Hasta La Gadget!

This week a collection of domain names have been transferred from Chinese cybersquatter (not as dirty as it sounds) to Microsoft, one of them being not Xbox720, but Xbox8.com. This domain name could very well represent the 8th Xbox in the very distant future, but more likely it’s got to do with either the infinity sign or the imminent release of Windows 8 – made ready and willing to work with the Xbox in a massive amount of ways, most of them involving content sharing.

Microsoft also picked up xboxcompanion.com, xboxlivetv.com, xboxphone.com, and xboxtabletcom. These names are for the most part more than likely being transferred as Microsoft owns the rights to the world “Xbox”, but the 8 symbol appears much to indicative of the future to be coincidental. The Microsoft Xbox 720, as it’s been called in the press thus far, will likely be released inside the year 2013 – it at least that’s what we’ve been hypothesizing up until this point.

Now the possibility opens up that Microsoft will be accelerating their plans to release the next-generation Xbox to compete directly with the imminent Nintendo WiiU release. Though the original Wii has thus far tended to a slightly different audience than the Xbox and its most direct competition in the Playstation, the WiiU and it’s Batman-touting gaming skills may well have triggered something in the minds of the engineers behind the Microsoft-backed box.

Have a peek at the timeline below to keep up to date with all things Xbox in the very recent past – stay tuned as Windows 8 continues to gain power before it’s release as well – soon there will be a massive convergence of all things Microsoft!

[via Ingame]

Xbox 8 (Infinity) set for 360 replacement is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Apple isn’t just adding and improving features in iOS 6, with the company also focusing on its iCloud.com web services. MacRumors reports that Apple has activated the iCloud Beta portal for developers testing iOS 6, with new web apps appearing on the site. Those include Notes, Reminders, Calendar, and an improved Find My iPhone, will all four being tagged as “Beta”.

Nothing appears to have changed in the Calendar app, except Reminders has been removed and given its own app. Reminders looks very similar to what’s currently on offer in iOS, with a reminiscent layout and the same options. The Notes app, meanwhile, again looks remarkably similar to the iOS version.

Find My iPhone has been given some visual polish. The web app still uses Google Maps to track down devices, but now users will be able to see the battery icon in the top right that will give them an idea of how long devices will stay alive. All of the new web apps will be available on a wide basis when iOS 6 goes live later in the year, and should sync seamlessly with the same apps found on iPhones.

Apple adds new web apps to iCloud Beta is written by Ben Kersey & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Surely we’ve all experienced a time when we saw something – whether it was a landmark, an animal, a vehicle, etc – and wanted to find out more about it. But how do you Google something like that? I mean, you can’t just take a picture of something and run it through Google’s algorithms, right? If you think I’m right, then you obviously don’t know about Google’s “search by image” feature.

But don’t feel too bad. The search giant hasn’t widely publicized it since it’s still working on tweaking the nascent algorithm that makes it work. One such tweak has just been implemented and makes search results much more specific. That’s because the image search feature has just added Knowledge Graph functionality. The Knowledge Graph is a huge web of algorithms that help to predict the context of user searches.

So if you search for “Taj Mahal,” the Knowledge Graph aims to figure out if you’re looking for the building, the casino, or the musical group. What this means for image-based searches is that if you upload a picture of a specific kind of flower, Google will now try to identify that specific flower instead of just doing a generic search for “flowers.” This is just one update to what is sure to be a continuously growing set of updates to make this the next big thing in search.

[via VentureBeat]

Google “search by image” gets upgrade is written by Mark Raby & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Google knows that there’s a looming EU antitrust lawsuit if it doesn’t volunteer some kind of change to its search practices, so it’s not entirely surprising that chairman Eric Schmidt has sent a letter offering a settlement to the European Commission’s competition chief Joaquin Almunia. The details of just what that potential truce entails are under wraps, although Almunia has long broadcast his concerns that Google might be unfairly favoring its own services above those of others — he’d be most happy if the results were more organic. It’s hard to say whether or not Google is prepared to follow along, but a peace gesture is a sharp break from the company’s previously firm view that there’s no need to change. We wouldn’t be surprised if the EU’s recent success in fining Microsoft has left Google hesitant to take its chances in court.

Google offers to settle with EU over antitrust gripes, olive branch now fully extended originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Jul 2012 14:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The folks at Sony have revealed that they’ve been running a set of workshops this yeah that all surround a better and brighter future under the title FutureScapes. This project is a collaboration between Sony and Forum for the Future and is bringing together futurologists, thinkers, authors, technologists, sustainability experts, and vloggers, not to mention the public – to imagine the future world of 2025, and they’ve created a short video presentation to make it all clear.

This video shows how this Sony FutureScapes project works with four different concepts: Wandular, The Internet of Things Academy (IOTA), Hyper Village, and The Shift. With innovation at the center of this futuristic adventure, Sony hopes that many will join in and make it as great as it can be in the now. Have a peek at the presentation video here:

Sony FutureScapes has been syphoned down to these four projects and will be pushing forward with them in mind from here on out:

Wandular – A device which fits in the palm of your hand and never goes out of date due to cloud downloads and plug-and-play hardware upgrades.

The Internet of Things Academy – A place where everyone can get educated on software, data, and complex hardware, and how these things work with the things they use and/or need on a day to day basis.

Hyper Village – A place where “high-tech” and “high-nature” blend in a rural community setting. Both high-tech methods and natural perfection are used to create one fabulous future.

The Shift – Not an invention, but a philosophy. Here you’ll be working with your relationship to technology and seeing how it’ll help better meet all of our needs, not just the ones that are met here in the present. “How might technology itself change to boost creativity, productivity, or even our relationship with nature?”

Check out the video above and stay tuned as Sony and Forum for the Future continue to innovate!

Sony FutureScapes thrills for tomorrow is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.