and immediately respond to it (by dispensing water or soap or air). Now imagine if more complicated forms of technology could understand your intent in all its complexity, and respond to it simply, immediately and perfectly. No learning required. This is how those of us working in this field see the future.

There are currently a limited set of ways that users can interact with computing devices, although there will certainly be more in the future. Today, these include everything from manipulating a mouse and keyboard, to touching, speaking and gesturing. The illustration below breaks down these methods according to how close the user is to the screen (“far” vs. “near”), and how hard or easy it is to learn the technology (“learned” vs. “natural”).

First, each input method is designed to solve for different distances. For example, you need to be right next to a screen to be able to touch it, yet you can be several feet or more away from it when using gesture technologies. Similarly, take into consideration how much time it takes someone to learn how to use the technology. Older technologies tend to take longer to learn (think typing lessons or early command line interfaces) while newer ones tend to take less time (think touchscreens). The combination of these two ideas — proximity and ease of use — make up the Natural Computing Category Map, which enables us to better envision where certain natural computing technologies play a role now and where they could grow in the future.

Figure 1. Natural Computing Category Map (Illustrative)

Within this new, rising category, the technology receives new information with every single gesture, move or sound, and can adapt to what it learns. After one year in market, my colleagues and I continue to see Kinect for Windows as a fundamentally human technology — one that sees and recognizes users as a whole person, with thousands of examples of human-centered applications beyond gaming in industries like healthcare, retail, training and automotive. Additionally, competitive activity has also accelerated, with new sensor and SDK releases, updates to more established open source offerings and significant partnership and investment activity by major players and new entrants alike.

These other gesture-based technology companies have evolved to form partnerships with major computer hardware manufacturers or are exploring the possibilities of integrating the technology in smartphones. The category is growing and evolving rapidly. All this activity accretes to businesses and consumers, who benefit from the quickly evolving natural computing experiences.

The future of the natural computing category is to reach end-users directly, fundamentally changing everyday interactions with technology. Imagine walking by a storefront window and having an avatar mirror your every move, talking to your next-gen TV with the same tone and sentence structure you would use with a friend, or improving your tennis swing with an immersive simulation tool. If you are reading this and wonder what the future of natural computing holds in store for you, the future of natural computer interaction is here already, albeit unevenly distributed. And natural computing is quickly beginning to demonstrate what a computer can do if you give it eyes, ears and the capacity to use them.

Leslie Feinzaig is the Senior Product Manager for Kinect for Windows. Leslie plays an important role in Microsoft’s Kinect for Windows business and has researched and developed great insights into the industry and competitive landscapes around natural computing.

Now, Microsoft is working on enhancing the visual experiences, too.

A Microsoft Research project, called IllumiRoom, was unveiled this week at CES, which uses projectors to overlay images from the TV screen to all of the walls in the room.

Microsoft is clear about calling this a proof of concept, but with a new Xbox on the horizon, it’s fun to think about the kinds of innovations that it could bring to market with new hardware.

Geekwire dug up the video of Eric Rudder, Microsoft’s chief technical strategy officer, who introduced the project onstage during a Samsung press conference.

In a video, animated snowflakes appear on the walls when it is snowing, stars float around the room when traveling through space and the walls ripple to imitate the reverberation or echo of a gunshot in a first-person shooter.

To get it to work, Microsoft is using a Kinect for Windows camera and a projector, so potentially the biggest hurdle to getting this to market will be the price of the equipment. Rudder said the technology could be used to enhance a TV show or movie, a flight simulator or educational experiences.

Here’s a video of IllumiRoom in action. As Microsoft notes, no special effects were added in the production of the video. In other words, this is real, folks.

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After announcing in October its plans to create a yet-unnamed app store where Leap users can purchase and download apps, the company said today that it is shipping out 10,000 Leap units to verified developers, to aid in the creation of more software applications that will broaden the device’s appeal.

Some of the fruits of Leap Motion’s developer relations efforts are already apparent: I’ve seen early versions of a few Leap apps — which range from 3-D molding to music apps to the just-announced game shown in the video below — and the demos are impressive.

If you haven’t seen the Leap in action yet, here’s how it works: All that motion-sensor tech is compressed into a tiny, two-inch device that you place in front of your desktop or laptop keyboard. (Right now, the sensor works with Macs, Windows 7 and Windows 8, with a focus on the latter operating system.) Acting as a kind of mini-Kinect, Microsoft’s popular motion-sensor device, the Leap lets you use your fingers as controls, waving them just a few inches in front of the screen to input, create, shape or play.

The Leap Motion sensor, positioned in front of a MacBook

Leap Motion says it has taken in more than $10 million in preorders across 140 countries since the device was first announced this past spring.

After bringing former Apple execs Andy Miller and Michael Zagorsek onboard to act as president and head of marketing, respectively, it’s no surprise that the start-up, co-founded by Michael Buckwald and David Holz, is placing emphasis on building solid relations with the software development community.

While Leap Motion has declined to give an exact date for when it will ship its $70 motion-sensor device, the company said that Leap should be hitting retailers in the first quarter of 2013. It’s also unclear exactly how many apps will be ready for launch.

Check out the video below for a glimpse of how Leap works with one of the new apps, a Jenga-like game called Block 54:

On Nov. 18, Nintendo will start selling the Wii U, marking the beginning of the next generation of videogaming hardware. Nintendo has not said how many Wii U’s it expects to sell, but it is forecasting 10 million units combined for both the original Wii and the Wii U this year. Already, retailers have sold out of the limited quantities made available for preorders, but more will be available on launch day.

