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In fairness to Joe Belfiore, there are some important caveats. You may remember that Samsung introduced a special Microsoft version of the Galaxy S8. This handset had core Microsoft services (the full Office suite) baked into it. Microsoft sells this non-Windows device through its Microsoft Store. It was hoped that Samsung would introduce a Windows 10 Mobile version of the S8, but it never happened. However, the Microsoft-oriented handset is the one being used by Belfiore....

Starting with the Cortana fix, Microsoft was responding to user complaints that the SearchUI.exe in Cortana was hogging CPU resources. Microsoft’s KB4512941 update released at the end of last month seemed to cause the problem. Microsoft confirmed the issue a week later and promised a fix, which arrive this week in Patch Tuesday. “Addresses an issue that causes high CPU usage from SearchUI.exe for a small number of users. This issue only occurs on devices that have disabled searching the web using Windows Desktop Search,” Microsoft said in the security update KB4515384 released yesterday....

The leaked infographic shows that Microsoft’s current-generation console has sold 36.2 million units. It also shows that the best-selling game on the device is Call of Duty: Black Ops II with 11.4 million units sold. It is unclear when this data was prepared, but we imagine it was recent. Whether 36.2 million is a respectable number or not depends on how you thought Xbox One was doing. Certainly, there were those who predicted the console was hovering around the mid-twenty million....

It’s taken a while, but that’s no longer the case. Surface Pro 4 users now have access to the same functionality thanks to a simple firmware update. For the unfamiliar, the dial is a cylinder Bluetooth device that can sit on the screen and be used to adjust ink color, scroll, control music, and more. Thanks to the Pro 4’s relatively small screen, you aren’t going to want it sitting on the glass most of the time, but it’s a useful productivity tool all the same....

In its announcement, Microsoft says IoT is becoming increasingly important for enterprise customers. The company has been one of the leaders in developing IoT products for companies of all sizes. Microsoft says reducing cost expenditure for customers is important. Microsoft IoT Central gives organizations key skills to build and manage connected apps in one place. Creating a hub for IoT development also needs to meet security and scalability demands. IoT Central builds on Microsoft’s significant experience in connected solutions....

“You’ll collaborate with teams throughout Microsoft and with processor and device manufacturers to build a kernel that provides…great performance for virtualization-based features like Windows Sandbox and Windows 10X containers,” one part reads. For the unfamiliar, Windows containers let users run apps from various OSes in different environments. You may be familiar with them through Windows 10’s sandbox, which lets you run untrustworthy apps in an isolated environment to protect from malware....

There are a couple of things worth noting. Firstly, it seems Redmond has struggled to fix this problem with firmware update. This is not an official policy it seems as Microsoft has previously said it is working on a fix for the Surface Pro 4 screen problem. Secondly, it is unclear if the company has now decided to just replace faulty units. As we have previously noted, screen flickering on the Surface Pro 4 has been a long-standing issue....

Many Win7 users have already jumped ship to Windows 10 following an aggressive campaign from Microsoft over the last year. However, Windows 7 had a vast install base and many millions of users are still on the platform. Not least enterprises who have not been able to update to Windows 10. For those remaining Win7 holdouts, Microsoft is pressing home that this is the end of the road. “After January 14, 2020, if your PC is running Windows 7, it will no longer receive security updates....

While the organizations originally announced the challenge back in September, Facebook has now provided a data set to build research on deepfakes. The Deepfake Detection Challenge involves $10 million in grants and rewards. With grant money, researchers can develop detection systems for AI deepfake videos. Facebook’s dataset includes 100,000-plus videos including paid actors leveraging the best deepfake technology. While most of us know deepfake videos because of entertaining videos on YouTube, the technology has also raised questions....

Over recent years, Microsoft has thrown its weight behind the Launcher. Each month the app receives feature updates and has become one of the most popular apps on Android. With version 5.10, Microsoft Launcher provides more customization over Theme settings. Four options are included, Light, Dark, System, and Transparent. For this feature to work, users will have to be running Android 9 or newer. Looking at the dark theme, Microsoft has made improvements with this update....

