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Sea of Thieves fans: Help determine the fate of Golden Sands. The next Sea of Thieves Adventure, "Lost Sands," is now live. From now until June 9, side with Merrick and secure vital supplies to help restore the stricken Outpost, or ally with the Servant of the Flame to ensure it remains in ruins. "Whichever path you choose, expect Golden Sands to be a lively destination for the duration of ‘Lost Sands’ as both sides seek to exert their will upon the waves," writes Chris "Brawler" Allcock on SeaOfThieves.com. Head over to SeaOfThieves.com to watch the trailer and find out more. Continue reading...

Summer is coming to an end, and with that the start of a brand-new school year. Though summer will always host great memories, the start of a new school year brings that crisp morning air, brand-new, freshly sharpened pencils, sweaters and pumpkin spice everything. It’s the time of year that is filled with possibilities as we embark on new opportunities and challenges. Microsoft Edge is here to help make this new school year your best yet. Whether you’re a parent with kids headed back to school, or a student going into a brand-new year, today we’re excited to share how our smart browser features can power your creativity, productivity, organization and learning. All desig…

Forza Horizon 5 Series 7 invites you to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, the annual celebration of Mexico’s culture, cuisine and heritage. The city of Guanajuato in the game is ready for the festivities with new, colorful decorations. Players can also celebrate by unlocking new clothing items inspired by Mexico’s murals and the region of Puebla. Meanwhile, the Horizon Tour evolves with new championships and Ferrari takes over the Festival Playlist. The Forza Horizon 5 Series 7 Update is available to download now on Windows, Xbox and Steam. Head over to ForzaMotorsport.net for release notes, details of the Horizon Tour and more. Continue reading...

Continued U.S. leadership in emerging technology requires a sustainable supply of advanced chips to power innovation from artificial intelligence to quantum computing. The CHIPS and Science Act, passed last year, aims to boost domestic research and manufacturing capacity for critical microelectronics. To support this ambitious effort, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) launched the Rapid Assured Microelectronics Prototypes (RAMP) using Advanced Commercial Capabilities program, an effort to accelerate the secure, sustainable development of microelectronics for defense technologies. As part of this effort, three new state-of-the-art chips were developed using the RAMP …

Beginning today all players in 40 more countries – from Albania to Uraguay – can join the PC Game Pass community. "To celebrate the launch, new members will receive a special welcome offer for their first three months for a limited time," writes Jerret West, CVP Game Marketing, Xbox, in a post on Xbox Wire. "Those who were a part of our Insider Program will receive two free months of PC Game Pass membership, with no further action needed, as a thank you for helping us shape the experience and being one of the first PC Game Pass members in your country." Head over to Xbox Wire to see a list of the countries being added, find out about local pricing and learn how to begin e…

On-the-go professionals looking for the right PC for their hybrid work lives now have another choice: the Acer Swift Edge, a lightweight 16-inch OLED Windows 11 PC laptop powered by AMD Ryzen PRO 6000 series and AMD Ryzen 6000 processors and up to eight high performance Zen 3+ cores built on advanced 6 nm process technology. For IT administrators, AMD PRO technologies deliver multilayered security features to help keep threats at bay, and comprehensive manageability options that scale for long-term stability and reliability. The Acer Swift Edge comes with the Microsoft Pluton, a security processor designed by Microsoft that hardens new Windows 11 PCs with additional prote…

Twenty pieces of new Realms Plus content are coming this month for Minecraft gamers. "In Ninja Mash-up by Everbloom Games, you’ll get to fly over rooftops using your grappling hook, fight waves of mobs in the dojo and even test your skills against the clock," writes Sophie Austin on Minecraft.net. "Because this is a mash-up map, you’ll even get a Japanese-style texture pack you can use in your own worlds! So even when you return to your llama farm, you can still feel like every bit the epic ninja you are." Head over to Minecraft.net to find out about all the Realms content coming in February. To get it you just need to subscribe to Realms Plus via your Minecrafting device…

The long-awaited Microsoft Flight Simulator – Top Gun: Maverick Expansion is now available. “Develop the skills required and navigate the complexities encountered by actual Top Gun pilots in authentic locations including the most challenging landing – on an aircraft carrier,” writes Jorg Neumann, head of Microsoft Flight Simulator, in a post on Xbox Wire. “This offering will push your piloting abilities to the limits — and beyond.” Head over to Xbox Wire to watch the video and see what all is included in the expansion, which is available for PC and Xbox Series X|S with Xbox Game Pass, PC Game Pass, Windows and Steam, and on Xbox One and supported lower-spec PCs, mobile ph…

Knights of the Mediterranean – the latest downloadable content for Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition – is now available in the Microsoft Store and Steam. Control the Mediterranean with two new civilizations: the Italians and the Maltese, plus enjoy a new batch of maps and engaging game modes. And from now through June 27, complete daily in-game tasks within the time limit to unlock exclusive rewards. Head over to AgeOfEmpires.com for a sampling of the 31 challenges and rewards. Continue reading...