In an interview with AllThingsD, Nintendo North American President Reggie Fils-Aime said, “We are looking to max out production as quickly as possible.”

Meanwhile, Microsoft said it sold 270,000 Xbox units in the month of October; that’s more than any other console. Based on data from the NPD Group, it says it continues to hold a 56 percent market share of the current generation of consoles in the U.S., including the original Wii U and the Playstation 3.

What’s more, NPD Group said that $315 million was spent on Xbox 360 products in October, or more than the other two current-generation consoles combined.

Nintendo will be the only one of the three to unveil new hardware in time for the holiday shopping season, and has priced the console fairly competitively. The new Wii U will cost between $300 and $350, depending on the package. At the same time, it is dropping the price of the original Wii to $130. The selling points of the new console are a controller with a touchscreen display, 3-D graphics and integration with live TV programming.

In lockstep with Nintendo’s launch, Microsoft has started experimenting with several different pricing models for its hardware, which is now more than six years old. On Oct. 28, it started selling different hardware configurations from $99 to $150 with a two-year Xbox Live commitment of $15 a month. The Live account is required to access many additional features on the console. In contrast, Nintendo does not have a subscription pricing model and only requires the upfront purchase.

But since it came out a couple of years ago, a number of ideas have sprouted up for applications beyond gaming.

Microsoft decided to support this grassroots movement by hosting a special Kinect edition of TechStars, which gives entrepreneurs 13 weeks and $20,000 to get off the ground.

Eleven companies were chosen from nearly 500 applicants to participate in the program, which took place in Seattle; today, the founders made 20-minute presentations at Microsoft’s headquarters in front of a roomful of investors, in hopes of raising their first round.

The ideas varied dramatically, but for the most part, no one was playing around.

Many of the concepts revolved around the health care industry. Jintronix, for example, is trying to make it easier and less expensive for patients to continue physical therapy. Another idea, from Styku, was targeting e-commerce companies to create more efficient ways to try on clothes when shopping online. Lastly, and most goofy, were the folks from Freak’n Genius, which is allowing just about anyone to create cartoons and animations using real-life body movements. (Pictured on the right, Ubi Interactive demonstrates how it can turn any surface into a multitouch screen using Kinect.)

Here’s a brief description of the 11 companies that presented today:

• Jintronix: Uses Kinect to track a patient’s movements to make physical therapy cheaper and more accessible.
• Manctl: Uses 3-D technology to make it cheaper to make orthopedic molds for creating shoe insoles, or to fit bras more accurately.
• Ikkos: Founded by an Olympic coach, the company is creating a way to train athletes by using the Kinect to track a user’s movements.
• Kimetric: Uses Kinect sensors to track consumer behavior inside of retail stores.
• NConnex: Enables consumers to create 3-D models for interior decorating or remodels.
• Styku: Created by executives of Tukatech, which creates software for the fashion industry, is now making it possible to virtually try on clothing to find the perfect pair of jeans.
• Ubi Interactive: Is using 3-D multitouch technology that turns any surface, including a coffee table or window, into a digital sign or game of Angry Birds.
• Voxon: Giving artists and game designers the tools to create “holographic” entertainment and education.
• Zebcare: Monitors senior citizens in the home to assure that your loved ones are safe.
• Freak’n Genius: Makes it fun and easy for anyone to create animations using your whole body.
• GestSure Technologies: Allows surgeons to navigate MRI and CT scans in the operating room while maintaining sterility.

Advertisers will be able to ask viewers to answer multiple-choice questions by speaking “yes” or “no way” out loud, or by gesturing. The results will appear in real time on the screen, so subscribers can see how others are voting.

Perhaps the novelty of the experience will get users to watch the ads instead of trying to find a way to fast-forward through them.

Microsoft said the first brands to sign up for the program are Toyota, Samsung Mobile USA and Unilever, and that the commercials will start appearing this fall. The ads, officially dubbed “NUads,” will appear on both the Xbox Live dashboard and within select TV apps, but not inside of games.

All of this is possible because of Kinect, the voice-and-gesture-based technology that lets users control their game consoles without a remote control.

Ross Honey, the general manager of Xbox Live Entertainment and Advertising, said advertising revenue on the platform has grown by 140 percent year over year, and while the audience is not as big as other platforms, it is a segment of the population that advertisers find hard to reach.

“It’s increasingly challenging to reach these people, because they are spending so much time on our platform,” Honey said, adding that Xbox Live reaches roughly 40 million users. In particular, he said, gold subscribers spend about 84 hours a month — or three hours a day on average.

“Advertisers see that time and they know they need to connect with users there, because they aren’t anywhere else,” he added.

Microsoft said Toyota’s ad will feature the 30-second spot that premiered during the Super Bowl. In this version, viewers will be asked what they would like to see “reinvented” about the Camry. In another spot for Axe deodorant, users will get to vote on whether girls should be able to use it, too.

Here’s a video of the ads in action:

The company, which had previously only made the offer available through 17 of its own stores, plans to extend its $99 offer — which combines a Xbox 360 and Kinect motion sensor with a two-year service contract — to all U.S. Best Buy Co. stores and a “select” grouping of GameStop Corp. stores.

Read the rest of this post on the original site »

And today at D10, Skype boss Tony Bates said that the integration of the two companies is going well, and that he’s busy coming up with ways to serve billions of monthly users.

Bates talked a lot about how he was investing in mobile, including phones and tablets, to reach his aggressive growth targets, as well as about solutions for the living room.

During the interview and following Q&A session, Bates repeatedly answered questions about how Skype hasn’t — or has — changed since the merger.

