Microsoft - page 6

Apple’s current line of MacBooks is probably its worst laptop lineup in years. The keyboards are so broken that even the newest MacBook Air is covered under Apple’s keyboard repair program. There are too few ports, and too much heat. And if you want to upgrade any internal parts? You’ll have to buy a new MacBook. But what are the best MacBook alternatives?

If you want to ditch the MacBook, you will find plenty of options. However, none of them offer one essential element: macOS. Switching to another operating system is like moving house and having to leave everything but your clothes behind. But there are workarounds even for that. Let’s check out the best alternatives to the MacBook in 2019.

Microsoft is preparing to make its Outlook app for macOS better than ever. An overhaul will introduce new sync technology and big performance improvements, as well as welcome design tweaks.

Here’s what you can expect.

Microsoft today dropped a brand-new Office Mobile app that brings Word, Excel, and PowerPoint together in one place. The company calls it a new vision for how people get work done on a phone.

Microsoft today rolled out a bunch of updates that bring a long-awaited dark mode to its Office suite on iOS.

Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote are all a little easier on the eyes (if you want them to be). Dark mode will also help them be kinder on battery life on iPhone models with OLED displays.

Microsoft just unveiled a very innovative dual-screen mobile computer that also makes room for a physical keyboard. The Surface Neo folds, but doesn’t use a folding screen, and combines features of a laptop and a tablet.

Most Surface products compete directly with Apple offerings. Apple is also exploring multi-display laptops and tablets, but Microsoft might get there first. Might, because the device unveiled today won‘t be out for a year.

The newly-unveiled Surface Pro X is a 13-inch tablet that seems designed to take on the 12.9-inch iPad Pro. Apple dominates tablet sales but Microsoft clearly wants a bigger piece, is hoping this slim and light Windows device will accomplish that.

Microsoft also finally added a USB-C port to the Surface Pro line in the seventh-generation model.

Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders’ proposed “inequality tax” would punish large businesses that pay their CEOs vastly more than the median wage for employees. Apple is one of those companies.

Apple’s long-rumored AR glasses project could get some competition from the world’s biggest social network company.

Facebook is reportedly developing its own augmented reality glasses. The social network recently struck a partnership with Ray-Ban parent company Luxottica to speed the product along, according to a new report.

Think twice about buying the new 10.2-inch iPad if you’re a frequent Microsoft Office user.

Microsoft’s rather strange policy on tablet use will almost certainly mean you’ll lose out on free Office access if you upgrade to Apple’s newest slate. And a subscription will cost you $9.99 a month.

Apple isn’t into Easter Eggs in the way that it once was. But in its two-minute supercut rundown of this week’s iPhone 11 event, it includes an amusing one.

On six frames of the video, there’s a flashed image that suspiciously resembles Microsoft’s dreaded “Blue Screen of Death.” But while a swipe at Microsoft would be enough to make many long-time Apple fans nostalgic, there’s also a hidden message written in binary.

Microsoft’s fancy new To Do app has arrived and is available now across all platforms. The big overhaul brings the best of Wunderlist and combines it with an improved design.

You’ll find more customization options, like the ability to set different backgrounds for each of your lists, and a new dark mode.

Microsoft just brought Dark Mode to Outlook for iOS. And this is just the start of giving many more applications in the Microsoft 365 product suite this feature, which puts white text on a black background.

Microsoft might take on the iPad and MacBook simultaneously if a semi-secret folding tablet is unveiled at a press event this fall.

The company just sent out invitations to an October event, and speculation is running high that the dual-screen “Centaurus” will be the star, along with refreshed versions of other Surface computers.

Three days of Microsoft Office lessons might not sound exciting, but MS Office is fundamental in almost any professional environment. So the more you learn, the more useful and marketable your skills.

The first game from the incredibly popular Gears of War franchise has landed on iOS. Gears Pop! is very different to what fans of the series are used to, but it looks like a ton of fun nonetheless.

It’s also free-to-play!

Microsoft Edge is now “ready for everyday use.”

The next-generation version of the browser, built on Chromium, is still in beta for Windows and macOS. But Microsoft says it’s stable enough to become your primary window to the web.

Microsoft has snapped up the former Siri boss, who left Apple earlier in May 2019.

Bill Stasior joined Apple in 2012, taking over control of the Siri team not long after it made its debut with the iPhone 4s. In his job at Microsoft, Stasior will be corporate vice president of technology.

Bedtimes stories don’t get much better than the latest stories from all your favorite writers at Cult of Mac. And now Microsoft Edge for iOS can read them to you.

The new feature, added in the browser’s latest update, improves accessibility for the visually impaired and those who find it difficult to interact with iPhone and iPad.

A class-action lawsuit filed this week takes aim at Apple for storing some iCloud data on third-party servers.

The company is accused of breaching consumer trust to sell iCloud subscriptions. It states iCloud data will be “stored by Apple,” but offloads some of it to Amazon and other companies.

Apple rarely, if ever, pokes fun at its competition in ads these days. But that same lesson hasn’t been learned by Apple’s rivals — as a new Microsoft ad for the Surface Laptop 2 shows.

For the ad, Microsoft (or, rather, its ad agency) tracked down a real life guy named Mackenzie “Mac” Book from Sydney, Australia. Guess whether he prefers Microsoft or Apple’s laptop? The hint is in the fact that it’s a Microsoft ad.

Apple has teamed up with investors including Foxconn, Microsoft and… the National Bank of Kazakhstan to participate in a new “technology mega fund.”

The $108 billion fund is organized by SoftBank Group Corp. The goal is to focus on investing in A.I. related technologies.

Stock prices of the major U.S. stock companies all took a tumble in after-hours trading today after the U.S. Justice Department revealed that it is launching a broad antitrust investigation into tech companies.

The department has not said which companies will be investigated specifically but it’s pretty likely that Apple, Amazon, Google and Facebook will be swept up in the case.

Apple’s iWork platform has been banned from German schools alongside Microsoft Office 365 and Google Docs.

Privacy regulators say that using the cloud-based services “exposes personal information about students and teachers.” They also suggest that the data might be accessed by U.S. authorities.

The first closed beta test for Minecraft Earth will begin this month — just weeks after its first unveiling at WWDC.

You can sign up for early access to the game today. A new beta trailer gives us a sneak peek of what to expect during the test.

Microsoft has started developing new Xbox controllers for mobile gaming. Prototype images reveal how the gamepads might attach to the sides of your iPhone and iPad for portable play.

The controllers would be ideal for Microsoft’s upcoming Project xCloud service, which will allow players to stream Xbox games to their smartphones and tablets.