From Oct. 4 to Nov. 9, you can trick your friends with printable masks, treat yourself with Marketplace adventures, or test your courage with Minecraft Dungeons seasonal trials as the Minecraft team celebrates all things spooky, all at once. "There’s something for everyone this Spookyfest, whether you want to dive into the unknown, sword in hand, or get cozy near the fire," writes Sophie Austin on Minecraft.net. Read all the scary details on Minecraft.net. Continue reading...

Chief financial officer (CFO) and finance teams are typically known for their fiscal duties – accounting, expenses and financial planning – that help ensure an organization is compliant and runs smoothly for long-term financial health. Over the past few years, the role of finance teams has drastically evolved to include driving innovation. During the pandemic, CFO guidance was critical to keep organizations running – by closely monitoring revenue and expenses and at times, making tough business decisions. Now, these teams are being asked to expand their role to become futurists and play a leading role in transformation. To learn more about this evolution, Microsoft condu…

Lenovo has unveiled a new generation of Windows 11 PCs to help people navigate the new normal of hybrid life. The seventh generation of Yoga devices are designed to help connect, consume, create and collaborate from home, school, the office and beyond. Lenovo’s Yoga 2-in-1 convertible laptops were pioneers in opening possibilities for users to flip and fold from work to play. Since then, Yoga has expanded to multiple form factors, including ultra-slim clamshell laptops and desktop computers. The Yoga Slim 7i Pro X and Yoga Slim 7 Pro X (known as Lenovo Slim 7i Pro X and Lenovo Slim 7 Pro X in the U.S.), enable creation anywhere, anytime. [caption id=attachment_177168" ali…

The recent announcement by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) selecting Microsoft among the cloud service providers to support its Joint Warfighting Cloud Capability (JWCC) contract is a significant milestone in the department’s goal to establish an enterprise-level tactical cloud. With the announcement, Microsoft will help deliver mission-critical 21st century technology to our nation’s service members and strengthen U.S. national security. The selection is another clear demonstration of the trust the DoD places in Microsoft and our technologies. Our work on JWCC will build on the success of our industry-leading cloud capabilities to support national security missio…

Beneath the buzz, the metaverse is arriving in both predictable and unexpected ways. Some new experiences using headsets and mixed reality will be in your face – quite literally – but other implications will be harder to spot. As with all new categories, we’ll see intended and unintended innovations and experiences, and the security stakes will be higher than we imagine at first. There is an inherent social engineering advantage with the novelty of any new technology. In the metaverse, fraud and phishing attacks targeting your identity could come from a familiar face – literally – like an avatar who impersonates your coworker, instead of a misleading domain name or …

Razer Blade 16 and Blade 18 made their debut at CES earlier this year and now the Windows 11 gaming laptops are available in new Mercury Editions – a design featuring T6 grade aluminum and anodized for a durable finish. They’re NVIDIA Studio certified, designed to accelerate creative workflows. The Blades pair seamlessly with creative applications for fast and smooth creation. [caption id=attachment_178335" align="alignnone" width="1024]https://blogs.windows.com/wp-content/uploads/prod/sites/2/2023/05/Blade-18-Mercury-2023-Render-1-1024x575.jpg Blade 18 Mercury Edition[/caption] Consider the Blade 18 Mercury Edition – available in two GPU configurations (the NVIDIA GeForc…

At its core, manufacturing is about innovation, as it builds economic capacity, bolsters workforces, and generates opportunity and growth. Today we’re seeing the industry undergo a once-in-a-century transformation driven by changing consumer demands, labor challenges, supply chain disruptions, technological advancements and sustainability demands. We’ve come a long way since the industrial revolution, and the industry has evolved into a much more complex place. To explore these challenges and opportunities, we’ll join global leaders and colleagues at the world’s biggest trade show for industrial technology, Hannover Messe. As we enter this week of innovation, we’re dis…

Get your first look at Redfall gameplay, debuted at the June 12 Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase, and get ready to “Bite Back” when the game launches in 2023. “Redfall has everything you could want from a cooperative, story-driven FPS experience, plus everything Arkane fans have come to expect from the studio,” writes Anne Lewis, Sr. Content Manager, Bethesda Softworks, in a post on Xbox Wire. “An open world packed with mystery, a diverse roster of heroes to choose from, strategic combat that will keep you on your toes, painstakingly crafted environments, a rich narrative driving you through the world, a wide array of weapons… and vampires. A lot of vampires.” Visit Xbo…

