Microsoft

Microsoft is working on a major redesign of both Outlook for Mac and its Windows counterpart. The aim is to simplify the user-interface, bringing it more into line with the iOS app. The iOS app was redesigned back in July.

Key changes are a single-line ribbon and a smaller set of default commands shown …

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The writing has been on the wall for Windows Phone for a very long time. It had long struggled to achieve more than one or two percentage points of market share; Microsoft wrote-off its Nokia hardware business in 2015; the company exited the consumer market in May; and even Bill Gates recently admitted he’d switched to an Android phone …

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It looks like Siri and Google are friends again and Bing is in the rear view mirror. In a major shift, Apple is changing its search results provider for Siri and Spotlight on iOS and macOS from Microsoft’s Bing to the vastly more popular Google.

The change has started to roll out today and should be in effect for all users by the end of the day. For users, this means Siri and Spotlight will now provide the same search results as Safari by default (and in a lot of cases show better search results).

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Update: The NYPD has issued a statement in which it says the phones were provided as part of a contract that allowed it to change devices after two years, and that it will begin the switch to iPhone in the fall. It claims that the phones were provided ‘at no cost’ but does not explain how they were paid for. 

The New York Police Department is being forced to scrap 36,000 Windows Phones bought just two years ago as part of a $160M mobility project. The move has been forced by Microsoft’s decision to cease support for the platform as of last month.

The NYPD now plans to replace the phones with iPhones by the end of the year, according to a report …

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Arthur C Clarke once said that any sufficiently advanced technology was indistinguishable from magic, and Microsoft’s Seeing AI app gets pretty close to qualifying. It’s an app designed to ‘narrate the world’ to people who are blind or visually impaired, and the video demo (below) shows off some incredibly impressive capabilities.

It can, for example, recognize friends, guess the emotions of people from their facial expressions, read text, identify bank notes, identify products from their bar-codes, and even recognize images in apps like Twitter …

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Apple finally brought Touch ID to the Mac with the new MacBook Pros last fall, but there’s still no official way to log in to a desktop Mac with your fingerprint. Microsoft is introducing a new macOS-compatible Modern Keyboard with what it calls a hidden fingerprint reader.

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Microsoft is launching a new task management app for iPhone today called Planner. Previously available as a web app only, Planner works with eligible Office 365 accounts for organizing tasks visually and collaborating across teams.

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Last week Microsoft revealed a new version of its operating system called Windows 10 S that only runs software from the Windows Store — which means apps like Apple’s iTunes and Google’s Chrome won’t work. Today at Microsoft’s Build conference for developers, however, the company announced that Apple is working on bringing iTunes to the Windows Store after all.

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Microsoft has released a new tool called Xamarin Live Player that lets PC users test and debug iOS apps without using a Mac. Submitting apps to the App Store still requires Xcode which only runs on a Mac, but developers working on Windows can now deploy apps to iOS for testing during development.

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Microsoft has officially released Visual Studio for Mac following an extended preview period for developers. The release corresponds with the kick off of Microsoft’s Build 2017 developer conference this week.

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Microsoft held a media event in New York City today focused on a new version of Windows, a new laptop line, and how it all relates to education. Windows 10 S is a streamlined version of Microsoft’s operating system geared for students and educators. The Microsoft Surface Laptop is a new line of MacBook Air-like notebooks with up to 14.5-hour battery life.

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Microsoft bought the task management app Wunderlist back in 2015, and today the company has released the first public preview of its eventual replacement called To-Do. Microsoft’s new To-Do app is available to try on iPhone now, and preview versions for iPad and Mac will soon follow.

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Last month Microsoft announced that it plans to bring Google Calendar and Contact syncing to Outlook for macOS, and today the company is expanding its test group ahead of the official feature release planned for later this year.

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Microsoft today released a new app for Apple’s iMessage platform, giving users tools to plan events with friends via the messaging app.

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Sprinkles, a new iOS camera app from Microsoft, hopes to set itself apart in the emoji-crazed social media game. Touting itself as a “camera with fun ideas,” Sprinkles automatically adds captions and imagery directly atop your photos by detecting different objects, pets, and even people to create randomized quips.

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Microsoft announced today that it plans to bring Google Calendar and Contacts support to Outlook 2016 for Mac later this year. Outlook for Mac already works with Gmail accounts for managing email, but this update will mark the first time Gmail users can manage contact databases and calendar entries using Microsoft’s software.

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Microsoft has released a new update today for Office 2016 for Mac that includes Touch Bar support. These features were originally announced during Apple’s October event last year. We reported last week that members of the Office Insider beta program got a chance to try out the new update first. Now, the update with Touch Bar functionality is available to all users.

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