Microsoft relents, gives devs early access to Windows 8.1

Microsoft said Monday that it would provide early access to the release version of Windows 8 today, via its MSDN and TechNet services, reversing a previously-held stance that had angered developers.

Microsoft's decision was revealed Monday in a blog post, together with the disclosure that the Windows 8.1 bits would be accompanied by tools designed to spur app development.  The current Windows 8.1 Enterprise RTM build will be available through MSDN and TechNet for businesses "later this month". Microsoft will make the Windows 8.1, Windows 8.1 Pro, and Window Server 2012 R2 builds available, Microsoft said.

The Visual Studio 2013 Release Candidate is also live, Microsoft said, and can be downloaded from this site.

"We heard from you that our decision to not initially release Windows 8.1 or Windows Server 2012 R2 RTM bits was a big challenge for our developer partners as they’re readying new Windows 8.1 apps and for IT professionals who are preparing for Windows 8.1 deployments," Microsoft chief evangelist Steve Guggenheimer wrote. "We’ve listened, we value your partnership, and we are adjusting based on your feedback. As we refine our delivery schedules for a more rapid release cadence, we are working on the best way to support early releases to the various audiences within our ecosystem.

Microsoft had previously revealed that Windows 8.1 would roll out to consumers on the morning of Oct. 17, with a retail launch a day later. Late in August, Microsoft began shipping the final version of Windows 8.1 to OEM customers. But the release was accompanied by howls of outrage by developers who would have been forced to wait for the October launch date, the same as consumers.

In short, that would have meant almost no time for developers to ensure that their applications ran properly under Windows 8.1. Historically, developers have had weeks or months to perform their testing, a practice Microsoft's release schedule would have broken. “Most of us actually want to support Windows 8.1, a lot of us want to get apps ready for the awesome 8.1 features, but we can’t properly do that unless we get the RTM bits before the public gets the Windows 8.1 update," one developer wrote in comments attached to the original Microsoft announcement.

But Microsoft undoubtedly sat back, examined the relatively small number of Windows apps (about 115,000, according to MetroStore Scanner) and decided that they needed every one.

For those who have subscribed to the TechNet service, the Windows 8.1 bits will be one of its last hurrahs. In July, Microsoft said that it would phase out the $199 service, and replace it with a new TechNet Evaluation Center offering free evaluation software for limited periods of 90 to 180 days.  Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) subscriptions for software developers start at $699 per year.

If you're not a TechNet or MSDN subscriber, you can still try out Windows 8.1, via PCWorld's guide to installing the Windows 8.1 preview, before October rolls around. Microsoft is also releasing new Windows Server 2012 R2, System Center 2012 R2, and the latest update to Windows Intune

Reference: PCWorld

Samsung starting mass production of DDR4 Memory

Samsung announced that it has started mass producing DDR4 memories that it expects will go into enterprise servers in next-generation data centers. Memory DDR4 RAM modules in 16GB and 32GB capacities, following news that 16GB modules were being sampled back in July 2012. Samsung boasts that its modules support up to 2667Mbps transfer speeds and that the 4Gb DDR4 memory chips used by the modules lower power consumption by 30 percent relative to comparable DDR3 chips.

As we've written before, any speed increases promised by DDR4 won't make their way into servers or PCs until memory controllers begin to support them. Since today's memory controllers are integrated into the CPUs themselves, we'll need to wait for new processors before we can get new memory. Intel's Haswell-E server CPUs, due in 2014, are the company's first announced processors to support DDR4, and there's no word on whether its next-generation "Broadwell" chips for consumer PCs will support the standard. AMD has yet to announce its own plans for DDR4 support.

Samsung's modules use 4Gb (512MB) chips manufactured at 20nm, the same process being used to make its current low-power "green DDR3." Neither 16GB nor 32GB memory modules are unheard of today (especially in server memory), but 32GB modules are rare and much more expensive than their 16GB counterparts. When DDR4 memory does finally hit servers (and in a more distant future consumer PCs, tablets, and phones), it may make these larger capacities more accessible than they are today.

Upcoming Windows Phone 8 : Nokia Lumia 1520

Nokia is preparing to launch a Lumia 1520 Windows Phone 8. We got a brief look at the phone last month thanks to a leaked image. Nokia Lumia 1520 made yet another appearance. This time around, the handset emerged in a slew live photos, showcasing its hardware, and getting sized up against what appears to be a Sony Xperia Z1.

Lumia 1520 allegedly packs a giant giant 6-inch screen, 1080p display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 SoC, 2GB of RAM, 32GB of built-in memory, and a microSD card slot. There is no information on the camera of the device but could be a 20 MegaPixel, though, with its pronounced hump, it looks a lot like the snapper of the Nokia Lumia 925.

The rear of the device includes a camera with a hump that's similar to Nokia's Lumia 925, and it also matches a press render that leaked earlier this week. Microsoft's latest Windows Phone 8 update, known as General Distribution 3, can be seen running on the device with an additional column of Live Tiles on the Start Screen for 1080p resolution support.

*Nokia will be announcing its next Lumia smartphone on September 26.

