Welcome to Xbox One.

Just a bit over an hour ago, Microsoft unveiled the new Xbox (pictured above), titled ‘Xbox One’. Microsoft is clearly positioning the Xbox One as the center of the living room. With a heavy focus on live TV integration (with cable TV support), Skype integration, game recording and more, the Xbox One continues and adds on to the trend the Xbox 360 began of being the device that manages the home entertainment system.

While many other websites will provide much more extensive coverage of the Xbox One, I will be lightly touching upon the console including some announced features and more.

The Xbox One

(all pictures are courtesy of The Verge)

Click the image to view the photo gallery.

The Xbox One is powered by a combination of the Windows kernel and custom Xbox OS. The Xbox One will have HDMI in/out, a Blu-ray drive, USB 3, 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi capability, 8GBs of RAM, a 500GB HDD, and an 8-core processor. The Xbox One will have the new Kinect included in every package to enhance the experience of using the One, including voice command, motion sensing and much more.

The Xbox One will NOT be an ‘always-on’ console as previously rumored, requiring a constant Internet connection to use the console. While Internet will be required to use most of the features on the Xbox One, the console will not need Internet just to turn on.

The Xbox One will also NOT be compatible with Xbox 360 games. Since the 360 uses a totally different hardware architecture than the One (Power-PC v. x86), 360 games will not be playable. Microsoft intends on continuing to sell the Xbox 360 along the Xbox One for the forseeable future. Sony’s PS4 has the same issue, but Sony has mentioned trying to make PS3 games streamable on-demand to the PS4. Microsoft has no such feature planned for the Xbox One. (SOURCE)

Xbox One will also require all games to be installed to the internal hard drive. Game discs will only be used for the initial installation, after which they will no longer be required to play. If gamers wish to reinstall the game on another Xbox One or a second Xbox LIVE account, a small fee will be required to do so. (SOURCE)

Xbox One Interface

Click the image to view the photo gallery.

The Xbox One interface will be reminiscent of the Xbox 360 interface, with obvious inspiration from Windows 8. The home screen is now called the ‘Start screen’ just as it is in Windows 8. The interface of the One is very response and fluid with features taken from Windows 8, such as ‘Snap View’ allowing you to multitask as shown in the image below -

Live TV is also heavily integrated into the Xbox One with television guide support, allowing you to use the console as the ultimate set-top box to watch TV, play your games, watch DVDs, stream music/video and more.

Using the Kinect sensor as part of the console integration only allows you to use the console that much easier. Saying “Xbox, on!” will turn the console on, saying “Xbox, watch TV” or “Xbox, watch [CBS / insert channel here]” will allow you to control the TV function. Using voice, you can also instantly switch between functions with little to no-delay. If you were to say “Xbox, watch CBS”, “Xbox, open Internet Explorer”, “Xbox, play music”, “Xbox, open guide”, those functions would be done in order of you saying them as you said them with minimal delay. Using Kinect to control the console is a much more natural way to operate the console. Using hand gestures, you can navigate the Xbox One interface (as you can today with the current Kinect on 360) as well as close apps and more.

The Xbox One looks very promising and should be something to look forward to when it is released ‘later this year’. Microsoft has confirmed that more information about the Xbox One will be mentioned at this year’s ‘E3′ conference, which begins in 19 days (as of this post). I’m very excited to get my hands on the Xbox One when it is released, hopefully you are as well! Feel free to leave your thoughts below in the comments.

SOURCE: The Verge

DISCLOSURE: I’m an Outlook.com Insider, ask me about Outlook.com or click to learn more about the Outlook.com Insiders program.

Earlier today, Microsoft announced that they had completed migrating all of their existing Hotmail customers to the new Outlook.com email service. The migration took six weeks to complete and consisted of moving 150 petabytes of data (1 petabyte equals 157,286,400 gigabytes). The entire migration took place while keeping both Hotmail.com and Outlook.com’s services online. Now that the move is completed, Hotmail is officially dead and Outlook.com now has over 400 million active accounts on board.

Outlook.com was debuted in July 2012 under a ‘preview’ subtitle and it officially debuted in February of this year as the replacement for the aging (and much maligned) Hotmail.com. Outlook.com is available in over 100 languages and features a much cleaner and simpler interface based on Microsoft’s ‘Metro’/modern-style interface used in Windows 8 / Windows Phone.

The new Outlook.com interface

New features will be coming to Outlook.com soon, including improved integration with Microsoft’s SkyDrive storage service. The SkyDrive integration update should be fully rolled out to all users within several weeks.