One thing he said won’t change is that he’ll still have the opportunity to build the service on non-Microsoft products, such as Android and iOS. But he was clear about what he wasn’t open to — creating it so users could access Skype with people using different video-calling services.

“It’s critical to what we do,” he said.

Watch those highlights and others in this video:

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20120531/tony-bates-on-skype-becoming-the-virtual-kitchen-table-video/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20120531/skypes-tony-bates-says-the-goal-is-to-get-billions-of-active-users/ http://allthingsd.com/20120531/skypes-tony-bates-says-the-goal-is-to-get-billions-of-active-users/#comments Thu, 31 May 2012 18:59:11 +0000 Tricia Duryee http://allthingsd.com/?p=215299 Skype President Tony Bates, the man behind Microsoft’s largest acquisition, outlined his ambitions for the Internet-calling service at D: All Things Digital.

“If we can get to billions, I’ll be happy with that, and we are on the path to do that,” he said in an onstage interview with Kara Swisher.

Bates announced that Skype is a quarter of the way there, with 250 million monthly connected users, up from 170 million when Microsoft’s $8.5 billion deal closed eight months ago.

To get the rest of the way, Bates said Skype is emphasizing two areas of growth: Mobile phones and the living room.

“I like to think of Skype as the virtual kitchen table,” Bates said. “Ultimately, videoconferencing isn’t defined by one device. We see the world having it where you want and when you want it. The living room is an important area.”

Bates freely talked about the integration of Skype on Windows 8, Microsoft’s touch-based operating system, and on Windows Phone. But when it came to the Xbox and using Kinect, Microsoft’s hands-free motion-controlled technology, he was a little vague.

“It’s one of the most amazing forms of input we’ve seen to date. It’s been associated with games, and my kids love it, but Kinect is not just for games. … I think voice is another input. For us, it would be adding a communication layer using Kinect as a gesture or input device.”

As for when we might see the integration of the two, Bates said to stay tuned.

Full D10 Conference Coverage

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20120531/skypes-tony-bates-says-the-goal-is-to-get-billions-of-active-users/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20120531/skype-boss-tony-bates-on-his-lovely-new-life-at-microsoft/ http://allthingsd.com/20120531/skype-boss-tony-bates-on-his-lovely-new-life-at-microsoft/#comments Thu, 31 May 2012 18:23:09 +0000 Ina Fried http://allthingsd.com/?p=213468 Tony Bates insists that Skype’s life as a Microsoft unit is going swimmingly.

Asa Mathat / AllThingsD.com

“It’s been great,” Bates said, speaking Thursday at D: All Things Digital.

But, as interviewer Kara Swisher quickly pointed out, of course he’d say that.

Bates noted that the company now has 250 million monthly connected users, up from 170 million when Microsoft’s $8.5 billion deal closed eight months ago.

Keeping Skype’s unique culture has been important to both Microsoft and the Skype team, Bates said, noting that the company has development all around the world, but not in Microsoft’s hometown in Redmond. The company is being “harmonized” rather than “integrated” with Microsoft, Bates said.

On the product side, there will be more integration with Microsoft products.

“One of the things we are going to do is double down on Windows 8,” Bates said, using a phrase popular at this year’s conference, ever since Tim Cook noted that he was “doubling down” on secrecy.

Bates also aimed for a bit of secrecy when it comes to future products, but suggested that deeper integration with Windows and other Microsoft products could be on the horizon.

“We’re on that journey,” he said. “You’ll have to wait and see.”

On Windows Phone, Bates said that clearly Skype will have an opportunity to do some “first and best” work on Microsoft’s phone platform.

“I think their phone is great,” Bates said. “I definitely think we can add value to the phone.”

Mobile overall, though, is a key priority for Skype, and that includes continuing work for all major platforms, Bates said. The iPhone is the largest of those, but Android is rapidly growing, Bates said.

Bates said that the living room is also an important area, and that he personally loves Kinect, but he declined to talk about the company’s Xbox plans.

Full D10 Conference Coverage

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20120531/skype-boss-tony-bates-on-his-lovely-new-life-at-microsoft/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20120502/microsoft-preparing-to-sell-cellphone-like-subscriptions-for-the-xbox/ http://allthingsd.com/20120502/microsoft-preparing-to-sell-cellphone-like-subscriptions-for-the-xbox/#comments Wed, 02 May 2012 17:43:51 +0000 Tricia Duryee http://allthingsd.com/?p=202573 The Verge is reporting that next week Microsoft is planning to sell subscriptions for the Xbox, similarly to how wireless carriers sell phones. Under the plan, the Xbox plus Kinect will cost $99 plus $15 a month for two years, including access to the Xbox Live Gold service and its streaming TV and music. Right now, the package appears to be cheaper than paying upfront for the console, though that doesn’t factor in any future price discounts for the aging hardware.

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20120502/microsoft-preparing-to-sell-cellphone-like-subscriptions-for-the-xbox/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20120417/wearable-devices-how-geeky-glasses-and-wristbands-will-move-mainstream/ http://allthingsd.com/20120417/wearable-devices-how-geeky-glasses-and-wristbands-will-move-mainstream/#comments Tue, 17 Apr 2012 23:45:25 +0000 Sarah Rotman Epps http://allthingsd.com/?p=197369 We’ve all seen the movies: Gadget-laden heroes from James Bond to Terminator to Iron Man have long relied on voice-controlled watches and heads-up display glasses to extend their powers. Now, those gadgets are a reality, albeit a niche one. Google co-founder Sergey Brin was recently spotted wearing a prototype from Google’s “Project Glass.” People you know may even be wearing sensor-laden wristbands like the Nike+ Fuelband or sneakers like the Adidas adizero F50, which track your speed and workout stats. The military is prototyping dual-focus contact lenses with data displays, while university students experiment with clothing that reacts to our emotions. Nokia has filed a patent for a vibrating tattoo that could alert you when someone calls or texts you — the ultimate wearable.

