Zune still the butt of jokes, this time on the Simpsons

This joke never gets old. Although, Microsoft does have new new products in the pipeline, so maybe Windows 8 or the Surface will finally put the Zune to rest?

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Apple vs ?, Humor, Microsoft, Zune

Walter Isaacson: In the end, Bill makes the Zune and Steve makes the iPod [Video]

Yes, the Zune is still the butt of jokes. I first noticed this trend way back in October of 2008, when NBC’s TV show Chuck joked about owning a Zune.

Now 3 years later Walter Isaacson, the author who wrote Steve Jobs biography, joins in on the fun. Isaacson, appearing on The Daily Show with John Stewart, highlights Steve Jobs’ more artistic and mystical style compared to Bill Gates’ brains and business sense.

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Apple vs ?, Humor, iPod, Microsoft, Steve Jobs

Microsoft’s Kinect dethrones iPhone / iPad as the fastest selling consumer electronic

Guinness World Records:

Guinness World Records, the global authority on record breaking, today confirm that the Kinect for the Xbox 360 is the Fastest-Selling Consumer Electronics Device.  The hardware, that allows controller-free gaming, sold through an average of 133,333 units per day, for a total of 8 million units in its first 60 days on sale from 4 November 2010 to 3 January 2011.

The sales figures outstrip both the iPhone and the iPad for the equivalent periods after launch

Guess Microsoft isn’t dead yet. Windows 7 was a great step forward after the Vista failure. The Xbox 360 sells well, and now with the Kinect they are reaching a whole new audience.  I never wanted an Xbox before, I was fine with my gaming PC, Wii, and PS3, but now with Kinect, I’m very tempted to buy one. Played it a few times at a friends house and it’s really cool, wish I had one when I was a kid.

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Apple vs ?, iPad, iPhone, Microsoft, Xbox

Microsoft officially announces its “magic mouse”, the Arc Touch

Debbie Uttecht from Microsoft Hardware Blog:

After much anticipation, we are excited to announce the Microsoft Arc Touch Mouse! You might have seen the teases we shared on Twitter –we were trying to get you thinking about things that were flat and when you see this mouse you’ll know why.  Some of the creative responses we got surprised us!

You’ll remember just a couple weeks ago we reported on the rumored new device, which Neowin correctly guessed was a new Arc Touch mouse. Also, arctouchmouse.com now takes you to the product website instead of a Bing search. Pre-orders are open today for a release sometime in December.

The big difference, compared to Apple’s touch mouse, is only the silver strip is “touchable”. Also, the gestures are pretty basic when compared to Apple’s multi-touch capabilities. The rest of the mouse just works like a regular mouse. Microsoft’s selling point is that you can flatten the mouse for easy transport and then arc it for more traditional comfort. I can see a market for this, but if they try to get more than $30 for it, I think it’s going to be a hard sell.

UPDATE Here’s the link to the announcement on the main website: http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2010/sep10/09-1ArcTouchPR.mspx

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Apple vs ?, Microsoft

Microsoft to release a magic mouse of its own?

Microsoft has been teasing a future hardware product on its @msfthardware twitter account:

Here’s a hint for you: “Don’t be so touchy…flat is where it’s at.” We’ll share another glimpse of our upcoming product with you tomorrow. [tweet link]

Here’s your second clue to our next product release: http://twitpic.com/2baujg . Any guesses as to what it might be? [tweet link]

Today Neowin is reporting:

Details of the Arc Touch Mouse began surfacing in early July as several European retailers began publishing listings for a “Microsoft Arc Touch Mouse”. Company officials registered arctouchmouse.com on Tuesday March 30 this year and according to an insider that spoke to Neowin, the device will launch in September.

Also, going to arctouchmouse.com takes you to a Bing search for Arc Touch Mouse. So could this be Microsoft trying to get in on the touch mouse / trackpad game?

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Apple vs ?, Microsoft, Speculation

MicroClone Stores, please don’t try to be original

You know by now that Microsoft has started opening their long rumored retail stores which are basically an exact clone of the Apple stores. Can’t really blame them for using a format that works (at least for Apple).  Guess someone at Microsoft didn’t like being a clone and decided to add this twist to the mix…oh Microsoft, you make it too easy. You can take the Microsoft out of Redmond, but you can’t take the Redmond out of Microsoft.

(via @cabel)

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Apple vs ?, Humor, Microsoft