Microsoft Windows 8 and Surface tablet launch Oct 25. Surface ads in SF.

WorldWide Tech & Science. Francisco De Jesùs.

Microsoft Windows 8 and Surface tablet launch Oct 25.  Surface ads in SF.

Microsoft has sent out the invitations for the Windows 8 and Surface tablet  launch in October 25, 2012, at an event to take place in New York, USA.

Surface Tablet ads are all over the  BART station in San Francisco:

Windows 8 fan made commercial stills impressive. Video.

WorldWide Tech & Science. Francisco De Jesùs.

Windows 8 fan made commercial stills impressive. Video.

Despite Microsoft has not made an official Windows 8 commercial yet, a fan posted in June 2012 a video on youtube and stills impressive. Makes a fast round of before Windows versions and highligths some of the new Windows 8 features to come this October 26

Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet 2 with Windows 8, specifications.

WorldWide Tech & Science. Francisco De Jesùs.

Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet 2 specifications.

Here’s a closer look at the ThinkPad Tablet 2’s specs:

• Intel Atom processor
• Windows 8 OS
• 10.1-inch LED backlit anti-glare display with IPS technology; HD WXGA (1366×768)
• Optional digitizer and pen input
• Mini HDMI; microSD card slot; USB 2.0 port
• Wi-Fi; 3G; 4G (US: LTE with AT&T only; rest of the world: 3G HSPA+)
• Front-facing 2 megapixel camera with LED; rear-facing 8 megapixel 720 HP auto focus with LED flash camera

Other key specs include a  10-hour battery, optional 3G / 4G, this 9.8mm-thick tablet makes room for an NFC radio, along with a fingerprint reader and a pen, which can be stowed in a slot on the tablet. 

Additionally, it will be sold alongside an optional keyboard, as well as a dock with three USB ports, HDMI-out and an Ethernet jack.

The ThinkPad Tablet 2 will be available in October. Pricing has yet to be released.

Press Release:

Lenovo Announces New ThinkPad Tablet 2 for Windows 8.

Debuts premier table built for professionals and designed for life.

 RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. – AUGUST 9, 2012: Lenovo (HKSE: 992) (ADR: LNVGY) today unveiled its first tablet specifically designed for Windows 8, the ThinkPad Tablet 2. The multi-use tablet boasts differentiators that matter, including an optional digitizer and pen for precision input, 3G wireless with Lenovo Mobile Access pay-as-you-go plans and 4G models, along with security features like a Fingerprint Reader, IT manageability technologies, and corporate-level service and support.

 "Customers want a versatile device that fits their lifestyle and the many ways they use technology," said Dilip Bhatia, vice president and general manager, ThinkPad Business Unit. "Our new ThinkPad Tablet 2 marries incredible hardware and software to give consumers a great device for office, home or travel while also offering companies and IT managers the oversight they need to help secure and manage their company's networks and data. "For the next generation of Lenovo PCs, designed to be great with Windows 8, we're working closer than ever with Microsoft Corp. and our silicon partners. Today we are excited to reveal the fruit of this collaborative co-engineering, the ThinkPad Tablet 2, a joint effort between Lenovo, Microsoft and Intel."

 ThinkPad Tablet 2: New Power to Create

Technology like the multi-use ThinkPad Tablet 2 helps manage the increasing overlap between personal and work life today. Based on the upcoming Intel® Atom Processor-based mobile platform and Windows 8 Pro, the ThinkPad Tablet 2 works the way users do across their varied environments. It has an exceptionally thin and light design measuring 9.8 mm thin and weighing less than 600 grams (1.3 pounds), all in a 10.1-inch screen. The versatile tablet supports multiple input methods: multi-finger touch and an optional digitizer and pen, especially good for note taking, capturing signatures and completing forms. The optional ThinkPad Tablet 2 keyboard and dock can be paired with the tablet for more PC-like computing in the office. With an array of ports including a full-size USB port, workers easily can attach existing devices like monitors and printers.