Wearables have enormous potential for uses in health and fitness, navigation, social networking, commerce, and media. Imagine videogames that happen in real space. Or glasses that remind you of a colleague’s name that you really should know. Or paying for a coffee at Starbucks with your watch instead of your phone. Wearables will transform our lives in numerous ways, trivial and substantial, that we are just starting to imagine.

So what will it take to elevate these accessories from niche to mainstream? Hardware advances in battery life and the way sensors interact with each other will get us further than we are today, but the software platforms that drive the hardware hold the key to consumer adoption. In the same way that Windows took the PC mainstream and iOS and Android are powering the smartphone revolution today, wearables’ success depends on backing from one or more of the big five software platforms — Apple, Google, Microsoft, Amazon and Facebook. These platforms — and their developer communities — hold the key to the consumer connection. How so?

Apple has the most polished marketing, channel and brand. More than any other company, Apple has the potential to make any product go mainstream (witness the iPad). Apple’s expertise in hardware manufacturing, its developer network, its marketing prowess and its channel strength in Apple Stores and partner retailers all add up to a fertile petri dish for wearables. Already, Apple has inspired a number of “app-cessories” built to sync with iOS devices, like the Lark sleep sensor wristband and the (now discontinued) Jawbone UP fitness wristband.

Google has an open platform and a license to dabble. Google’s Android is the platform of choice for WIMM Labs, the Sony SmartWatch and others because it’s open: Product strategists can build whatever products they want on top of Google’s code while still taking advantage of the growing number of developers and companies that build Android apps. Additionally, Google has crucial elements of search infrastructure, with the ability to recognize and retrieve vast amounts of information like location-based data, which could be the basis for many wearable device features.

Microsoft has the best depth sensor yet. Windows Embedded, Microsoft’s operating systems and related solutions for “intelligent systems,” powers a wide range of products from Ford’s Sync automobile information system to Polycom conference phones. But to date, these solutions have been geared more for enterprise use, and haven’t attracted the same breadth of professional and amateur developers that iOS and Android platforms have — a crucial component for taking wearables mainstream. But another Microsoft product, the Kinect for Xbox 360, has captured developers’ imaginations, prompting a Kinect application programming interface for Windows. The potential of a Microsoft powered wearable becomes much more tangible when you imagine the depth sensor of the Kinect turned outward from your body, toward the world rather than toward you.

Amazon has information on more than 100 million products and their buyers. More and more consumers are starting their product searches with Amazon. Its all-encompassing product catalog, detailed product specs and reviews and personalized recommendations would all be assets in wearables. But despite Amazon’s success in manufacturing the Kindle line, we think it’s more likely that Amazon’s wearables strategy will center on distributing apps for other companies’ devices, rather than manufacturing the device itself.

Facebook has a Rolodex — and facial recognition — for 800 million people. Facebook, like Amazon, has the tool kit to be a partner player in the wearables market. Facebook is controversially implementing facial recognition software to autotag photos from its 800 million users — software that would be a perfect fit with a wearable device. Like that guy on the train? Sorry, he’s “in a relationship.”

In three years, we believe wearables will matter to every product strategist, just as mobile and tablets matter today. And because the software platforms are the key to mainstream, these devices have the power to intensify the platform wars among the big five — over issues like talent, intellectual property and patents, developers and customers. Wearables will shift toward mainstream in three phases:

• Phase one: Apple grows the app-cessory market with a deeper investment in wearables. For instance, by adding more sensors and connectivity to the iPod nano, as well as Siri voice control, Apple could immediately spark innovation in iOS apps and more accessories for nano beyond its existing watchbands.
• Phase two: Google broadens wearable experimentation with its open platform. Our call that Google will dominate in wearables — at least in the short term — may be surprising given our skepticism about Android’s prospects on tablets in the past. But an open platform for experimentation is exactly what wearables will need to evolve out of the early stages.
• Phase three: Microsoft competes with an “anti-platform” platform. With Windows 8, Microsoft is pivoting away from .NET/Silverlight to the open Web protocols of HTML5 and Javascript. This shift will be a strength for Microsoft to build on, promoting a future OS for wearables as a more flexible, scalable platform for developers than iOS or Android.

Sarah Rotman Epps is a Senior Analyst serving consumer product strategy professionals at Forrester Research. Follow her on Twitter @srepps. To learn more about this research, visit the full wearables research report here.

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20120417/wearable-devices-how-geeky-glasses-and-wristbands-will-move-mainstream/feed/ 1 http://allthingsd.com/20120410/xbox-grows-with-users-beyond-videogames/ http://allthingsd.com/20120410/xbox-grows-with-users-beyond-videogames/#comments Tue, 10 Apr 2012 22:32:43 +0000 Katherine Boehret http://allthingsd.com/?p=195067 With Internet-connected TVs, add-on boxes like Apple TV or Roku, and iPads resting on coffee tables, tech companies are trying harder than ever to capture space in your living room. Microsoft wants to take advantage of something that’s already in a lot of homes: Xbox.

Microsoft claims its Xbox Live users spend more time consuming media—videos and music—than playing games. Over the past five months, the company has brought more than 20 new apps or improved versions of apps to Xbox specifically to entertain nongamers. So if you are a person who put up with looking at someone else’s Xbox console stored under the TV for years, you’re finally getting something out of the deal.

