windows 7

Microsoft Research has published a few more details on their skunkworks project that commenced in 2008 to bring the Windows NT core to ARM. Better still this goes on to show that not only were they successful, but also they were able to beat Windows CE in performance tests on the same hardware.

Windows CE, on which Windows Mobile and Windows Phone 7 run, has been the mainstay of Microsoft’s mobile efforts for a very long time. The problem of course is that it’s never really been Windows at all and for the most part it an entirely separate beast. Windows NT, the core of Microsoft’s standard Windows products, was long considered too large and resource heavy to work well on mobile devices. Experiment 19 was a project to prove that not only could NT come to mobile, it could do so and beat Windows CE in the process. It was a success.

We mentioned it briefly but the new Windows Phone Xbox Live game Chickens Can't Fly now has its own Windows 7 theme. It joins other gaming title themes such as Fruit Ninja, Angry Birds and the Xbox Kinect game Gunstringer.

The Chickens Can't Fly theme includes wallpapers, sounds, and colors (no screen saver). The graphics look great and the sounds unique. But I have to admit it takes some time to get used to the chicken cluck as your alert sound.

You can find the Chickens Can't Fly Windows 7 theme pack here at the Windows download page.

We've seen the upcoming Toshiba Fujitsu "Mango" handset, that is to become official on July 27th at a press event with Microsoft Japan. This is something in a whole different realm. A Fujitsu device running Windows 7. Not Windows Phone 7, just Windows 7. Allow me to introduce you to the Fujitsu Windows F-07C Mobile Phone.

What are the selling points of this device? Well, we have Internet Explorer 9, two years license of Microsoft Office, SSD (flash memory), trackball for mouse movement accompanied by a QWERTY keyboard. I'm not sure why they have SSD as a feature since I'd find it odd to find a traditional motor-driven hard drive inside a phone. This is probably the best part:

"By hooking up a keyboard or mouse to the USB port, users can easily edit Office files or connect to a printer to print. In addition, after connecting the mobile phone to a large-screen TV via an HDMA output connector, users can enjoy websites or captured photographs on the big screen."

From first viewing the photos above, one will notice the massive resemblance of iOS with the icon grid layout, pane icons (small circles under the grid displaying which pane is currently active), and even an OS X-like dock. It's reported that this device will be available in Japan by the weekend.

What's impressive is the specifications (although battery life when in Win7 mode is only at ~2 hours), check them out after the break. 

This competition has been running for a while now and you have the last chance in entering it before the closing date (2nd May 23:59 PDT). So, do you fancy laying your hands on the box of awesome? US only, unfortunately.

It's contents are pretty impressive:

• Samsung Focus
• Samsung Series Notebook
• Windows 7 home Premium
• Microsoft Arc Touch mouse
• Samsung 46" LED TV
• Xbox 360 250GB console with Kinect
• 3 Kinect-enabled games
• Xbox Live 12 month gold membership
• Microsoft Office Professional 2010

This bundle is worth quite a chunk of money so better get your entry in should you wish to be in with an opportunity to win, win, win. Please note -- however -- that this offer is through Facebook and requires access to your personal information, not to mention you are required to sign up and supply your name, address, email, etc.

This week has been a somewhat exciting one if you've been following the annual Computex show in Taipei.

For one, Asus demonstrated their Eee pad, which sadly won't be out till first quarter 2011. The 12-inch EP121 features Intel's Core 2 Duo CULV processors, Windows Embedded Compact 7 for the UI (and Windows 7 too?), and a supposed 10-hour battery life. The battery here is the killer part if true as that's where the competition, along with 'instant on', is really gaining momentum.  The device is also powered by Nvidia's Tegra video processor, which leads us to...

Despite being featured on an unfinished Windows tablet, Nvidia President and CEO Jen-Hsun Huang had no problem distancing himself from such devices and backing Android, stating

Windows is too big and it's too full featured for smartbooks and tablets

The good news is that we finally have an operating system to unite behind. Android is an operating system that has gained a tremendous amount of momentum all over the world 

Zing. While most of us would agree with such an assessment, it's a bit rough when it comes from one of your featured partners. The issue here is Microsoft's intention to use Windows 7 and only Windows 7 on tablet devices, eschewing a Windows Phone 7 type device which many seem to want. In addition, Google's Chrome OS is finally launching in the fall, which should increase the competition even more with HP/Palm's WEbOS tablet.

So everyone is doing a mobile OS for tablets except Microsoft. This should end well.

Finally, Paul Thurrott recently explained why he thinks the iPad is a consumption-but-not-contribution device, something we've been saying for awhile on our podcasts. This reason is similar to what Microsoft told Engadget on why they want to use a full-fledged OS instead of a mobile one for tablets. While that argument holds true for installing desktop software, it doesn't seem really address how consumers are actually using these devices these days.

We say let the market decide. Microsoft, put out different tablets, one featuring Windows 7 and another featuring Windows Phone 7. No one will confuse them. Seriously, we think you're betting on the wrong horse here and Android, iPad, Chrome and even HP/Palms's WebOS are going to put the hurt on you're tablets by Spring 2011.

[via PC World, Engadget, WinSuperSite, Raw Story & PreCentral]

Back in April we whined complained about how syncing your Windows phone with Windows (the desktop operating system) took a few steps too many. You had to manually go out and find the software (ActiveSync for you XP users, Mobile Device Center for Vista and Windows 7).

Our cries have been heard.

With the Release Candidate version of Windows 7 (that's Build 7100, for those keeping track at home), everything's taken care of for you. We'd heard as much from PocketNow but just had to try it ourselves. Here's my experience:

1. Phil plugged in his trusty ol' Moto Q9h.
2. Windows 7 downloaded and installed some drivers.
3. Mobile Device Center was automatically downloaded and installed.
4. Phil thrust his arms in the air in celebration, sounded a barbaric yawp and immediately began a post praising Microsoft's foresight.

OK, it's not perfect. There really are no dialog boxes telling you what's going on, and the process isn't as quick as I'd like. It took a couple of minutes to install the drivers and software, which in and of itself was fine. But there basically were no dialog boxes (other than the one saying drivers were being installed) to let the user know what was going on. But we're not going to let that rain on our parade.

And for those of you wanting to try out the Release Candidate, it'll be available to the public on Tuesday.