Author: Dan Graziano

Microsoft (MSFT) on Thursday announced that it will be expanding the availability of its Surface RT tablet to six new markets in the coming weeks. The company’s Windows RT-powered slate will be shipping to Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Russia, Singapore and Taiwan in late March. Microsoft also promised to bring the Windows 8-powered Surface Pro to Australia, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, New Zealand and the United Kingdom “in the coming months.”

Continue reading…

San Francisco-based startup Leap Motion has finally announced availability of its small motion control sensor. The company revealed on Wednesday that it will ship its $80 motion tracking device to customers who placed preorders during the week of May 13th, and it will arrive at Best Buy (BBY) stores in the U.S. on May 19th. The Leap controller was supposed to debut ahead of the holidays last year. BGR had a chance to test Leap’s motion control sensor last July and we were impressed. We called the technology “a total game-changer” and said it was “one of the coolest pieces of technology we’ve seen in a while.” The Leap Motion sensor is compatible with desktops and laptops running Windows 7, Windows 8, OS X 10.7 and OS X 10.8.

While Tim Cook didn’t announce a stock split during Apple’s (AAPL) annual shareholders meeting on Wednesday, he did reveal new information about the company’s proposed spaceship-like headquarters. The offices, which were the brainchild of Apple’s late co-founder Steve Jobs, will be located a short distance from Apple’s current location in Cupertino. Cook said that the company is currently working with city officials to gain approval and plans to begin construction later this year. The facility is expected to span 2.8 million square feet and house more than 14,000 employees. Cook estimates that Apple will move into its new home by 2016.

Samsung (005930) on Tuesday announced a Wi-Fi only version of its Android-powered Galaxy Camera. The device is equipped with a 4.8-inch 720p HD display, a 1.4GHz quad-core Exynos processor and a 16.3-megapixel sensor with a 23-millimeter wide angle lens that is capable of 21x optical zoom. It also includes 1GB of RAM, 8GB of internal storage, a microSD slot and Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. While the company did not announce pricing or availability, the Wi-Fi only model is expected to cost significantly less than comparable models with 3G/4G connectivity that start at around $499. Samsung’s press release follows below.

Continue reading…

Canonical on Tuesday announced a new version of its Ubuntu Linux operating system for tablet devices. The operating system supports multiple user accounts from the home screen, including a “guest mode” option, and uses gestures to navigate around the user interface. It also features a notification center, sharing to all major social outlets, extensive multitasking support and is capable of displaying applications designed for both tablets and smartphones simultaneously, similar to the Snap View feature in Windows 8. Canonical plans to offer a developer preview of Ubuntu on February 21st for Google’s (GOOG) Nexus 7 and Nexus 10 tablets, along with the Nexus 4 and Galaxy Nexus smartphones. A video demonstration of Ubuntu follows below.

Continue reading…

Google (GOOG) doesn’t reveal sales figures for its Nexus smartphones and tablets, however that hasn’t stopped people from speculating and trying to figure out just how many devices the company has sold. Mobile industry analyst Benedict Evans crunched numbers from ASUS (2357), the manufacturer of the Nexus 7, and found that Google likely sold between 4.5 million to 4.6 million units of its flagship 7-inch tablet. The estimates were derived using overall tablet sales reported by ASUS and various statements from the company’s CEO. While sales of nearly 5 million units is respectable, it falls significantly short of the competition. Evans estimates that despite being released in November, Apple (AAPL) may have sold around 10 million iPad mini tablets and Amazon’s (AMZN) new Kindle Fire likely “outsold the Nexus 7 as well.”

Shares of Google (GOOG) gained more than 1% on Tuesday morning and soared past $800 for the first time ever. Driven by reports that the company will soon open its own retail stores in the U.S., Google’s stock price remained above $800 and closed at $806.85 on Tuesday, up 1.76% on the day. The milestone comes a little more than five years after the company’s stock initially hit $700 ahead of the economic recession in 2007.

Continue reading…

In a move that Reuters calls “an unprecedented admission of a widespread cyber-security breach,” Apple (AAPL) on Tuesday admitted that it was the victim of several attacks by the same group of Chinese hackers who previously targeted Facebook (FB) and other large companies. The hackers were able to infect a “small number” of Mac computers that belonged to Apple employees, although it said that “there was no evidence that any data left Apple.” The company plans to release a software tool later today to protect customers from the malicious software used in the attacks. Facebook revealed last Friday that it was the victim of a sophisticated attack by a group of hackers that were traced back to China.

Samsung (005930) was accused of covering up a gas leak last month that left one contract worker dead and four others injured. The company initially claimed to have the situation under control, however police have discovered that as much as 10 liters of hydrofluoric acid may have leaked into the environment endangering thousands of people who live and work in the area. The incident occurred on January 28th when one of the pipes leaked at Samsung’s main semiconductor factory in Hwaseong, a city located roughly 40 miles south of Seoul.

Continue reading…