When HP bought Palm and revealed plans for webOS-powered slate devices this spring, word on the web was that HP had quietly euthanized its Windows 7 slate. Evidence now points to the contrary. Kind of. Engadget has been told by HP itself that the Windows-powered slate is “still very much in the works.”

Confirmation came after a mysterious HP Slate 500 product made its way onto the HP website yesterday. Inquisitive folks also unearthed an EnergyStar page for the device; the page mentions a 1.6GHz Atom processor and Windows 7.

HP hasn’t confirmed any specs directly, though, and even its statement to Engadget is somewhat open to interpretation. The company reportedly said it’s carrying out “customer evaluations” and “will make a determination soon on the next steps.” To my eyes, that phrasing leaves room for the Slate 500’s potential demise. Then again, it’s just as likely that HP will allow Windows and webOS-powered tablets to co-exist.

Microsoft has shipped some developers running prototypes of Windows Phone 7. This distribution to Developers’ is in a bid to get some developer feedback on the device, as well as get the developers’ behind the platform, a la Android.Here are some of our previous leaks on the Windows Phone 7 OS.

The prototype shipped is a Samsung Taylor SGH-i707, and it comes with all the hardware one would expect given the Windows Phone 7 required specifications.

The main showpiece remains the near production ready software that the phone touts, and here are a couple of scren shots of said OS. The developer in question claims the software is smooth and intuitive, and that the screen transitions and UI fluency is comparable to the Zune HD.

Windows Phone Music Hub

windows phone 7 photos hub

Microsoft has announced at their Worldwide Partner Conference 2010 the release of Windows 7 Service Patch 1 Beta, and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 for those who are running the RTM versions of these firmwares.

The beta versions were announced yesterday by Tami Reller, Microsoft’s vice president of Windows and Windows Live.

Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 Beta helps keep your PCs and servers on the latest support level, provides ongoing improvements to the Windows Operating System (OS), by including previous updates delivered over Windows Update as well as continuing incremental updates to the Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 platforms based on customer and partner feedback, and is easy for organizations to deploy a single set of updates.

Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 Beta will help you:

* Keep your PCs supported and up-to-date
* Get ongoing updates to the Windows 7 platform
* Easily deploy cumulative updates at a single time
* Meet your users’ demands for greater business mobility
* Provide a comprehensive set of virtualization innovations
* Provide an easier Service Pack deployment model for better IT efficiency

In order to download and install the Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 Beta you must currently have a Release to Manufacturing (RTM) version of Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 already installed.

The update includes tons of bug fixes and upgrades, which is the standard procedure and is available for 32, as well as 64 bit processors.

You can download Windows 7 SP1 Beta from TechNet Evaluation Center from here and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 Beta from here.

Microsoft has unleashed public betas of the first service packs for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2. Both betas are now available for download via TechNet.

Of course, there’s really no need for Windows 7 users to jump eagerly on the download. Windows 7 Service Pack 1 is little more than a collection of patches already released via Windows Update, so there are no new features or functionality to be found. Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, on the other hand, brings Virtual Desktop Infrastructure enhancements that enable hardware-accelerated 3D graphics and video playback over a Remote Desktop Connection.

Omio, the UK mobile phone outlet, has purportedly got its hands on “a huge UK mobile phone release schedule for the rest of the year… [from] all the manufacturers”. Ofcourse , the source of the list remains a mystery, as we can’t find any sources mentioned, nor any other sources mentioning  the above mentioned list. So, with bated breath.. and a few grains of salt thrown in for good measure, here is the list:

• July
  • Nokia E5-00,
  • Sony Ericsson W20, and
  • Samsung i5500.
• August
  • Nokia X6 8GB and
  • BlackBerry Curve 9300.
• September
  • SonyEricsson Hazel and
  • Nokia X2 candybar
• October
  • HTC Vision,
  • the virtually unknown HTC Ace,
  • Nokia N8, and
  • Sony Ericsson’s Xperia X8 and Yendo.
• November
  • HTC Gold, with Microsoft’s new mobile OS, Windows phone 7
  • Samsung i8700
  • Nokia E7 — the latter being possibly a N8-esque QWERTY slider with AMOLED display and Symbian^3,

Phew! That’s quite a list the UK retailer plans to host on its outlets this year, what remains to be seen is how much this roadmap is followed.

[via Omio]

The Xbox 360’s new Kinect motion controller has all sorts of potential. Unfortunately, it also has some limitations, at least for now. Microsoft is still calibrating the system for seated play, and it hasn’t confirmed whether gamers will be forced to stand when the controller launches later this year.

