Microsoft Monday is a weekly column that focuses on updates in regards
to the Redmond giant. This week, Microsoft Monday includes details about
the new Surface Pro, the new Surface Pen, the Bing Business Bot
Service, the Windows 10 China Government Edition, the Whiteboard app for
Windows 10, Bill Gates’ summer reading list, the Xbox Game Pass
subscription service, the Microsoft Mixer live-streaming gaming service
and much more!
Microsoft Announces A New Surface Pro
Last week, Microsoft announced the fifth-generation detachable
PC known as the Surface Pro at a hardware event in Shanghai, China. This
device is highly anticipated because it has been over sixteen months
since Microsoft launched a new Surface. Microsoft is not
referring to the Surface Pro as a "tablet" anymore as the tagline for
the device is now: “the most versatile laptop.”
The new Surface Pro has a bright 12.3-inch PixelSense display. And this is Microsoft’s
lightest Surface Pro ever as it starts at 1.7 pounds and it is 8.5mm
thin. Plus the new Surface Pro has a “next generation hinge” that can
make the device nearly flat as part of a "Studio Mode" feature.
And the new Surface Pro has the Intel 7th Generation Core
processor known as Kaby Lake and Intel Iris Plus graphics inside. This
helps power the Pixel display and 2736 x 1824 resolution (267 ppi) --
giving it a 3:2 aspect ratio. The new Surface Pro also has improved
battery life and graphics performance. Plus there are improved thermals
to keep the processor cool without any fans. In terms of sound, the new
Surface Pro has Omnisonic speakers with Dolby Audio Premium support.
Microsoft said the new Surface Pro has a battery life of 13.5
hours based on local video playback. Plus the Surface Pro has a built-in
Qualcomm 4G LTE modem so you can connect to the Internet without a
Wi-Fi connection. The front-facing camera on the new Surface Pro is
1080p, which means video calls and selfies will be sharper than previous
models.
The new Surface Pro will be available in multiple variations.
You can buy it with 128GB, 256GB or 512GB of internal storage. And it
will have 4GB, 8GB or 16GB RAM options. The new Surface Pro is now
available for pre-order with a starting price of $799. And it will go on
sale on June 15th in these markets: Australia, Austria, Belgium,
Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland,
Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway,
Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, U.K., and U.S.
New Surface Pen
Microsoft also launched a new generation of the Surface Pen.
The sensitivity of the Surface Pen has been increased to 4,096 pressure
levels and tilt functionality has been added. And Microsoft also added a
deeper system tilt of up to 165 degrees, which will make using
Microsoft Ink easier. Plus the Surface Pen has only 21 milliseconds of
latency. The Surface Pen is available in the following colors: Platinum,
Burgundy, Cobalt Blue and Black.
The Surface Pen also has a PixelSense Accelerator, which is
custom silicon that enhances the colors on the 12.3-inch PixelSense
display on the Surface Pro. In comparison to the previous Surface Pen,
the new version is over two times more accurate and four times more
pressure sensitive. The new Surface Pen will also be backward compatible
with earlier Surface devices. "We did a huge step with the pen, a
massive step," said Surface co-inventor Stevie Bathiche via The Verge. "I’m so pumped about this." Microsoft also told The Verge that the new Surface Pen is also "twice as responsive as the Apple Pencil."
Unfortunately, the Surface Pen does not come included with the Surface Pro. The new Surface Pen is sold separately for $99.
New Type Covers With Alcantara Fabric
Microsoft also announced new Type Covers, which are built with
Alcantara just like what is used on the Surface Laptop. The new
platinum, burgundy and cobalt blue Surface Pro Type Covers will be sold
separately for $159. And a regular black Type Cover without the
Alcantara fabric will be available for $129.
Microsoft Flow For OneDrive For Business Has Been Released
About a year ago, Microsoft released Flow -- which is a tool
that automates business workflows just like IFTTT. Microsoft Flow
launched in November as part of Office 365 followed by iOS, Android,
Windows Phone and Windows 10 Mobile versions. Microsoft Flow for
OneDrive For Business has officially launched.
Users will now be able to launch Flow directly from OneDrive
for First Release customers. “Microsoft Flow allows you to create
automated workflows between your favorite apps and services to get
notifications, synchronize files, collect data and more. You can turn
repetitive tasks into multistep workflows. You can even make decisions
in your workflow, like running an action only when specific conditions
are met,” said Microsoft in a blog post.
Now Office 365 admins will be able to sign into Flow without
requiring additional licenses and rules can be set up to determine how
data can flow between OneDrive, Yammer, Outlook and many other services.
Microsoft Flow integration will be available for customers in the First
Release program over the month of May.
Microsoft Announces The Bing Business Bot Service
Microsoft has announced a new service that helps businesses
quickly create a FAQ bot that customers can chat with through Bing
search results. The Bing Business Bot
asks business owners some questions about their business like the
hours, handicap accessibility information and reservation policies. From
there, the Bing Business Bot creates a bot that is based on the
answers. And if the bot does not know how to answer the question, then
it will ask the restaurant owner.
Microsoft Releases Windows 10 China Government Edition
At a hardware event in Shanghai last week, Microsoft announced
the Windows 10 China Government Edition. This version of Windows 10 has a
number of concessions, specifically government officials can use their
own encryption, control updates, remove certain apps and manage the
telemetry. Microsoft Windows was originally banned by the Chinese
government in 2014 following the NSA revelations.
Microsoft spent about two years working with the Chinese
government to prepare its rollout. The custom version of Windows 10 will
be used by the Chinese government and state-owned entities. And Lenovo
will be one of the first OEMs to build hardware with Windows 10 China
Government Edition. The three government customers that are
the first to pilot Windows 10 China Government Edition is the national
level with China Customs, the regional level with the City of Shanghai
(EITC) and the state-owned enterprise with Westone Information
Technology.
“The Windows 10 China Government Edition is based on Windows 10
Enterprise Edition, which already includes many of the security,
identity, deployment, and manageability features governments and
enterprises need. The China Government Edition will use these
manageability features to remove features that are not needed by Chinese
government employees like OneDrive, to manage all telemetry and
updates, and to enable the government to use its own encryption
algorithms within its computer systems,” said Microsoft’s EVP of the
Windows and Devices Group Terry Myerson in a blog post.
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