Hasta La Gadget!

It’s only available to those in the Xbox Live preview program at the moment, but you can officially add the Xbox 360 to the list of platforms that offer access to YouTube videos. Beta participants should be now able to download the app from the console’s new Apps Marketplace, and find all the usual personalized features you’d expect from YouTube, plus the Kinect controls you’d expect from an Xbox app. Still no word about a roll-out to everyone else, nor is there any word on a firm release date for all those other new video services slated to hit the console (they’re still just promised for “later in December”).

[Thanks, Jack]

YouTube app for Xbox 360 rolls out to preview program participants originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 13 Dec 2011 03:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Even if you’re not planning on picking up one of Espoo’s latest handsets, Microsoft is also on the scene at Nokia World 2011 giving live demos of the upcoming Xbox Companion remote app for Windows Phone 7. It allows for simple remote control of video playback on one’s console, plus content browsing / search with Bing and other metadata display, as seen in two demo videos from the show floor embedded after the break. Also seen in both of the demo videos? An orange tile suspiciously labeled Vudu Movies, despite the lack of any official announcement that the (currently PS3 exclusive) Wal-mart owned service is coming to Xbox Live. A third demo shows off gaming integration with Kinectimals that lets animals jump back and forth from console to phone. Now that the Xbox 360 will integrate search and playback from more video services than ever after the fall update, we’ll see if the remote app draws Xbox fans to Microsoft’s phone platform.

[Thanks, @AttilaG]

Continue reading Xbox Companion app for WP7 shown off at Nokia World, leaks Vudu integration (video)

Xbox Companion app for WP7 shown off at Nokia World, leaks Vudu integration (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Oct 2011 12:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Q1 of 2012 (don’t ask…) was good to Microsoft. Very good in fact. The company posted a record first quarter revenue of $17.37 billion, a 7-percent increase over the same period last year and slightly higher than the $17.26 billion that was expected. The big hero was Office which accounted for $5.62 billion of that income, though sales of Windows stayed flat and fell somewhat short of expectations. The company’s $5.74 billion in net income was also a significant jump of 6-percent over the same time last year. For a few more of the financial particulars check out the earnings report after the break and the spartan spreadsheets at the source link.

Update: Wondering what Microsoft plans to do with the newly acquired Skype? Well, details are thin, but during today’s earnings call the company revealed it did plan to integrate the VoIP service and its technologies into Lync, Live Messenger and Xbox Live. Soon you may not only have to listen to your friend gloat after every kill in Call of Duty, you might have to watch him do a celebratory dance in his Lazy Boy too.

Continue reading Microsoft has record Q1, rakes in $17.37 billion in revenue (updated: Skype plans revealed)

Microsoft has record Q1, rakes in $17.37 billion in revenue (updated: Skype plans revealed) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 16:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Straight out of AsiaD, we’ve got our first look at Mango’s next three handsets: the HTC Titan, the Samsung Focus S (pictured above), and the Samsung Focus Flash. Well, not strictly first — the Focus S has slipped out into the wild before, and we’ve already clashed with the Titan and the Radar Lees is showing off, but we’re still happy to get a proper look at Sammy’s new stars. The Focus siblings both outpace their older brother with matching 1.4GHz processors, but split the difference in screen size, with the Focus S brandishing a larger 4.3-inch Super AMOLED Plus display, and the Flash stepping down to a 3.7-inch plus-free Super AMOLED. Cameras? They’ve got ’em, an 8 megapixel peeper clings to the back of the Focus S, while the Flash retains its predecessor’s 5 megapixel cam — both slabs lay a happy claim to front-facing cameras. Further details are scarce — we know that the Focus S measures in 8.55 millimeters at its thinnest point and promises “4G” speeds when it lands later this year, but when that might actually be is still a mystery. We’ll let you know when we hear something. Check out the galleries below for a better look.

Microsoft’s Andy Lees shows off Titan, Focus S, and Focus Flash originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Oct 2011 23:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Earlier this month, Microsoft announced a new slate of Xbox Live partnerships with Verizon, Comcast, and a host of other content providers. Now, the company has unveiled new details about the code upon which these new apps will run. Sources close to the situation tell GigaOM that the new framework, code-named “Lakeview,” will be based on Silverlight, but will also bring a few new features from Xbox Kinect, including voice recognition and gesture-based controls. More intriguing, perhaps, are insider claims that Microsoft’s new content partners stream video using Apple’s HTTP Live Streaming, rather than Redmond’s Smooth Streaming. GigaOM‘s sources went on to say that Microsoft has been introducing major changes to the platform over the past few weeks, in the hopes of having it ready for third-party developers once the Xbox Live update rolls out. Spokespersons for Xbox and Silverlight said they have “nothing to announce” about the new framework, though GigaOM reports that Redmond is aiming to release the update on Black Friday.

Microsoft reportedly preparing Silverlight-like app framework ahead of Xbox Live update originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 10 Oct 2011 06:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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