surface

Microsoft hit with lawsuit over Surface's storage space

Microsoft is being sued for allegedly misleading advertising about the amount of storage space in its new 32GB Surface tablet.

The lawsuit was brought by California lawyer Andrew Sokolowski who claims that he bought the device under the premise that he'd get 32GB of storage but soon found out it actually came with much less, according to the Associated Press.

Sokolowski's argument is true. Microsoft's Surface, which hit stores last month, is advertised as having 32GB of storage when in fact there is only 16GB of free storage space for users to fill with music, documents, and … Read more

Facebook adds job-search tool

Wednesday's CNET Update is working overtime:

Need a job? Log on to Facebook. The social network launched a jobs board with the Social Jobs Partnership app. It pulls in job listings from several services, including BranchOut, Jobvite and Monster. Facebook says half of U.S. employers are using the network during the hiring process.

Also in today's tech news roundup, Pinterest is letting existing profiles be turned into business accounts. Companies will be able to promote their content with the added benefit of verification badges and widgets for sharing.

There's a rise in malware disguised as daily deal e-mails. … Read more

Microsoft Surface update tweaks performance

Microsoft has issued a firmware for the Surface RT tablet that improves performance, according to reports and anecdotal comments.

On the same day that Microsoft released patches for Windows 8, it is also furnishing a system firmware update for Surface RT along with Windows RT operating system updates.

"Surface is definitely running smoother...App transitions seem snappier," said a reader commenting below a ZDNet article.

A report and a blog post also mention performance improvements when launching apps.

CNET's Surface review last month said performance could be "slow at times."

Fixes listed under a "… Read more

Microsoft Surface edges out Samsung in display tests

Microsoft's Surface RT tablet topped Samsung's Galaxy tablet in a "shoot-out" done by display testing firm DisplayMate Technologies.

The Surface RT's display outperformed all of the standard resolution full size 10-inch tablets that DisplayMate has tested to date in its Shoot-Out series, Raymond Soneira, president of DisplayMate Technologies, said in a research note today.

"On-screen text is significantly sharper, it has a better factory display calibration, and also significantly lower screen reflectance than the iPad 2 and all full size 1,280x800 Android tablets," Soneira said in a statement.

For example, it bested … Read more

Command a fleet of tanks and robots with just your fingertips

Just bought a shiny new Surface tablet? Have some time to kill? Are you feeling rather war hungry? Then look no further. Armed is a futuristic turn-based war game available for Windows Phone and Windows 8.

To win each battle, players must build armies to take over enemy structures and defend their own. At the start of each battle, users are given funds to build factories or defensive turrets to fight off ground and air units. Each building is upgradeable; investing in a factory, for example, lets you get upgrades for your armies and even build more advanced units later … Read more

Ballmer says Microsoft Surface sales off to 'modest' start

Sales of Microsoft's new tablet are modest despite the fact that one model was sold out online for more than a week.

Speaking to French daily Le Parisien, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said sales "are starting modestly."

Ballmer claimed that sales were constrained by the limits of the sales channel, according to the report. The Surface tablet is only available at the Microsoft Store online and, in the U.S., at a few dozen brick-and-mortar stores.

But demand for the tablet through Microsoft's sales channels was apparently high enough to trigger a shortage of the $499 … Read more

Some Surface covers are splitting seams

CNET Update is counting the cracks:

Friday's tech news roundup looks at Priceline's biggest deal yet. It negotiated to buy rival travel website Kayak for $1.8 billion.

Microsoft is replacing broken Touch Covers for the Surface tablet. Some customers have reported seams splitting where the keyboard cover connects to the tablet.

Verizon plans to roll out 4G LTE to all of its coverage areas in the U.S. by mid-2013.

GameFly, the Netflix for video games, has launched an online shop for PC game downloads. Subscribers of GameFly have unlimited access to play hundreds of Windows games. … Read more

Nvidia still has a lot to prove in the mobile market

Nvidia may be flying high on its tablet wins, but it still has a long way to go before it can call itself a real mobile player.

The Santa Clara, Calif., company, traditionally known for making graphics processing units found in computers and game consoles, has been counting on its Tegra mobile chip to help offset weakness in its core PC market. So far, it hasn't been enough. Nvidia is showing up in many tablets, but its presence in smartphones is minimal. In addition, the bulk of Tegra sales are for a couple of tablets, the Google Nexus 7 … Read more

Surface tablet's Touch Cover splits at seam, users gripe

Microsoft's Surface Touch Cover could be suffering from a defect, according to several users.

Folks over at the Surface Forums are complaining that the Touch Cover splits at a seam near to where it magnetically connects to Microsoft's Surface slate. One user in that forum, "Br1an_g," said that the cover "in the middle at the join to the screen is peeling," adding that it appears the "top layer has come loose and is ruffling up." Other users confirmed they were experiencing similar issues.

According to the Guardian, which was first to report … Read more