The apps, available from the Xbox Apps Marketplace, provide easier ways to watch movies or video, play music or get updates on favorite sports. Icons are large and easy to see from a couch. I quickly navigated to my recently opened apps from the Xbox home screen.

I’ve been testing the Xbox 360 with a focus on nongaming apps, and it’s clear that Microsoft is serious about them. All apps are free to download onto Xbox, though some, like Netflix and MLB.TV, require paid memberships and others, like HBO Go, require an existing cable account with a specific channel or service. Most apps require an Xbox Live Gold account to use, and this costs about $60 a year for one person or $100 a year for a Gold Family Pack that four family members can share.

A frustrating aspect of using these Xbox apps was that I needed to download updates for them almost immediately after I initially downloaded the app. This happened on several occasions with all kinds of apps. And the Xbox console is a bulky, expensive box compared with palm-size competitors like the $50 Roku and $99 Apple TV, which offer some of the same entertainment apps and don’t require annual fees like Xbox Live Gold.

The Xbox apps I tested work with an included wireless controller or with a Kinect sensor, which responds to gestures and voice commands. A smaller $20 Media Remote also does the job and is sold separately. If you don’t already own an Xbox 360, the 4-gigabyte console will cost you $200; it holds 20 to 25 apps, depending on size—which should offer enough storage for nongamers. For another $100 you can buy the $300, 4-gigabyte Xbox 360 with a Kinect sensor, or for $400, the 250-gigabyte Xbox 360 with Kinect.

Apps for the Xbox bring more types of video entertainment to the TV.

The ESPN app, one of my favorites, let me scroll through several video clips using a Mini Guide, which appeared at the bottom of the TV screen with thumbnail images and descriptions when I touched a button on the Xbox controller. I could watch one highlight clip on the screen, or use a split screen to watch video while scrolling sports stats.

A double tap on the Xbox controller’s Y button showed a full-screen grid of highlight clips and displayed a category called My Sports. Here, I selected tennis, and My Sports quickly filled with thumbnails representing future tennis events I could set reminders to watch, as well as highlight clips and entire matches that had already taken place. On April 9, I used the ESPN app to watch the final match of a tennis tournament called the Family Circle Cup, even though the match aired April 8.

I tested the MLB.TV app by logging into an existing MLB.TV Premium account, which costs $125 a year. I quickly skimmed through baseball team statistics and watched the live season opener between the Phillies and Marlins. Each time the game went to a commercial, a message appeared on the screen saying “Commercial break in progress.” The MLB.TV app let me choose favorite teams for quick access to stats and news about those teams.

Some, like the MLB.TV app, pictured, require a paid account.

With the HBO Go app, I watched movies and HBO shows from my Xbox. When I navigated away from the app and opened it again, the show started from where I left off. When I found a show or movie I wanted to watch at another time, I added it to my Watchlist, which is accessed via a tile on the HBO Go home screen along with Last Played, which reminded me of the last episode I’d watched in a series.

Some shows available on a computer aren’t available within Xbox apps. When I searched Hulu Plus for NBC’s “Today” show to see a specific episode, an on-screen notification said, “Sorry, we don’t have the rights to stream this show to your device. It is available at Hulu.com on your computer Web browser.” I later found the clip in the “Today” app made especially for Xbox.

Likewise, several apps—including HBO Go, Netflix, Hulu Plus and Cinema Now—required me to authenticate the Xbox for use by logging into my Xbox account and then entering a code into my computer’s Web browser. This process is usually done just once per app, but stepping back to the PC was annoying.

I fooled around with DailyMotion and TMZ video apps. I watched “Ghostbusters” on Netflix and “Saturday Night Live” clips on Hulu Plus; both services charge $8 a month. Two music apps that work on Xbox 360 are iHeartRadio and Last.fm. Neither charges a subscription fee.

The Xbox continues to grow up and appeal to more people. A smaller, more stylish console would make the device even more welcome in the living room.

Write to Katherine Boehret at katie.boehret@wsj.com

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20120410/xbox-grows-with-users-beyond-videogames/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20120325/gesture-tech-company-hillcrest-labs-moves-into-smartphone-territory/ http://allthingsd.com/20120325/gesture-tech-company-hillcrest-labs-moves-into-smartphone-territory/#comments Mon, 26 Mar 2012 04:00:56 +0000 Ina Fried http://allthingsd.com/?p=189875 Hillcrest Labs is the latest company promising to bring Kinect-style gesture recognition to the smartphone.

Hillcrest, which has been working in the gesture and motion technology field for a decade, says the addition of gyroscopes, accelerometers and other sensors to the phone make it a perfect candidate for gesture recognition.

The Rockville, Md.-based company’s FreeSpace motion engine is already used in smart TVs and Roku set-top boxes. Hillcrest said it has adapted its software to also work with devices running Android and Windows 8.

Phones and tablets using its technology should show up starting in the first quarter of next year, Senior VP Chad Lucien told AllThingsD.

“We have a customer today,” Lucien said. “We are not in a position to announce who it is.”

Qualcomm demonstrated its gesture-recognition technology to AllThingsD last month, and Korea’s Pantech has announced gesture-capable phones using technology from Israel’s eyeSight Mobile Technologies.

Gesture recognition has wide potential, Lucien said. In addition to being used in such obvious areas as gaming and augmented reality, sensors can detect when a phone is in a car, and can change the interface and aid indoor navigation by detecting where a phone has headed once it leaves GPS range.

