Windows 8

Hardware vs. software: Playing the PC sales blame game

By now, anyone interested in the PC business has heard about the poor showing for global computer shipments in the first quarter of 2013. As noted here:

First-quarter global computer shipments dropped 14 percent from the previous year, said International Data Corp., much worse than its forecast for a 7.7 percent decline. The pullback marked the worst-ever quarter since IDC began tracking quarterly PC shipments in 1994, and it's the fourth consecutive quarter of year-over-year shipment declines.

Some were quick to blame Windows 8, which launched in October 2012, while others pointed to everything from the increasing popularity … Read more

The best Windows 8 gaming laptops

We recently complained about the lack of a single best-case gaming laptop for the Windows 8 era. That was largely because of the handful of portable PCs with higher-end graphics cards we'd reviewed in the six months since Microsoft's new OS took over, none thought to include a touch-screen display. That's a feature not particularly called for in even current-gen PC games, but it's one that Windows 8 practically begs for during the hours when you're not using your laptop for gaming.

Since then, we've finished reviews of a couple more gaming laptops -- … Read more

PCs hit by an ugly quarterly drop as Windows 8 flops

It's really ugly in the PC market right now. How ugly? About the worst it has ever been, according to new reports from a couple of tech research firms.

First-quarter global computer shipments dropped 14 percent from the previous year, said International Data Corp., much worse than its forecast for a 7.7 percent decline. The pullback marked the worst-ever quarter since IDC began tracking quarterly PC shipments in 1994, and it's the fourth consecutive quarter of year-over-year shipment declines.

Rival tech research firm Gartner, meanwhile, said its data showed an 11 percent decline in first-quarter global PC … Read more

Nokia brings Music app to Windows 8, RT

Nokia today launched its music app for Windows 8 and RT tablets and PCs, extending the Finnish handset maker's reach in the mobile market.

The free music streaming app, Nokia Music, first appeared on Nokia Lumia smartphones, and Nokia in January enhanced the service to include a premium version, dubbed Nokia Music+, for a monthly subscription fee of $3.99. With both, users are able to create their own mixes or stream from playlists curated by Nokia's team and artists. Mixes also can be saved for offline playback. The premium version gives users unlimited skips and unlimited downloads.… Read more

Discounted Windows 8 hybrids earn a second look

Microsoft's official online store has cut prices on a handful of Window 8 devices. These systems, from HP, Toshiba, and others, are all different, but each straddles the line between laptop and tablet and falls into the growing hybrid category; you can see the current discounts on the Microsoft Store site.

With these new discounts (no word on if they are temporary or permanent), our initial reviews of these specific systems deserve a second look, if only because a big knock against each one was the unrealistic asking price.

Are they much better machines at $100 to $250 off, … Read more

Windows Blue poised to become Windows 8.1

Microsoft officials supposedly have decided on the final name for Windows Blue. The final decision, one of my sources told me, is that it will be Windows 8.1.

The client version of Blue, codenamed Windows Blue, is a refresh of Windows 8. It is expected to be released to manufacturing around August of this year. As I've blogged a few times, Microsoft is planning to position Blue as part of the Windows 8 wave, not as Windows 9.

On Twitter this morning Roman L. (a k a @AngelWZR) posted a screen shot of what appears to be a … Read more

Windows 8 ekes out 3.2 percent of desktop OS market

Windows 8 is slowly carving out a slightly larger slice of the OS market.

The latest flavor of Windows captured 3.17 percent of all desktop OS traffic tracked by Net Applications in March. That was a small gain from the 2.67 percent share in February.

Since its official debut last October, Windows 8 has very gradually risen up the ranks, at least in Net Applications' Web traffic reports.

Starting with a 1.09 percent share in November, the OS carved out a 1.72 percent share in December. It then grabbed a 2.26 percent share in January, … Read more

Vizio welcomes spring with new Windows 8 touch-enabled PCs

Welcome to the third generation of Vizio PCs. You won't find many things different technology-wise in this round compared with previous models. The biggest news is that the laptops -- two 14-inch, and two 15.6-inch models -- all ship with touch screens now. Vizio's all-in-ones already had touch screens, but this generation gets a CPU bump, and higher prices to match. Vizio has also added wireless networking adapters that support the new 802.11ac standard across the lineup.

For the laptops, the 14-inch Touch Thin+Light CT14T-B0 comes it at the lowest price, going for $1,089.… Read more

New Windows 8 specs could open door for 7-inch tablets

Microsoft's move to relax the minimum resolution for Windows 8 devices could trigger a slew of seven-inch Windows 8 tablets.

An update to Microsoft's Windows Certification Newsletter, uncovered by Ed Bott of CNET sister site ZDNet announced the change in the required resolution for Windows 8 tablets.

To claim Windows 8 certification, a tablet can now offer a minimum resolution of 1,024x768 at a depth of 32 bits. That's a change from the previous guidelines, which specify a minimum resolution of 1,366x768. Microsoft said it isn't encouraging device makers to shoot for such a … Read more