Insert SkyDrive images easier with the new update (coming soon)

So, to close up… earlier I mentioned that Microsoft had moved 150 petabytes worth of data. I had also mentioned how many gigabytes makes up one petabyte. I figured it would be a little easier to visualize just how much space that is using a handy-dandy infographic made by the fine people at Microsoft. Enjoy!

Click the image to enlarge!

Are you an Outlook.com user? Even if you are or not, leave your thoughts below about the new Outlook.com service!

SOURCE: Outlook Blog | Liveside.net (infographic)

Sprint announces pre-order info and pricing for their Galaxy S4…

This morning, Sprint announced pricing and availability of their Galaxy S4. The 16GB Galaxy S4 will cost $250 with a two-year agreement for both existing and new customers. If you are porting your number to Sprint from another carrier, you will be eligible for Sprint’s current $100 port-in credit promotion. If you’re porting your number from another carrier, that will bring your price down to $150 with 2-year agreement. The port-in promotion is only for an undisclosed ‘limited time’, so if you’re debating on joining Sprint… be sure to make your decision soon.

As for when you can get your hands on Samsung’s latest ‘big thing’, pre-orders will begin TOMORROW (April 18th). You can pre-order the phone by going to sprint.com/galaxys4. The phone will be available publically on Saturday, April 27th at Sprint retail stores (corporate/preferred/authorized retailers), Sprint business sales, telesales (1.800.SPRINT1) and sprint.com. The Galaxy S4 will be available in two color options – White Frost and Black Mist.

Some quick Galaxy S4 information courtesy of Sprint’s press release (linked below) -

Manufactured by Samsung Telecommunications America (Samsung Mobile), Galaxy S 4 is powered by Android™ 4.2.2, Jelly Bean, boasts a brilliant 5-inch full HD Super AMOLED™ touchscreen, 1.9GHz quad-core processor and access to the Sprint 4G LTE network. It also offers Multi Window, which allows the use of two apps side-by-side.

Are you looking forward to the Galaxy S4, or will the HTC One satisfy your appetite? Both are coming out within weeks of each other! Leave your thoughts below…

SOURCE: Sprint Newsroom

Can’t wait until you’re eligible to upgrade? Verizon’ers will have to wait a bit longer…

For those of you who use ‘Big Red’ as your cell phone carrier, take note! Your upgrade policy will be changing very soon, if it hasn’t already. According to a company statement released this past Friday, for any current customers with contracts ending in January 2014 or anytime after that, their upgrade eligibility will now be a full two years (twenty-four months) instead of the current twenty months. While not mentioned in their post, it is obvious that any new customers will automatically be locked into the new twenty-four month eligibility since their contracts (as of today) will be up in 2015.

AT&T and Sprint will continue to stand by their current twenty-month eligibilities for new phones, four months before their contract is up. T-Mobile recently discontinued offering contracts, instead offering monthly no-commitment deals with having to pay off their device with a monthly fee on top of their monthly plan for 24 months.

It seems that Verizon customers are having the short-end of the stick, having to wait a full two years before being eligible to get a new phone at the reduced subsidized price. Customers are still able to get a new phone at any time by purchasing the phone outright at full retail price without extending their contract.

Read more at the announcement on Verizon’s site, linked below.

SOURCE: Verizon News

Ahhh, the joys, mysteries and wonders of being up in space… the final frontier.

VIA MSN NOW -

One of the burning questions of our time has been answered: Can you cry in space? Luckily, Canadian Space Agency astronaut Chris Hadfield elaborates on his tweet that it hurts to cry in outer space and shows us exactly what happens. While, yes, you can physically cry during one of your astronaut missions, your tears won’t actually ever fall, they’ll just form a kind of giant blob on your face and hang out there for a while, refusing to grant you the sweet satisfaction of hearing them pitter-patter on the floor.

Be sure to visit MSN NOW for the latest breaking news and trending stories!

Verizon’s alleged Lumia 920-variant is leaked to the public eye.

Over the past few months, it’s been rumored that Verizon would finally be getting their own high-end Nokia Windows Phone. Codenames such as the ‘Laser’, ‘Catwalk’ and others have gone by, but it finally seems that their Lumia 920-variant will officially be called the Lumia 928. Previous rumors pegged this phone as being made of an all-aluminum body, and to be much lighter than the current 920 which is exclusive to AT&T in the US.