At least Redmond has confirmed that Kinect’s “entertainment” controls, which are presumably based on simpler gestures confined to a user’s upper body, will work while lounging on the couch. Those entertainment controls are also coming to PCs and consumer electronics gear. PrimeSense, the company behind Kinect’s motion tracking, has revealed that the technology will make its way into home-theater PCs and set-top boxes next year. TVs are being targeted, as well, but no deals have been signed on that front yet.

PrimeSense is responsible for Kinect’s cameras and motion tracking, but the system’s voice recognition and tilt functionality belong to Microsoft, so they’ll remain exclusive to the Xbox controller. There are other ways to get voice recognition running on the PC, so that’s not much of a loss. Besides, simple gestures should be enough to control the majority of commonly used home-theater PC functions. A standard remote will likely be more efficient, but I quite like the idea of browsing program guides, photos, and other media with the flick of a wrist. Besides, it would be novel to bring new technology into my living room that could actually remove a remote rather than adding another one.

After the unveiling of the new Microsoft “kinect”(aka, project Natal) controller for the xbox 360 at the E3 conference recently, the pricing of the new device has been kept a secret, even though, an early autumn release is promised. Now, we see that the unit is available for pre-order on Microsoft’s own Online Store for $149.99. Walmart and GameStop have touted this price for some time now. The price includes the sensor device itself, a manual, a power supply cable and supposedly a Wifi extension cable (this is weird, as the device reportedly works via physical connection to the console).As no official notice of the MSRP has been made, this could be as official as it gets folks.

For all those out their not in the know, KINECT is Microsoft’s answer to the Wiimote by Nintendo, and the Sony Move for the PS3 (also unveiled at the E3). Whereas the other two use input devices held in the hand, and moved around like a wand to register motion on the screen, the KINECT has foregone controllers completely in favor of a gesture-based UI, that senses the users motions via a collection of cameras and audio recognition devices all neatly integrated on the KINECT’s bar like sensor.

Microsoft E3 2010 Keynote is just around the corner and live updates from this event has just started to pour from all over the network. To help all the PCs out there to catch the latest updates from this mega event by Microsoft, we have gathered some links which would be live streaming the event, as well as live blogging from there.

Microsoft E3 2010 Keynote Video Links

Microsoft – Live Stream here
GameTrailers -  Stream here

Nintendo – Live Stream here

Sony – Live Stream here

IGN – IGN’s E3 Channel on YouTube
GamerTV -  E3 Channel
SpikeTV -  Live Stream, Alternate Link

Microsoft E3 2010 Keynote Live Updates

You can catch live blogging updates from Microsoft E3 2010 Keynote from here.

Update: Watch Microsoft E3 2010 Live Keynote of Day 1 from here, live streaming video:

Live Videos by Ustream

To spice up more the greatest on-going sport event of the year – FIFA World Cup 2010, Microsoft has released a new theme for Windows 7 users which is packed with 12 high quality wallpapers (1920 × 1200 resolution) along with a light-orange color scheme for the OS.

Download FIFA World Cup 2010 Theme

You can download FIFA World Cup 2010 theme for Windows 7 from here. Simply open it with its default program and you are good to go.

Also read another article by us about how to watch live matches of FIFA World Cup 2010 for free online without paying a nickel!

Without a doubt one of the most aniticipated launches of Computex this year was the launch of two Tablets by ASUS, which it hopes will be a sound response to the Apple iPad.

The unveiling recently at computex, of a 12” slate with a Consumer Ultra-Low Voltage Core 2 Duo processor and Windows 7 Home Premium was indeed impressive. If these specs are not impressive enough, ASUS filled in a little more details:

• An innovative docking station for the 12” tablet(that effectively turns it into an inconspicuous-looking notebook),
• This docking station will include an extra battery, which will bump total rated longevity to over 10 hours,
• As well as a 2.5″ mechanical hard drive,
• USB 2.0, Ethernet,
• HDMI connectivity.
• Thickness of the slate is about 12-mm,
• We’re told the docking station adds an extra 14 mm or so. Total: about an inch.

The decision to sell the notebook docking station along with the device is under scrutiny. There’s also a desktop docking station, but that will definitely be sold separately.(no price yet on that either)

Despite its announcement, the 12″ Eee Pad won’t be out until around the next CES—that’s January 2011 at least. That gives Asus an interesting choice: it could stick with the Core 2 Duo in the current spec sheet, or it could try to throw in one of those Consumer Ultra-Low Voltage Core i3 and i5 CPUs from Intel that are beginning to crop up also at the Computex.

The pricing has not been finalized as well; the only thing confirmed is that the 12″ slate will cost more than the 10″ Eee Pad, and Asus quoted a price tag of $399-449 for that product.