Nokia Lumia 1520 - Photos (Official):

Microsoft plans to changes Office 365 targeted at SharePoint Online users

Microsoft wants to improve the way they upload and store documents in the cloud collaboration server to prevent SharePoint Online customers from feeling boxed in.

Over the coming weeks, Microsoft will roll out a set of changes to Office 365 targeted at SharePoint Online users, including increasing from 250MB to 2GB the size of files that people can upload to their individual Sky-Drive Pro repositories and to SharePoint Online team site document libraries, the company said on Thursday in a blog post.

The enhancements are in response to companies' increased use of Office 365, according to the blog post's author, Mark Kashman. "Users are uploading more documents to Sky-Drive Pro, teams are building numerous team sites to work with internal teams as well as with external customers and partners, and companies are establishing their corporate intranet sites," he wrote.

In addition to lifting the size limit on individual uploads, Microsoft has expanded the types of files that can be uploaded by adding .exe and .dll files.

Another change will be to increase from 3,000 to 10,000 the number of site collections -- groups of websites organized hierarchically -- that an Office 365 Enterprise customer can create. This improvement will not be applied to Office 365 Small Business and Midsize Business customers.

Microsoft is also prolonging the time that discarded documents remain in SharePoint Online recycle bins from 30 days to 90 days to give users more chance to recover these items. In addition, retaining multiple versions of Office 365 documents will be on by default on newly created SkyDrive Pro libraries.

Thursday's announcement comes shortly after Microsoft increased SkyDrive Pro storage from 7GB to 25GB and doubled the size of Exchange Online mailboxes to 50GB.

Microsoft is in a dogfight with Google, as Office 365 and Google Apps battle for customers large and small that are looking to move their email, calendaring, office apps and other collaboration and productivity tools to a vendor-hosted public cloud service.

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 (Review + Specs)

Samsung announced its new Galaxy Note 3 at its Unpacked 2013 event at IFA. The firm said that the Galaxy Note 3 will be released 25 September in more than 140 countries.


Samsung Galaxy Note 3 - Image (Official):

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 - Video Review (Official):

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 - Specification (Official):

Network 2.5G (GSM/ GPRS/ EDGE): 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 MHz3G (HSPA＋ 42Mbps): 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100 MHz 4G (LTE Cat 4 150/50Mbps) : up to 6 different band sets (Dependent on market) Processor LTE 2.3 GHz Quad-Core Processor 3G 1.9 GHz Octa Core Processor ( A15 1.9 GHz + A7 1.3 GHz) The selection of AP will be differed by markets. Display 5.7inch (144.3mm) Full HD Super AMOLED (1920 x 1080) OS Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean) Camera Main(Rear): 13 Mega-pixel BSI Sensor, Auto Focus camera with Smart Stabilization, LED Flash(High CRI), and Zero Shutter Lag Sub (Front): 2 Mega-pixel BSI sensor with Smart Stabilization, Full HD recording @30fps Dual Camera: Dual Shot / Dual Recording/ Dual Video Call Recording: UHD 30fps, Smooth motion (FHD 60fps), Slow motion (HD 120fps) Camera Mode: Drama Shot, Sound & Shot, Animated Photo, Eraser, Best Photo, Best Face, Beauty Face, HDR (High Dynamic Range), Panorama, Sports, Golf, Surround shot, Live effect Video Codec: H.264, MPEG-4, H.263, VC-1, WMV7, WMV8, Sorenson Spark, MP43, VP8, HEVC Recording & Playback: Full HD (1080p), UHD (*may differ by market) Audio Codec: MP3, AAC/AAC+/eAAC+, WMA, AMR-NB/WB, Vorbis, FLAC(*), WAV(*) (*) Ultra High Quality Audio (~192KHz, 24 bit) support S Pen Optimized Features Air Command: Action Memo, Scrapbook, Screen Write, S Finder, Pen Window S Note, Multi Window, new Easy Clip, Direct Pen Input Additional Features Group Play: Share Music, Share Picture, Share Video, Share Document, Play Games Story Album, S Translator Samsung Smart Scroll, Samsung Smart Pause, Air Gesture, Air View Samsung Apps, Samsung Hub, ChatON (Voice/Video Call, Share screen, 3-way calling), Samsung WatchON S Voice™ Hands Free, S Health Samsung Adapt Display, Samsung Adapt Sound Auto adjust touch sensitivity (Glove friendly) Samsung Link, Screen Mirroring Safety Assistance, Samsung Google Mobile Services Chrome, Search, Gmail, Google+, Maps, Play Books Play Movies, Play Music, Play Store, Hangouts Voice Search, YouTube, Google Settings, Play Games, Messenger Connectivity WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (HT80) GPS / GLONASS NFC, Bluetooth® v 4.0 (LE) IR LED (Remote Control), MHL 2.0 Sensor Gesture, Accelerometer, Geo-magnetic, Gyroscope, RGB Proximity, Barometer, Temperature & Humidity, Hall Sensor Memory 32/ 64 GB User memory ＋ microSD slot (up to 64GB) 3GB RAM Dimension 151.2 x 79.2 x 8.3mm, 168g Battery Standard battery, Li-ion 3,200 mAh