A report released this morning had stated that the ‘Catwalk’ codenamed device would be the one to feature the all-aluminum build with a much lighter weight of 132 grams, compared to the current 185 grams of the all-polycarbonate Lumia 920. The 928 is expected (as the leaked image above shows) to have the same polycarbonate unibody build. The ‘Catwalk’ device is currently rumored to hit T-Mobile, possibly in June.

As for the Lumia 928, a release timeframe hasn’t been rumored, but with the image above looking final it should not be too long before this phone is released. The Lumia 928 looks to support Verizon’s 4G LTE network, with Verizon’s LTE branding clearly visible on the back of the phone. This phone will also carry Nokia’s ‘PureView’-branded imaging technology, providing higher quality images in lower-light scenarios. The camera flash also looks to be a higher-end Xenon flash, rather than the standard LED flash that most phones have these days.

Since AT&T currently has the 920, Verizon seems to be getting the 928, and T-Mobile rumored to be getting the ‘Catwalk’ device, most US phone carriers seem to be in line for a high-end Nokia Lumia device. Sprint seems to be the odd one out, with confirmation from Sprint that they will be carrying two devices this summer, one each from HTC and Samsung.

As usual with these phone leaks and rumors, they are best to be taken at caution… despite the track record of the leakers. Only time can tell us how accurate these leaks indeed are. STAY TUNED!

SOURCE: @evleaks VIA: Neowin

Sprint announces when they’ll be carrying the One…

Sprint announced earlier today in a press release that they will be offering the HTC One smartphone later this month. Sprint has confirmed that pre-orders for the One will begin this Friday (April 5th). New and current Sprint customers can pre-order the One by going to sprint.com/htcone. The One will be available in a 32GB model in both silver and black varieties starting Friday April 19th. The HTC One will be available in Sprint stores, sprint.com and telesales (1.800.SPRINT1). The One will run for $199.99 with a two-year agreement (before applicable sales taxes, etc.).

Sprint’s HTC One has a 4.7″, full HD 1920×1080-resolution display, 1.7GHz quad-core processor, international roaming capabilities and Near Field Communications (NFC) capability. Sprint’s One will also be compatible with Sprint’s 4G LTE network which is currently available in 67 markets around the US. Check for Sprint 3G/4G LTE coverage near you at coverage.sprint.com.

Here are some quick comparison of Sprint’s cheapest smartphone individual plan and family plan versus AT&T and Verizon – (you can choose to match pricing or features, I selected pricing)

SOURCE: Sprint Newsroom (press release)

Sprint plans to finally release new Windows Phones this summer. (picture courtesy of Sprint)

Earlier this week, it was rumored that Sprint would be releasing two specific Windows Phone 8 device in May/June.

There’s a member of the WPCentral forums named ‘mrmdj31675′ who explains a lot of what I didn’t know regarding Sprint and their preference for higher security standards.

It seems that Sprint is pushing for higher CDMA security standards (CDMA being the phone technology Sprint/Verizon use, AT&T/T-Mobile use GSM). Other CDMA carriers than Sprint use a coding/encryption security standard written by China Mobile. Sprint is enforcing a higher/stronger security standard by Qualcomm. Currently, Microsoft does not support the Qualcomm standard, as they are using the China Mobile coding. Since Sprint mandates that all of their devices follow the stronger Qualcomm standard, there is no other CDMA Sprint Windows Phone device available. The FCC is enforcing the Qualcomm standard as well, and the deadline for Microsoft to meet this this summer.

The reason Verizon has CDMA WP8 devices is that Verizon does not enforce the Qualcomm standard. Nokia prefers to use the China Mobile standard (which earlier in the decade caused a rift between Sprint/Nokia), hence there haven’t been a Sprint Nokia device in a REALLY long time, and probably not for the foreseeable future. It doesn’t help matters that back when this took place, Nokia was quoted as saying that to them, CDMA is considered “a niche market in the US”.

Google and Apple have met the Qualcomm security standard since before it was recommended in mid-2011 by the FCC, hence those brands have been welcomed into Sprint’s lineup. Microsoft is currently attempting to meet the Qualcomm standard since the FCC deadline is this summer, but it has yet to be confirmed if this is close to taking place.

In closing it seems that the hitch is regarding this security standard that Sprint mandates their phones have. Since Microsoft has not yet met the standard, there are no newer WP’s available. Regarding Nokia… since Sprint had an issue with them in the late 90s/early 2000′s, both sides have had issues/hard feelings with each other… making no Nokia phones available on Sprint.

