BERLIN: Microsoft is to update its flagship operating system so that the latest generation of Windows 10 hardware devices and software can tap into augmented and virtual reality, executives said on Friday.
The software upgrade, its fourth update, will be offered from October 17 to existing customers of Windows 10 running on more than 500 million devices, the company said.
Microsoft also announced plans by computer and virtual-reality headset makers to introduce new hardware for businesses, consumers and video gamers to take advantage of so-called “mixed reality” features in the October software release.
“We’re enabling you to immerse yourself in a new reality — mixed reality,” Terry Myerson, Microsoft’s executive vice president in charge or Windows, said in a speech at the IFA consumer electronics fair in Berlin.
Mixed reality is the term Microsoft uses to describe software that encompasses augmented reality, which overlays text or graphics on real-life objects, and virtual reality, which simulates the real world.
The multimedia content can be viewed on computers, TV displays, smartphones, tablets or dedicated virtual reality goggles. These features will be targeted first at advanced video game players using VR headsets, with business applications to follow.
Microsoft’s new software release shrinks the laborious set-up of VR headsets for users to around 10 minutes, down from two to three hours now, in a step toward making such technology mainstream, Microsoft officials said.
The software group, which has largely remade itself into a supplier of cloud services delivered via the Internet, has moved to a roughly six-month release cycle for feature updates of Windows from its three-year release cycle for disk-based versions of its operating system software.
Microsoft also announced a range of devices from key hardware partners ready to take advantage of mixed reality features in the Windows 10 update available in mid-October from vendors including Lenovo, HP Inc, Dell , Acer, Asus and Fujitsu.
Microsoft pushes ‘mixed reality’ features with Windows 10 update
Microsoft pushes ‘mixed reality’ features with Windows 10 update
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Apple to update EU browser options, make more apps deletable
- iPhone maker came under pressure from regulators to make changes after the EU’s sweeping Digital Markets Act took effect on March 7
- Apple users will be able to select a default browser directly from the choice screen after going through a mandatory list of options
STOCKHOLM: Apple will change how users choose browser options in the European Union, add a dedicated section for changing default apps, and make more apps deletable, the company said on Thursday.
The iPhone maker came under pressure from regulators to make changes after the EU’s sweeping Digital Markets Act took effect on March 7, forcing big tech companies to offer mobile users the ability to select from a list of available web browsers on a “choice screen.”
The new rules require mobile software makers to show the choice screen where users can select a browser, search engine and virtual assistant as they set up their phones, which earlier came with preferred options from Apple and Google.
In an update later this year, Apple users will be able to select a default browser directly from the choice screen after going through a mandatory list of options.
A randomly ordered list of 12 browsers per EU country will be shown to the user with short descriptions, and the chosen one will be automatically downloaded, Apple said. The choice screen will also be available on iPads through an update later this year.
Apple released a previous update in response to the new rules in March, but browser companies criticized the design of its choice screen, and the Commission opened an investigation on March 25 saying it suspected that the measures fell short of effective compliance.
The company said it has been in dialogue with the European Commission and believes the new changes will address regulators’ concerns.
It also plans to introduce a dedicated area for default apps where a user will be able to set defaults for messaging, phone calls, spam filters, password managers and keyboards.
Users will also be able to delete certain Apple-made apps such as App Store, Messages, Camera, Photos and Safari. Only Settings and Phone apps would not be deletable.