This is the latest preview of the next Windows 10 update and is available to Insiders on the Release Preview ring. While Windows 11 will be getting the bulk of new features moving forward, this update does put some new tools into Windows 10. In July, Microsoft confirmed 21H2 will launch in October. A week later, the company added details about what changes to expect. Specifically, Microsoft said Windows 10 21H2 will bring some new features to users, including passwordless improvements for Windows Hello for Business....

When a preview is usually sent out for an individual Windows app, a full general release usually follows weeks later. For some reason, Microsoft held onto Sticky Notes 3.7 in preview for seven weeks. Either way, version 3.7 of the app adds some interesting tools, including the reintroduction of a classic feature. Microsoft says Ink Analysis is available once more. This feature was previously removed because of a bug, which has now been fixed....

Using a leaked spreadsheet Business Insider found data on how much employees get, including the highest-paid executives, as well as information on staff retention. One of the big questions is whether Microsoft is fair to its employees, considering the company is the most valuable in the world. The data comes from an email chain from dozens of female technical employees in Microsoft who shared stories about disparities in pay and promotions....

Since acquiring Simplygon, Microsoft has been using the company for its main purpose. The startup provided a game-focused platform for developers to add more details to their mixed reality creations. The startup became known for its CAD-based product visualization platform that integrate existing CAD data into applications such as Epic´s Unreal Engine 4. They use a five-step procedure to bring raw graphical data to industry-standard file formats. As the name suggests, Simplygon makes optimizing 3D data easier....

Today the company is significantly expanding its FastStart catalog, from 8 to 18. There’s a mixture of Xbox One and Xbox 360 titles, but all are available on Game Pass. Importantly, the additions include titles people might actually play, including Fallout 3 and Oblivion. On Xbox One, there’s the popular State of Decay and Guacamelee. Here’s the full list: Xbox 360: BattleBlock Theatre Fallout 3 Oblivion Star Wars: The Force Unleashed Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II Xbox One: Costume Quest 2 Guacamelee!...

The Windows system in question is Microsoft Management Console (MMC), where several cross-site scripting bugs (XSS) and a single XML external entity (XXE) flaw are leaving admin PCs vulnerable. All the bugs are collected under CVE-2019-0948. Eran Vaknin and Alon Boxiner, researchers from security firm Check Point, published a description of the vulnerabilities: “The goal of MMC is to provide a programming platform for creating and hosting applications that manage Microsoft Windows-based environments, and to provide a simple, consistent and integrated management user interface and administration model,” they explained....

Microsoft has embedded ransomware protection directly into the platform. It is worth noting that the company did this earlier this year. The feature was a part of the Windows 10 April 2018 Update. To ensure users both known its there and where it is, the company is sending new security notifications. Essentially, these will advise users to turn on ransomware protection in the Settings app. The notices are for users who may not have known ransomware protection in Windows 10 is even a thing....

This time, Microsoft is taking away the Share Nearby feature from Office Mobile. If you are unfamiliar with this tool, it allows users to send and receive files efficiently over Wi-Fi through the Office apps. There is no doubt the idea behind Share Nearby is good and the feature is handy. However, Microsoft admits it does not meet the demands of users. So, the company says that Share Nearby will no longer be available on Android from December 31, 2022....

The purpose of the Mixed Reality studios is to give developers a platform to create holograms based on real life objects. Microsoft has already been using a similar set up at its main Redmond headquarters. Through the development of Windows Mixed Reality, the company captured Buzz Aldrin, Cirque Du Soleil performances, and others to create augmented reality experiences. Alongside the San Francisco and London studios, Microsoft will continue to operate its Redmond base....

In 2017, Microsoft created four separate rings within the Xbox Insider Program. Delta and Beta rings are largely unrestricted, and anybody can join. However, the Alpha and Skip Ahead rings are by invitation only. That means if you want access to the very newest features as early as possible, you need to be invited by Microsoft. Today, the company says it is spreading the invite net a little further. Specifically, any Xbox Insider Program can fill in a survey to tell Microsoft they want to join....