 Suited for commuting and in field scenarios, the tablet offers virtually anywhere connectivity and productivity with 3G and 4G wireless models. The tablet serves lifestyle computing uses just as well as business tasks with its package of communications and entertainment features: HD display, front and rear-facing cameras for video conferencing and uploading photos, noise canceling microphones, HDMI port and wireless video streaming.

 While users will like the tablet for its aesthetics and powerful features, IT managers will particularly enjoy its security-enhanced and manageability technologies. With the optional Fingerprint Reader, passwords are biometrically stored. The encrypted internal and external storage meet the highest levels of security requirements. Using Windows 8 Pro and the Intel x86 architecture, IT managers can provide for VPN access, utilize existing Windows management tools, manage application deployment and block users from installing certain apps. In addition, Lenovo Services offer a complete suite of packages, including sealed battery warranties, accidental damage protection and custom imaging.

Availability

The ThinkPad Tablet 2 will be available when Windows 8 launches in October.

SEC filing Confirming Microsoft`s ARM-based SURFACE tablet launch on October 26 with Windows 8 software general availability.

WorldWide Tech & Science. Francisco De Jesùs.

SEC filing Confirming Microsoft`s ARM-based SURFACE tablet launch on October 26 with Windows 8 software general availability.

Microsoft will launch its ARM-based Surface tablets at the same time the company releases Windows 8, according to the company’s recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. 

“The next version of our operating system, Windows 8, will be generally available on October 26, 2012,” Microsoft says in its 10-K filing with the SEC. “At that time, we will begin selling the Surface, a series of Microsoft-designed and manufactured hardware devices.”


Surface for Windows RT will feature a 10.6-inch display, microSD card reader, USB 2.0 port, MicroHD out, and 32GB or 64GB storage. The device will be using Windows RT, the version of Windows 8 for ARM devices, which includes Microsoft Office Home & Student 2013 RT.

Microsoft was unavailable for comment at the time of this writing.

From SEC :

PART I

Item 1

•

Bing, our Internet search engine that finds and organizes the answers people need so they can make faster, more informed decisions;

•

Skype, which allows users to connect with friends, family, clients, and colleagues through a variety of devices; and

•

the Azure family of platform and database services that helps developers connect applications and services in the cloud or on premise. These services include Windows Azure, a scalable operating system with computing, storage, hosting, and management capabilities, and Microsoft SQL Azure, a relational database.

We also conduct research and develop advanced technologies for future software and hardware products and services. We believe that we will continue to grow and meet our customers’ needs by delivering compelling, new, high-value solutions through our integrated software, hardware, and services platforms, creating new opportunities for partners, improving customer satisfaction, and improving our service excellence, business efficacy, and internal processes.

OPERATING SEGMENTS

We operate our business in five segments: Windows & Windows Live Division, Server and Tools, Online Services Division, Microsoft Business Division, and Entertainment and Devices Division. Our segments provide management with a comprehensive financial view of our key businesses. The segments enable the alignment of strategies and objectives across the development, sales, marketing, and services organizations, and they provide a framework for timely and rational allocation of development, sales, marketing, and services resources within businesses. Additional information on our operating segments and geographic and product information is contained in Note 21 – Segment Information and Geographic Data of the Notes to Financial Statements (Part II, Item 8 of this Form 10-K).

Windows & Windows Live Division

Windows & Windows Live Division (“Windows Division”) develops and markets PC operating systems, related software and online services, and PC hardware products. This collection of software, hardware, and services is designed to empower individuals, companies, and organizations and simplify everyday tasks through seamless operations across the user’s hardware and software and efficient Web browsing. User demand for mobility is increasing; as a result, we are working to increase the number of scenarios and devices that Windows enables.