Here’s a quick snip of a post that mrmdj31675 wrote on 3/21/13 more in-depth about this issue -

… The [Sprint] Arrive and [Verizon] Trophy were ok (or so it was thought until the CDMA coding was studied, and it was found out to be subpar when compared to what almost every CDMA carrier was using in the US, and the three devices carried by Verizon still use that same coding which ironically is required by China Mobile in order to meet government standards in China because the government wants to know what their citizens say and do online. However, those do not even come close to meet what are more likely to be FCC requirements after meeting for a scheduled follow up hearing with companies behind the major four mobile operating systems, and only Microsoft remains non-compliant to the strong recommendation from the 2011 hearings. …

As a Sprint subscriber and HTC Arrive owner, I hope you all found this info valuable and that it gives SOME reasoning and comfort as to the absence of Windows Phone devices on Sprint. To read more of this forum member’s posts, here’s the thread I got most of this info from – forums.wpcentral.com/carrier-discussion-lounge/217607-really-sprint.html

AT&T announces pre-order dates and pricing for the Galaxy S4.

According to an AT&T blog post posted today, customers can start to pre-order the Galaxy S4 on April 16th for $249.99 with a two-year contract agreement. All of the US carriers will be releasing the Galaxy S4, with T-Mobile having recently announced they will be offering the S4 on May 1st. It’s not sure if that’s the actual release date or a date to begin pre-orders.

Early thoughts from various commenters on different tech sites state that the price may be a bit high. Current top-end phones usually sell for $199 with a new contract, so most people are acting up over the $50 difference. I can see how the carriers would make the pricing possible, since every carrier still sells the S3 for $199 with a new contract. The bigger and slightly more powerful Galaxy Note 2 currently sells for $299 with two-year contract on all US carriers. I think the best case would be if the S3′s price was dropped to maybe $149, with the S4 starting at the $199 price point… but the carriers would much rather the current price idea.

What are your thoughts? Are you excited for the Galaxy S4? Leave your thoughts below!

SOURCE: AT&T Consumer Blog | The Verge (T-Mobile launch date)

Samsung’s ATIV S could be headed to Sprint this summer.

According to sources for The Verge, Sprint’s upcoming HTC and Samsung devices have been revealed. This past January, Sprint publically announced they will be carrying two Windows Phones this summer, one from each manufacturer.

The Verge’s unnamed sources have stated that Sprint will be carrying the ATIV S. I had originally written about the ATIV S when it was originally announced late last summer. You can read that post here. The Verge’s sources state that Sprint’s ATIV S will feature a slightly altered exterior look compared to the worldwide version (pictured above). The internal specs are expected to stay largely the same. Here are some of the ATIV S’ specs (these are the worldwide version’s specs) -

* 1.5 GHz Snapdragon S4 Plus dual-core processor
* 4.8” HD Super AMOLED display | 720×1280 resolution (306 pixels per inch)
* 1GB RAM
* 16/32GB storage with microSD capability
* 2300mAh battery w/NFC capability
* 8-megapixel rear camera/1.9-megapixel front-facing camera

The HTC phone that is expected to hit Sprint according to The Verge’s sources are a mid-range device. Previously leaked under the ‘Tiara’ codename, this device is expected to feature less powerful specs than what the ATIV S will feature. Here are some of the rumored specs –

* 1.2 GHz Snapdragon dual-core processor
* 8GB internal storage with microSD capability
* 4.3″ Super LCD2 display | 480×800 resolution
* 1GB RAM
* 8-megapixel rear camera/1.6MP front-facing camera
* 1800mAh battery

There are no expectations as to what this device will look like, but hopefully it shares some design cues with the currently-released 8X/8S Windows Phones by HTC.

As a Sprint subscriber myself, it’s nice to finally get some kind of confirmation as to what Sprint will be releasing later this year for their Windows Phone lineup. On one hand, it’s a bit of a letdown to know that the higher-end device (ATIV S) is one that’s been out for almost a year in other parts of the world, with the HTC offering being a mid-range device. On the other hand, having the ATIV S finally hit America with exclusivity to Sprint is a pretty nice deal. As for myself, if this news is indeed the real deal, I plan on getting the ATIV S the day it is released. I currently own an HTC Arrive (Sprint’s one and only Windows Phone; released in March 2011) and have been due for an upgrade since August 2012. This news is music to my ears.

Both of these phones are rumored for release in either May or June, according the same sources previously mentioned. At this point, all we can do is see if this is accurate information, or something totally incorrect.

SOURCE: The Verge | WPCentral (for ‘Tiara’ specs)