Nicholas Kolakowski

Barnes & Noble will release an e-reader in late 2009 to compete with Amazon.com’s Kindle devices, according to reports, which also suggest that B&N’s offering will run a variant of the Google Android operating system. According to the Wall Street Journal, quoting “people briefed on the matter,” the Barnes & Noble device will include a […]

Google finds itself subjected to scrutiny by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) after the government body was alerted to the search-engine giant’s Google Voice service blocking telephone calls from consumers to certain rural areas with inflated access charges.Google Voice lets its users funnel their work and personal phone calls to a single number, and provides […]

Apple‘s newest iPhone and iPod Touch update, 3.1.2, corrects a few bugs that had plagued users of the latest iPhone OS. One of the iPhone’s most-reported recent issues, the smartphone’s occasional refusal to awaken from sleep mode, has also been reportedly fixed by this update In addition to rectifying what some Apple users derisively referred […]

Microsoft says that Office 2010, the next version of its productivity suite, will come pre-installed on PCs produced by major manufacturers. There’s just one catch: you won’t be able to use the software right out of the box, at least not the full version. Instead, users purchasing these computers will initially have access to Office […]

Microsoft’s 2009 Holiday Sales Relying on Xbox, Windows 7, Beatles, Facebook No Title Robbie Bach of Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices Division kicked off the New York event by explaining how the company’s holiday strategy will consolidate around certain key product categories: mobile, Zune, the Xbox ecosystem and Windows 7. No Title As part of its […]

Microsoft has introduced a Reference page for its search engine, Bing, which brings together Wikipedia and Freebase entries onto a single site for quick reference. The summaries of these entries can be optionally presented in a grid-style format designed to minimize the need to scroll through the page. The default version of the Bing Reference […]

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer suggested that Redmond will not manufacture an e-reader device to compete with Amazon.com’s popular Kindle line. “We have a device for reading. It’s the most popular device in the world. It’s the PC,” Ballmer said at Erasmus University in the Netherlands, according to Reuters. “But no, we are not interested in […]

Microsoft‘s chief software architect Ray Ozzie announced the creation of Future Social Experiences (FUSE) Labs, which will concentrate on “software and services that are centered on social connectivity, real-time experiences, and rich media,” according to material found on Microsoft’s Web site. In an Oct. 8 internal memo leaked to several news outlets online, Ozzie wrote […]

Amazon.com slashed the price of its Kindle e-reader, likely in response to vigorous competition from manufacturers such as Sony and the prospect of a huge battle with Apple in 2010. Under the new price structure, customers can purchase the original Kindle for $279 with a 3G wireless connection capable of downloading material in the U.S. […]

Microsoft could settle its outstanding antitrust issues with the European Commission by the end of the year, according to statements issued by both parties on Oct. 7. The news comes after months of negotiations over Microsoft’s inclusion of its newest browser, Internet Explorer 8, into the upcoming Windows 7 operating system. According to The Wall […]

Microsoft Bets Big on Windows 7, Windows Mobile, Hardware This Fall by Nicholas Kolakowski No Title Microsoft made Windows Mobile 6.5 available on Oct. 7, with the hope that its combination of enterprise and consumer functionality will allow Microsofts mobile division to gain market-share against rivals such as Apple and Research In Motion. No Title […]

In comments delivered during a news conference in Munich, Germany, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer attempted to play down the role of Windows 7 in a possible uptick in PC sales after the new operating system’s release on Oct. 22. “There will be a surge of PCs but it will probably not be huge,” Ballmer told […]