Microsoft has already detailed the Windows 8 upgrade route for those buying a new computer, and it's now finally confirmed what everyone else will be paying when they upgrade their existing PC. Those running Windows XP, Windows Vista, or Windows 7 will able to download a Windows 8 Pro upgrade for just $39.99. That's a far cry from the company's earlier upgrade prices, which as recently as Windows 7 ran $50 and $99 for Home Premium and Pro upgrades, respectively. You will have to pay a bit more if you want packaged DVD version of the upgrade, though, with it running $69.99 at retail -- it also sounds like both of those prices will be going up when the promotion ends on January 31st of next year. Not surprisingly, the upgrade process will vary depending on the OS you're currently using. Those making the jump all the way from Windows XP will only able to bring their personal files with them, while those on Vista will be able to bring their personal files and Windows settings, but no applications. And, if you're wondering about Media Center, it will be available as a free option once the upgrade is finished.

http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/02/m...ffer-for-most/ ...

Microsoft doesn't appear to be too concerned by Sony's big acquisition today

Microsoft

www.microsoft.com

Sony made a huge splash in the games business today, picking up cloud gaming firm Gaikai for a cool $380 million. Rival Microsoft isn't sitting idly by, however. When GamesIndustry International asked for reaction to the Sony news, a spokesperson noted that the cloud will continue to be hugely important for Microsoft.
"The cloud has been a key component of our strategy and a big area of investment with Xbox for many years. Through Xbox LIVE we're serving up gaming and entertainment in the cloud to more than 40 million people," a spokesperson remarked.
"We're committed to delivering extraordinary entertainment experiences across devices in a uniquely connected way through Xbox, Windows Phone, Windows 8 and other popular devices, and we're looking forward to continuing to innovate in this space in the future."
There's been a lot of speculation that Microsoft could buy OnLive, but others think that Microsoft will simply continue to invest and improve its own technology. Cloud gaming is certainly rising in importance, and Microsoft isn't about to let Sony gain the upper hand. We'll keep you posted on any new developments.


http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...tment-for-xbox


...

What has Sony bought for its $380 million, and what does it mean for its competitors?

Gaikai Inc.

Sony Computer Entertainment

Sony Computer Entertainment is a Japanese videogame company specialising in a variety of areas in the...

www.playstation.com


Sony's $380 million acquisition of cloud gaming platform Gaikai is big news, but it will surprise very few people within the industry. Rumours of the tie-up have been circulating since before E3, and many people expected it to be announced in Los Angeles last month; instead, somewhat unconvincing denials were trotted out, along with the news that Gaikai had struck a deal to build its technology into Samsung TVs. An acquisition deal was always inevitable, though, and it's taken less than a month after the show for one to materialise.
Why inevitable? Because that's what Gaikai was built for. There are start-up companies which are designed for the long haul, with a long-term business plan and perhaps even the chance of an IPO down the line, but Gaikai was not one of those companies. Rather, it fell into a second category - the sort of start-up which is designed to rise fast and far off the back of great technology and intense self-promotion, to garner as much attention as possible, and ultimately to be acquired by a larger firm as close to the top of the trajectory as possible. If it hits that target, everyone makes millions - think Instagram, or Draw Something. If it misses, though, it crashes back to earth with absolute finality, because there's no real business plan for the long term - no way to make money as a standalone enterprise.
"There's no question that cloud gaming companies today exist to be acquired. There's no real market for their products yet"

Gaikai's founders might deny belonging in that category (they would have yesterday; they might not today), and OnLive's certainly would, but there's no question but that cloud gaming companies today exist to be acquired. There's a simple reason for that - there's no real market for their products yet. There will be; everyone knows that. But right now, the technology platforms they're espousing are running ahead of market realities by a matter of years rather than months. The world isn't ready for cloud gaming, which means that standalone firm providing a cloud gaming platform to consumers has little chance of commercial survival - but platform holders have to start preparing for the day when the world's network infrastructure catches up with the potential of the technology, so the acquisition exit is wide open.
A number of obvious questions arise from the Sony/Gaikai deal. Some of them are strategic - what will Sony do with Gaikai and its technology? How will Microsoft react? What happens to OnLive now? Other questions are purely financial in nature, most specifically, was $380 million a reasonable price and what does it mean for the valuation of Gaikai's competitors?
From a strategic standpoint, there's an expectation in some quarters that streaming technology will eventually replace client-side gaming entirely, with Sony's Gaikai acquisition already being trumpeted as proof of this "inevitable" market movement. The reality in the short- to medium-term will be much less dramatic. PlayStation 4 is not about to become a $99 thin client for cloud gaming; it will be a powerful client-side gaming console with lots of storage for digitally distributed titles and a Blu-ray drive for boxed titles. It will also, however, use Gaikai technology, not to replace the existing functionality of game consoles but to supplement it.
What Gaikai promises, rather than an alternative path forward for high-end gaming, is a variety of new opportunities at the low- and mid-range of the market. It's a fantastic option for selling access to a back catalogue, for example, and should provide Sony with many new opportunities to monetise the impressive back catalogue of PlayStation, PS2, PSP and PS3 titles. Those opportunities are not merely technical (although this should, in theory, eliminate some of the barriers to making legacy titles available on new systems), but also commercial. Subscription business models or the ability to use back catalogue access as a sweetener for other subscription products are also opened up by Gaikai - and Sony has already demonstrated an affinity for that kind of proposition with PlayStation Plus, which makes an increasingly impressive library of software available to customers for the duration of their subscription.
Gaikai is also, as its founder Dave Perry has been keen to emphasise from the outset, a great marketing tool. As game demos have grown in size, now often clocking in at multiple gigabytes, they've become less and less appealing to consumers - many of whom, especially in the United States, face tough bandwidth caps from their ISPs. Streaming offers a chance to let players try a game instantly without the inconvenience of a large download. It's a lot less appealing for a full game (the visual quality and input lag will be worse, while streaming a full game would probably ...