Lucien said Hillcrest’s approach sits in between the sensors and the operating system, allowing it to easily work with a variety of sensors, while at the same time ensuring that programs gain some gesture support without having to customize their software.

Device makers that want to further differentiate their user interface could take things further, Lucien said, and build on top of additional software hooks that Hillcrest has developed.

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20120325/gesture-tech-company-hillcrest-labs-moves-into-smartphone-territory/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20120317/no-new-xbox-anytime-soon-says-microsoft/ http://allthingsd.com/20120317/no-new-xbox-anytime-soon-says-microsoft/#comments Sat, 17 Mar 2012 16:45:55 +0000 John Paczkowski http://allthingsd.com/?p=187337 Microsoft’s Xbox 360 is selling so well there’s no need for the company to release its successor this year.

The company confirmed today that it won’t be unveiling a new Xbox console at the E3 video game conference in June, and said consumers probably shouldn’t expect new hardware for quite a while.

“While we appreciate all the interest in our long-range plans for the future, we can confirm that there will be no talk of new Xbox hardware at E3 or anytime soon,” Microsoft’s Corporate Communications boss Frank Shaw told AllThingsD. “For us, 2012 is all about Xbox 360.”

And for good reason. Shaw notes that the past year has been the best ever for Xbox 360 — a year in which it outsold not just all other gaming consoles, but DVD players and digital media receivers as well.

With demand for the Xbox 360 that robust, Microsoft can take its time bringing a successor to market, milking another year of strong sales out of the 360, which is still riding an upswell of momentum thanks to its Kinect motion-sensor peripheral and a strong lineup of games.

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20120317/no-new-xbox-anytime-soon-says-microsoft/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20120112/xbox-accounted-for-40-percent-of-all-videogame-sales-in-2011/ http://allthingsd.com/20120112/xbox-accounted-for-40-percent-of-all-videogame-sales-in-2011/#comments Fri, 13 Jan 2012 01:57:29 +0000 Tricia Duryee http://allthingsd.com/?p=163447 Microsoft dominated the videogame industry last year, with the Xbox capturing nearly half of all consumer spending from physical sales in 2011.

According to NPD data released today, about $6.7 billion, or 40 percent of consumer retail spending, was spent on the Xbox, breaking down into two categories: $2.1 billion on consoles and $4.6 billion on games.

The figures take into account U.S. retail sales of new physical videogame content, including portable and console hardware, games and accessories.

In all, those sectors generated revenue of $17.02 billion in 2011, an 8 percent decline over the $18.6 billion generated last year. (Yes, I repeat, Microsoft got 40 percent of that in 2011.)

The initial report does not take into account sales from digital formats such as downloadable content on the console, social and mobile games, or other categories, including used and rentals.

Those so-called “newer” categories generated $7.24 billion in revenues last year, an increase of 7 percent over the prior year.

The increase in spending on alternative formats, however, wasn’t enough to offset declines in physical retail. All told, consumer spending across both categories totaled between $16.3 billion and $16.6 billion, falling 2 percent over last year.

Separating physical and digital sales is quickly becoming an outdated concept, since the two are so intertwined. Consumers have the choice of purchasing many of the games over the Internet via a digital download versus buying them at Wal-Mart or Target.

NPD acknowledged today that it needs “deeper visibility” into digital distribution to get a complete picture of the industry, which will be its focus in 2012.

Still, the report can still be used as a litmus test to see what is performing well.

Overall, a surprisingly disappointing December is what dragged down results for the whole year, NPD discovered.

“Because of the great slate of content that came to market during the fourth quarter, I had expected December sales to represent a larger portion of total year sales than what occurred,” said NPD Group analyst Anita Frazier, in a release.

Frazier added that December sales accounted for just 23 percent of the annual total, compared to the past 10 years, when December, on average, represented 28 percent of the total.

In addition to Microsoft’s Xbox, Sony’s PlayStation also performed well, with both witnessing a 5 percent increase across all game categories for 2011. Meanwhile, the Nintendo Wii, which cannot display HD content, saw a decline year over year.

In a separate statement, Microsoft said that it outsold the PlayStation, the second-place console, by 2.7 million units, and that in all, it has now sold 66 million Xboxes and 18 million Kinect accessories. On a global basis, Sony said in a statement that it sold more than 6.5 million units worldwide this holiday season.

Here are the Top 10 best-selling games in December, according to NPD:

1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 by Activision Blizzard
2. Just Dance 3 by Ubisoft
3. Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim by Bethesda Softworks
4. Mario Kart 7 for 3DS by Nintendo
5. Battlefield 3 by Electronic Arts
6. Madden NFL by Electronic Arts
7. Assassin’s Creed: Revelations by Ubisoft
8. NBA 2k12 by Take Two Interactive
9. Super Mario 3D Land for 3DS by Nintendo
10. Batman: Arkham City by Warner Bros. Interactive

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20120112/xbox-accounted-for-40-percent-of-all-videogame-sales-in-2011/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20120110/kinect-helps-keep-aging-xbox-at-the-top-of-its-game/ http://allthingsd.com/20120110/kinect-helps-keep-aging-xbox-at-the-top-of-its-game/#comments Tue, 10 Jan 2012 23:23:37 +0000 Tricia Duryee http://allthingsd.com/?p=162252 Turns out the big consumer electronics highlight of Microsoft’s final CES keynote last night was the six-year-old Xbox.

Microsoft was proud to announce that over its lifespan, more than 66 million consoles have been sold and that 40 million users have signed up for an Xbox Live membership.

To be sure, the Xbox continues to be one of the top-selling videogame consoles, beating both Sony’s PlayStation 3 and Nintendo’s Wii for the past year.