Windows Division revenue growth is largely correlated to the growth of the PC market worldwide, as approximately 75% of total Windows Division revenue comes from Windows operating system software purchased by original equipment manufacturers (“OEMs”), which they pre-install on equipment they sell. In addition to PC market volume changes, Windows revenue is impacted by:

•

PC market changes driven by shifts between developed markets and emerging markets, consumer PCs and business PCs, and among varying forms of computing devices;

•

the attachment of Windows to PCs shipped and changes in inventory levels within the OEM channel; and

•

pricing changes and promotions, pricing variation that occurs when the mix of PCs manufactured shifts from local and regional system builders to large, multinational OEMs, and different pricing of Windows versions licensed.

Principal Products and Services:    Windows 7 operating system; Windows Live suite of applications and web services; and PC hardware products.

The next version of our operating system, Windows 8, will be generally available on October 26, 2012. At that time, we will begin selling the Surface, a series of Microsoft-designed and manufactured hardware devices.

Source: PC World

Tablet Surface Dirancang Microsoft untuk Saingi iPad

Microsoft akhirnya mengumumkan perangkat tablet yang bersistem operasi Windows 8, Senin (18/6/2012), waktu Los Angeles, Amerika Serikat. Tablet yang diberi nama Surface Tablet ini digadang-gadang untuk menantang iPad besutan Apple.

Untuk melawan Apple yang sukses dengan iPad, Microsoft memulainya dengan menjadi produsen tablet sendiri, serta membuat sistem operasi Windows 8 khusus tablet, yang diberi nama Windows 8 RT.

CEO Microsoft Steve Ballmer mengatakan, sistem operasi Windows 8 RT yang menjalankan Tablet Surface, memiliki tampilan yang sama dengan Windows 8 yang berjalan di personal computer (PC).

Seperti diketahui, Windows merupakan sistem operasi PC yang paling banyak digunakan di dunia. Microsoft hendak menghadirkan pengalaman yang sama ketika pengguna menjalankan Windows 8 di tablet maupun di komputer PC dan laptop.

Menurut analis Sarah Rotman Epps dari perusahaan riset Forrester, ia tidak melihat bahwa Surface akan membunuh iPad. "Saya tidak melihat Surface sebagai pembunuh iPad. Tapi Surface memiliki banyak potensi," katanya.

Ia menambahkan, dalam pengumuman kemarin Microsoft berfokusi pada inovasi hardware, namun tidak berbicara tentang layanan. "Aset unik Microsoft ini membuat Surface menjadi produk yang luar biasa," imbuh Sarah.

Surface akan meluncur dalam dua versi dan tersedia dalam pilihan kapasitas memori internal. Pertama, yang menggunakan prosesor berarsitektur ARM, yang disebut-sebut lebih ringan dan tipis. Surface dengan prosesor ARM datang dengan kapasitas memori internal 32GB dan 64GB. Akan meluncur lebih dulu ke pasar, dijadwalkan pada musim liburan Natal tahun ini.

Versi kedua, tablet Surface dengan prosesor berarsitektur Intel. Tablet versi ini bentuknya lebih berat dan lebih tebal, namun dibekali kapasitas memori internal lebih besar, yakni 64GB dan 128GB. Rencananya, Surface berprosesor Intel Ivy Bridge akan tersedia 3 bulan setelah Surface versi ARM diluncurkan.

Untuk menyerang kelemahan Apple yang lainnya, Microsoft membekali Surface dengan cover yang berfungsi sebagai penutup sekaligus papan ketik (keyboard). Tak hanya itu, di sana juga tersedia touchpad untuk bernavigasi dengan jari, seperti halnya ketika Anda menggunakan laptop.

Microsoft belum memberi rincian harga tablet Surface.Namun harga Surface versi ARM akan kompetitif dengan komputer jinjing ultrabook yang dipopulerkan Intel. Tablet Surface Dirancang Microsoft untuk Saingi iPad

Sumber :Reuters [dot] Com