The PC doesn’t matter at E3… if you’re looking for razzmatazz, that is.
For an audience of online fans the show business begins on Monday when Microsoft takes to the stage, and ends on Tuesday when Nintendo finishes at the Nokia Theater.
But when the press conferences close, and you enter the LA Convention Center, it’s clear as day: the PC owns E3. And it’s delivering more innovation, driving new business and creating hot stories – hotter than, say, adding a second screen or getting Netflix on a new device. The PC is showcasing stunning, better-than-next-gen games.
PC hardware innovation was all over E3; whether it’s the latest chipsets, or new advances in streaming. Nvidia showcased both: the Tegra chipset for portable PCs, plus a demo of the gorgeous Hawken, streamed from its new cloud grid. Razer’s Blade laptop demonstrated a portable with specs that will make next-gen consoles blush.
You could have been fooled that Alienware was powering E3: so many games publishers were demoing their games on its laptops, desktops and X51 machines. Of course the PC will lead the way in hardware specs so late in the console cycle. But we’re seeing leaps in graphical complexity, even before the new hardware from Microsoft and Sony gets out of the starting blocks.
But nothing came close to John Carmack’s tech, virtual reality googles built with PalmerTech. His VR headset was the surprise story of the show, running a hacked Doom 3 to promote the BFG edition in full immersive 3D, with almost zero latency. Scoreline: SmartGlass 0: John Carmack’s amazing holodeck: 1.
Free-to-play has always felt like the underdog at E3; but in 2012, the play now, pay later games were easily the match of big boxed products. Hawken is going to create a massive crater in PC gamer’s wallets.Planetside 2 is staggering, offering FPS sci-fi warfare on a 1,000+ player scale. Wargaming.net’s confidence inWorld of Warplanes is clear: its travelling roadshow and rammed stand was an impressive statement of intent.
Subscription MMOs like Bethesda’s Elder Scrolls Online show that there’s still appetite within the industry for taking on WoW. Despite rumours, Star Wars: The Old Republic is still pushing the subscription model. Square Enix’s belief in Final Fantasy XIV is clear: an ambitious reboot aims to bring their aging MMO up to modern quality standards.
PC UNDEREXPOSED AT E3
But generally, in most E3 game of the show lists you won’t find SimCity, or ARMA III, or Planetside 2 – because the media has a blindspot when it comes to even going to see new PC games. In those game of the show lists, though, there’s a hint of the PC’s dominance: many winning titles were demonstrated on PC (but with Xbox 360 controllers) and will hit PC.
The PC is in a frustrating spot. Fighting for share of voice, with no one to fight for it, confronted with amedia focused on the yearly console war. The value chain on PC is simply not reflected by shouty game trailers, dancing men on stage and a focus on physical retail. On the PC, big media is Reddit and your conversation with a retailer doesn’t involve selling boxes into Walmart.
You can tell the problems E3’s format faces for PC by counting the absentees. Blizzard and NCSoft’s Guild Wars missed the show. Valve booked a tiny set of meeting rooms and ended up under siege. Microsoft mentioned Windows 8 in passing, but didn’t explain its vision for games on Windows 8. Or if it has one.
E3 is a great show for retailers, for distributors, and for big media. But how good is it to get the message out to PC gamers? SOE and Paradox brought some of the most popular YouTube and Twitch.TV and allowed them to livestream directly. The exposure levels wereextraordinary: views in excess of any previews the major sites will carry.
E3 isn’t about to change any time soon, especially with more new consoles on the way. But engagement on the PC is constant and social. Smart PC publishers talk to their consumers every day… so perhaps E3 doesn’t matter to them after all.

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/the-p...-missed/098855 ...

