Former Microsoft CEO says Windows 10 universal apps "won't work," questions cloud revenue

Steve Ballmer, who remains Microsoft's largest shareholder, offered some scathing criticism of how the company is reporting its revenues and profit margins from cloud services and hardware, as well as its universal app strategy for wooing developers to create apps for Windows devices.

Daniel Eran Dilger 10 years ago 0

IDC offers a rosy forecast for Microsoft Surface, reminiscent of its 2012 Windows Phone outlook

Four years ago, IDC issued a prediction—disguised as fact—that claimed Windows Phone would eclipse Apple's iPhone by 2015. While laughable in hindsight, IDC now says Microsoft's Surface sales will improve at the expense of iPads, offering an even less plausible explanation for why this could happen.

Daniel Eran Dilger 10 years ago 0

Larger tablets like Apple's iPad Pro & Microsoft's Surface Pro predicted to squeeze out smaller, cheaper models

The launch of the iPad Pro signals a major shift in the tablet market, two new forecasts predict, calling for cheaper vendors selling smaller tablets to be affected by consumer demand for newer, larger, and more powerful hardware.

Neil Hughes 10 years ago 0

Apple approved Microsoft filming new holiday-themed ad outside iconic NYC Fifth Ave cube

Apple's most famous retail destination is the subject of a new, unifying ad from rival Microsoft, bringing employees from both companies together in the spirit of the holiday season — and also bringing executives to sign off on the production behind the scenes.

Neil Hughes 10 years ago 31

Microsoft rolls out Cortana for iOS to select beta testers

Microsoft this week activated beta accounts for a select number users interested in testing out the iOS version of its Cortana personal assistant, the software giant's alternative to Siri and Google Now.

AppleInsider Staff 10 years ago 13

Amazon Video, Microsoft OneDrive & Google Drive for iOS update with 3D Touch [u]

Amazon, Google, and Microsoft on Tuesday updated key iOS apps with support for 3D Touch on the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, simultaneously adding a number of other features. [Updated with Google Drive info]

Roger Fingas 10 years ago 9

Microsoft Graph promises open developer access to Office 365 data

Microsoft at its Connect (); conference on Wednesday flipped the switch on Microsoft Graph, née Office 365 Unified API, a set of APIs that let developers integrate, manage and tap into vast expanses of data stored in the Office 365 cloud.

Mikey Campbell 10 years ago 6

Microsoft revamps Bing iPhone app with new interface, offline caching & more

Microsoft on Wednesday released a redesigned Bing iPhone app, with things like a streamlined homepage, app hooks, and even limited offline support.

Roger Fingas 10 years ago 2

Apple's iPad Pro boasts 'top tier display,' but falls behind iPad mini 4 & Microsoft Surface Pro 4

A showdown pitting the new iPad Pro display against the rest of the tablet market has found that Apple's new 12.9-inch Retina display is an excellent panel, though it can't outmatch the new iPad mini 4 screen, and even ranks slightly lower than the new Microsoft Surface Pro 4.

Blair MacGregor 10 years ago 56

Apple's new iPad Pro is faster, more affordable than Microsoft's Surface Pro 4

When Apple first unveiled iPad Pro, it noted that its custom designed A9X chip would be faster than 80 percent of the PCs that shipped this year. Benchmarks indicate that it's not just faster than low end generic PCs, but also faster — and less expensive — than Microsoft's Surface Pro 4.

Daniel Eran Dilger 10 years ago 324

Microsoft's Surface Book 'tries too hard,' Tim Cook says

Apple chief Tim Cook had some harsh words for Microsoft during a stop in Ireland on Wednesday, saying that the Redmond firm's latest Surface Book — which competes with both the iPad and the MacBook lineup — "really succeeds at being neither" a tablet nor notebook.

Sam Oliver 10 years ago 71

Microsoft opens sign-ups for testing Cortana assistant app on iOS

Microsoft is now accepting public beta sign-ups for the iOS version of Cortana, which will bring a limited amount of the Windows assistant's features to iPhones.

Roger Fingas 10 years ago 15

Microsoft makes across-the-board downgrades to OneDrive storage options, ditches unlimited tiers

Microsoft is making sweeping downgrades to its OneDrive cloud storage services, most notably eliminating unlimited tiers for subscribers to Office 365.

Roger Fingas 10 years ago 54

Apple resists MacBook, iPad Pro convergence as Microsoft struggles with Surface Windows 10 hybrids

Microsoft's latest efforts to shove Windows PCs back into relevance in the Post PC era have found willing volunteers among some PC bloggers ready to exchange their credibility for enthusiastic reviews of Surface Book and Pro 4, apparently under the premise that Windows can be reanimated back into a viable monopoly via hybrid Tablet PC-style convergence. But that's delusionally wrong, here's why.

Daniel Eran Dilger 10 years ago 399

Microsoft represents only serious competition for Apple hardware, Steve Ballmer says

Microsoft is the only company poised to give Apple serious competition in terms of hardware, former Chief Executive Steve Ballmer commented on a Bloomberg TV show Friday morning.

Roger Fingas 10 years ago 230

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