Acer’s latest lineup includes innovative laptops for gaming, work and all aspects of modern life through new and refreshed Windows 11 PCs across the Predator, Swift, Spin and TravelMate series. The Predator Helios 300 SpatialLabs Edition gaming laptop brings glasses-free, stereoscopic 3D to the world of gaming. Through the new SpatialLabs TrueGame application, gamers can play 50 supported games at launch in a 3D mode on the device. Rooms will appear more spacious, and objects genuinely layered, in real-time, without the need for special glasses. A combination of an eye-tracking solution, a stereoscopic 3D display and real-time rendering technologies creates the SpatialLab…

Sea of Thieves fans take note: With the new arrival of Season Seven, it’s time to truly become a captain. “At last you can own and name your ships, decorating them with hand-picked fittings and souvenirs of your seabound exploits, then working towards milestones to unlock more,” according to a post on SeaOfThieves.com. “Enjoy ongoing story-driven adventures and new seasonal rewards too.” Head over to SeaOfThieves.com to watch the trailer and find out about the new suite of features to help fulfill the captain fantasy long awaited by sailors. Continue reading...

Gaming, streaming and recording get a boost with the latest addition to the Intel family: the 13th Gen Intel Core desktop processors, led by the 13th Gen Intel Core i9-13900K. This branch of the family includes six new unlocked desktop processors with up to 24 cores, 32 threads and clock speeds up to 5.8 GHz. You’ll start seeing these processors on Windows 11 PCs, such as those from Alienware and Acer. Building on the Intel 7 process and x86 performance hybrid architecture introduced in the 12th Gen Intel Core lineup, these desktop processors enable better system performance than ever – even through the most demanding of multitasking workloads. This includes up to 15% bet…

At Microsoft, we aim to create and maintain a healthy ecosystem where our partners and customers can thrive. Startups play a pivotal role in a thriving ecosystem given their outsized ability to push the entire ecosystem forward. Despite being vital to innovation and growth, by some estimates, over 90% of startups will go out of business in their first year. With this in mind, we set out to better understand what startups need to be successful, especially when just getting started. Based on real-world feedback from thousands of entrepreneurs from around the world, across a range of backgrounds, we are excited to unveil, Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub. Open to anyon…

When pandemic lockdowns more than two years ago required Swetha Machanavajhala to work from home, she almost immediately felt the impact on her ability to work efficiently. Born deaf, the product manager on the Azure Cognitive Service Translator team reads lips and doesn’t use sign language, so when virtual Microsoft Teams meetings became the norm for working together from home, she couldn’t follow the flow of conversation when people didn’t appear on camera when they spoke. Since 2013, when she joined Microsoft, she’d been able to attend meetings and presentations in-person, reading the lips of speakers. She also used the Microsoft Translator app and had access to the se…

Today, Microsoft is announcing the acquisition of Fungible Inc., a provider of composable infrastructure aimed at accelerating networking and storage performance in datacenters with high-efficiency, low-power data processing units (DPUs). Fungible’s technologies help enable high-performance, scalable, disaggregated, scaled-out datacenter infrastructure with reliability and security. The Fungible team will join Microsoft’s datacenter infrastructure engineering teams and will focus on delivering multiple DPU solutions, network innovation and hardware systems advancements. Today’s announcement further signals Microsoft’s commitment to long-term differentiated invest…

Two Point Hospital players can now check out a new expansion called “Speedy Recovery,” which is for PC on Steam and the Microsoft Store. In this DLC, players will experience a new game mode, as they take command of a fleet of innovative ambulances, designed for every and any emergency. As incidents pop up via a new Dispatch button, players must use their ever-growing and improving ambulance squad to deliver patients to hospitals all over Two Point County, while also curing their ailments. Race past new and familiar Two Point locations to pick up sick patients, from the cold Pointy Mountains to the tropical islands of Pebberley Island. Go the extra mile and dispatch shi…

Prepare for the new year with resources, trainings and deals from Microsoft Store For many, the holidays bring quality time with loved ones, delicious seasonal treats and nostalgic traditions. The backbone of many of these festivities are a vibrant network of small businesses, such as local bakeries, florists and retailers, that make up 89% of all businesses in the U.S.* As small businesses work to bring festive magic to life for their communities, this holiday season may be especially daunting due to inflation, supply chain shortages, staffing concerns and other challenges. To ease some of the seasonal pressure, we compiled tips, deals and other resources to help sm…