Microsoft intentionally let the Kinect controller take a backseat at E3.
With its strategy this year being about core games, entertainment services and SmartGlass, the format holder seemed happy to only demo Kinect voice functions in new blockbusters.
And that was the point, Microsoft Studios boss Phil Spencer told MCV, because the firm wants voice to be a persistent part of games.
“That was conscious,” he said of E3’s showings for voice controls in FIFA and Splinter Cell.
“Early on with Kinect we obviously wanted to challenge ourselves and say ‘what would it mean to make a Kinect-only experience?’ We achieved that with some franchises that have hit scale and are selling millions of units.
“Now what you see is Kinect just shows up. It’s going to become a part of everything we do. It’s not that every game we do won’t have a controller but simple things, like in Splinter Cell distracting characters with your voice, is just a better way to do it, it’s more immersive.
“They’ve found the sweet spot, where we ask players to do what they would naturally do and the game responds, as opposed to you having to learn the controls. Voice has to be a persistent part forever more.”
But don’t think the firm is turning its back on camera-controller experiences.
“Wreckateer wouldn’t be as fun with a controller. It’s just fun if you stand up and do that with gestures. Those experiences are very compelling and social.”

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/consc...t-at-e3/098860 ...

Apple with this October launch an iPad Mini to rival Google’s new Nexus 7, a US analyst has predicted.
The new device, Pacific Crest analyst Andy Hargreaves told CNet, will boast a 7.85 inch screen, carry 8GB of internal storage and retail for $299.
Hargreaves predicts sales of 10m in the last quarter of 2012 and 35.2m unit sales in FY 2013.
He also predicts that sales of the ‘regular’ 9.7 inch iPad would be cannibalised by around 25 per cent, with overall iPad sales growth increasing by over 25m in FY 2013 as a result of the launch.
IDC's research director of Mobile Connected Devices’s Tom Mainelli added of the rumours: "If Apple launches a sub-$300, 7-inch product into the market later this year as rumoured, we expect the company's grip on this market to become even stronger."
Google last week revealed its $199 Nexus 7 tablet, complete with seven-inch screen. It is expected to be released in July.
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/analy...october/098864
...

Our friends over at Chinavision have released a new Iphone Mini Projector, heres the release details:



Project movies from your iPhone up to 40 inches diagonally with this high performance iPhone projector.

You have hours of your favorite videos stored on your iPhone but need a more convenient way of enjoying them. You want to share them with friends but watching them on a tiny iPhone screen with weak speakers just doesn’t cut it for you. If this describes you then the E158 is just what you need.

This powerful little projector gives you a bright and clear image up to 40 inches on any flat surface. There is even a built in 1 watt speaker so you can entertain the whole group. The built in battery provides up to 120 minutes of continuous play, or use the included power supply for unlimited use.

This projector is not limited to iPhone use either. With the included A/V cables you can connect anything from portable gaming systems to portable DVD players with ease. Whether you’re camping, giving a presentation or simply traveling, this is the most convenient way to enjoy your media on the go. The best part? There is even a SD slot to access media such as: AVI, RM, RMVB, 3G, MPG, MP4 and more- everywhere you go.

At a Glance...

• Pocket-sized mini projector for iPhone4/3GS and more
• Comes with SD card slot and A/V input
• Comes with built-in stand and 1700mAh internal battery
• Built in media player for videos and music
• Ideal for business meetings and presentations
• About the same size as an iPhone
• Loud built-in speaker

Heres a screenshot of it in action:



Interested then they are retailing for £77 at Chinavision: ...

The combined sales of the used, rental, digital and social games markets was worth £798m across the UK, France and Germany, says a new NPD report.
The combined sales of used and rental games content totalled £191.5m. Meanwhile, digital sales, which included full games, add-on content, subscriptions, mobile and social network games generated an additional £612.3m in sales during Q1 2012.
“Relative to the spend in the US, we find that the consumer spend on mobile games is still developing in the three European countries we are covering, while the spend on full game and add-on content digital downloads and subscriptions is more highly developed,” said NPD group industry analyst, Anita Fazier.
The report also detailed that, compared to Q1 2011, US sales saw a five per cent decline in the physical used and rental market and a 10 per cent increase in digital sales.
“While the growth in digital format sales does not yet offset the declines in physical format sales, clearly the changes occurring within the industry are reflected in the trends we are seeing in the research.”

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/npd-e...th-798m/098866 ...

Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes is number one in the UK all-formats software chart for a second successive week.
In second place is Activision's The Amazing Spider-Man, and the strong performance of the two comic book tie-ins means 2K's Spec Ops: The Line can only debut in third place - a disappointing start for the Yager shooter, which was announced in 2009 with a planned 2011 release date.
Sega's London 2012: The Official Videogame enters the chart at number 4, though the publisher won't be too worried as it will expect sales to pick up once the Olympics begin at the end of this month.
Konami's Vita compilation Metal Gear Solid HD Collection debuts at number ten; the game will likely have done well digitally as well as at retail given its appealing £19.99 PSN price point.
01. Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes (Warner Bros)
02. The Amazing Spider-Man (Activision)
03. Spec Ops: The Line (2K Games)
04. London 2012: The Official Videogame (Sega)
05. FIFA 12 (EA)
06. Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier (Ubisoft)
07. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Bethesda)
08. Max Payne 3 (Take-Two)
09. Battlefield 3 (EA)
10. Metal Gear Solid HD Collection (Konami)

http://www.edge-online.com/news/lego...chart-top-spot ...