But breathing new life into the device is the motion-controlled accessory called the Kinect, which was introduced right before the holidays in 2010.

Microsoft provided a sales update last night for the Kinect, saying it has now sold 18 million of the units, which represents about one in four Xbox owners. The last update — that 10 million had been sold — was provided 10 months ago when Microsoft said the Kinect shattered the Guinness Book of World Records for fastest-selling consumer device ever.

But the device’s future is a little hazy.

On the Xbox, one of the most popular use cases has been to play dance simulation games. The controller has yet to break substantially into the more hardcore titles. More recently, Microsoft has made it clear that the Kinect will be an integral part of the user interface by providing a wider selection of entertainment options in the living room.

On Dec. 6, the company rolled out a free update to Xbox Live that allowed people to use the Kinect to conduct a Bing search to find games, music and video across several providers. The user interface also allowed people to control the box with voice commands instead of the game controller.

During the keynote, Microsoft’s CEO Steve Ballmer announced the Kinect will be coming to Windows on Feb. 1.

In a follow-up blog post, Microsoft said the hardware will have to be optimized for the Windows platform, and the price will reflect that. The Windows-based device will cost $250, more than double the price of the Kinect for Xbox, currently $120 on Amazon.

Microsoft also points out that it can mark down the cost of the hardware for the Xbox because it is subsidized by the purchase of games.

The biggest change to the hardware perhaps is that the camera will be able to see objects as close as 40 to 50 centimeters away from the device, whereas the Xbox version requires you to stand a few feet away from the TV and use most of your living room.

Microsoft also said Kinect for Windows will support gestures and voice on Windows Embedded-based devices, such as systems in manufacturing, retail and other industries.

There will be a slightly cheaper version, priced at $150, for qualifying educational users, to fuel additional innovation on the platform.

Coming up with compelling reasons to buy the technology will be important, especially since Microsoft is charging such a premium price.

MORE CES NEWS:

• Complete coverage
• HP’s Former CTO: Ultrabooks Are Nothing New, webOS Still Has Life Yet
• Walt Shows Off CES Gadgets for Fox Business News (Video)
• What Kind of Web Video Plans Does Sony Have? (Video)
• Fujitsu Seeking Way Into Crowded U.S. Smartphone Market
• Why Rhapsody Is (Probably) Bigger Than Spotify — In the U.S.
• Microsoft Beefing Up CeBit Presence Even as It Pulls Back on CES
• Inside the CES Lost & Found
• FCC Chairman Has New Tablet, but Same Script: More Spectrum!
• Verizon Wireless: We Want to Connect Five Devices for Every Subscriber
• Ultrabooks From HP and Lenovo That Are (Kinda, Sorta) Different
• Walt and Katie Take a Tour of CES (Video)
• Schmidt-Storm Alert: The Google Chairman Didn’t Like Your Question
• T-Mobile Expands Bobsled Messaging Service
• Intel Shows Just How It Plans to Get Into Phones (Video)
• Motorola CEO: We’re Going to Release Fewer Phones This Year
• Kinect Helps Keep Aging Xbox at the Top of Its Game
• More From T-Mobile CEO: On Pricing, LTE and That Ever-Elusive iPhone
• Exclusive: New Boss Acknowledges Windows Phone Still Has “Awareness Problem”
• And You Thought Jawbone UP Was Going to Miss the CES Party!
• Interview: T-Mobile CEO Says No Second AT&T Deal Out There
• Grover Is at CES and I Am Missing It
• BlueStacks Bringing Android Apps to Windows 8
• Why the Future of TV Won’t Be Here Soon
• Nvidia’s Tegra 3 Tries to Save Battery in All Sorts of Different Ways
• Dynamic Dual Coverage: Ballmer’s Last Act in Vegas and the BCS Championship in 3-D
• Microsoft Phoning In Its Last CES Keynote
• Myspace — Yes, Myspace — Says It’s Going to Sell You Web TV
• Samsung Unveils “Super” 55-Inch OLED TV
• Nokia Unveils That LTE Windows Phone It’s Been Dying to Share
• Steve Ballmer Gives Ralph De La Vega a Very … Vigorous Greeting (Video)
• Interview: AT&T’s De La Vega on LTE, Tablets and Life After T-Mobile
• AT&T’s De La Vega: Shared Data Plans Still in the Works
• LG: 55-Inch Glasses-Free 3-D Screen Is on the Way
• LG Pushes 4G Smartphone Through Verizon: The LG Spectrum
• Live: AT&T’s Vegas Act Stars LTE and, Making Her Return to the Stage, Nokia
• CES Notebook: The Constant Search for Power and Vegas’ Worst-kept Secret
• Belkin Bringing Mobile TV to Lots of Cellphones, Will Anyone Tune In?
• Acer Introduces “World’s Thinnest” Ultrabook and a “Me-Too” Cloud Service
• There Better Be Some Cool Stuff at CES, Because CE Holiday Sales Data Bytes!
• CES 2012: Snooki and Bieber Are In, Gaga Is Out!
• Coming to a Smartphone Near You: Gorilla Glass 2
• RIM Hopes Next PlayBook OS Will Impress at CES
• Ultrabooks, the Ultra-Fancy New Name for Laptops
• At CES, Expect More Gadgets Telling You to Get Off the Couch
• Intel to Detail Its Phone Plans at CES Next Month
• Microsoft Pulling Out of CES After Upcoming Show
• Intel to Detail Its Phone Plans at CES Next Month
• Dell Will Drop the Flashy Vegas Act for CES This Year
• Ultrabook Conga Line Preps for CES 2012

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20120110/kinect-helps-keep-aging-xbox-at-the-top-of-its-game/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20120109/microsoft-phoning-in-its-last-keynote/ http://allthingsd.com/20120109/microsoft-phoning-in-its-last-keynote/#comments Tue, 10 Jan 2012 02:30:25 +0000 Ina Fried http://allthingsd.com/?p=161282 Well, maybe it is a good thing that Microsoft plans to make this Consumer Electronics Show keynote its last.

The company isn’t making much news during Steve Ballmer’s speech, which is due to start any minute now.

Arguably the biggest news is already out — the company’s phone announcements with Nokia and AT&T.

Ballmer is also expected to toss out some numbers showing how well it is doing with Xbox console and the Kinect add-on that allows one to play games without a controller.

Beyond that, Microsoft will show a demo of Windows 8, but there probably won’t be much new from what the company showed developers last fall at its Build conference. A beta version of the operating system is due next month; though, again, Microsoft had already said that.

But I can’t help but think that this need not have been Microsoft’s Vegas fate.

I’m not saying that Steve Ballmer could have been the next Rita Rudner or Wayne Newton. But, surely there is enough interesting stuff things on in Redmond to put on one good show a year.

They could pull some of the amazing stuff cooking in their labs, preview some games and show a bit of where Windows is headed.

But, alas, they haven’t done that for many years. Bill Gates used to do that. Sure, not everything he predicted was a hit (think stylus-based tablets, smart watches and Internet appliances). But at least there was something new.

That said, Microsoft is promising that this year’s show should at least be entertaining. If you want to follow along, check out AllThingsD’s innovative live blog, which combines the Ballmer-note with the ongoing BCS championship football game. Hopefully, at least one will keep you entertained. (Or at least that we do, even if the on-field heroics are less than memorable.)

MORE CES NEWS:

• Complete coverage
• HP’s Former CTO: Ultrabooks Are Nothing New, webOS Still Has Life Yet
• Walt Shows Off CES Gadgets for Fox Business News (Video)
• What Kind of Web Video Plans Does Sony Have? (Video)
• Fujitsu Seeking Way Into Crowded U.S. Smartphone Market
• Why Rhapsody Is (Probably) Bigger Than Spotify — In the U.S.
• Microsoft Beefing Up CeBit Presence Even as It Pulls Back on CES
• Inside the CES Lost & Found
• FCC Chairman Has New Tablet, but Same Script: More Spectrum!
• Verizon Wireless: We Want to Connect Five Devices for Every Subscriber
• Ultrabooks From HP and Lenovo That Are (Kinda, Sorta) Different
• Walt and Katie Take a Tour of CES (Video)
• Schmidt-Storm Alert: The Google Chairman Didn’t Like Your Question
• T-Mobile Expands Bobsled Messaging Service
• Intel Shows Just How It Plans to Get Into Phones (Video)
• Motorola CEO: We’re Going to Release Fewer Phones This Year
• Kinect Helps Keep Aging Xbox at the Top of Its Game
• More From T-Mobile CEO: On Pricing, LTE and That Ever-Elusive iPhone
• Exclusive: New Boss Acknowledges Windows Phone Still Has “Awareness Problem”
• And You Thought Jawbone UP Was Going to Miss the CES Party!
• Interview: T-Mobile CEO Says No Second AT&T Deal Out There
• Grover Is at CES and I Am Missing It
• BlueStacks Bringing Android Apps to Windows 8
• Why the Future of TV Won’t Be Here Soon
• Nvidia’s Tegra 3 Tries to Save Battery in All Sorts of Different Ways
• Dynamic Dual Coverage: Ballmer’s Last Act in Vegas and the BCS Championship in 3-D
• Microsoft Phoning In Its Last CES Keynote
• Myspace — Yes, Myspace — Says It’s Going to Sell You Web TV
• Samsung Unveils “Super” 55-Inch OLED TV
• Nokia Unveils That LTE Windows Phone It’s Been Dying to Share
• Steve Ballmer Gives Ralph De La Vega a Very … Vigorous Greeting (Video)
• Interview: AT&T’s De La Vega on LTE, Tablets and Life After T-Mobile
• AT&T’s De La Vega: Shared Data Plans Still in the Works
• LG: 55-Inch Glasses-Free 3-D Screen Is on the Way
• LG Pushes 4G Smartphone Through Verizon: The LG Spectrum
• Live: AT&T’s Vegas Act Stars LTE and, Making Her Return to the Stage, Nokia
• CES Notebook: The Constant Search for Power and Vegas’ Worst-kept Secret
• Belkin Bringing Mobile TV to Lots of Cellphones, Will Anyone Tune In?
• Acer Introduces “World’s Thinnest” Ultrabook and a “Me-Too” Cloud Service
• There Better Be Some Cool Stuff at CES, Because CE Holiday Sales Data Bytes!
• CES 2012: Snooki and Bieber Are In, Gaga Is Out!
• Coming to a Smartphone Near You: Gorilla Glass 2
• RIM Hopes Next PlayBook OS Will Impress at CES
• Ultrabooks, the Ultra-Fancy New Name for Laptops
• At CES, Expect More Gadgets Telling You to Get Off the Couch
• Intel to Detail Its Phone Plans at CES Next Month
• Microsoft Pulling Out of CES After Upcoming Show
• Intel to Detail Its Phone Plans at CES Next Month
• Dell Will Drop the Flashy Vegas Act for CES This Year
• Ultrabook Conga Line Preps for CES 2012

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20120109/microsoft-phoning-in-its-last-keynote/feed/ 0