Microsoft pushed throughout 2023 to add generative AI capabilities to its software, even extending its new Copilot AI assistant to Windows 10 late last year. Now, those efforts to transform PCs at a software level is extending to the hardware: Microsoft is adding a dedicated Copilot key to PC keyboards, adjusting the standard Windows keyboard layout for the first time since the Windows key first appeared on its Natural Keyboard in 1994.

In a tech world still hindered by component shortages, choices have to be made. And in the world of laptops, Windows-based devices are being chosen over those running Chrome OS.

A new approach to news announcements from Microsoft

Estimates suggest that Azure is already bigger than Windows and commercial subscriptions to Office 365 productivity applications.

Google buys Neverware, a startup with Chrome OS variant that squeezes extra life out of old Windows PCs and Macs.

Now that Microsoft's Windows on ARM emulation layer can also run 64-bit x86 code, inevitably there will be questions as to how it compares with the Apple M1.

Intel, AMD, and Qualcomm will all support Microsoft Pluton

Microsoft is building a new desktop-as-a-service offering built on top of Windows Virtual Desktop that could launch as soon as 2021.

Microsoft's Windows Experience (and Surface) chief Panos Panay is providing his first general guidance about the direction Windows client will be pursuing, going forward.

Facebook on Thursday rolled out the desktop version of its Messenger app for Apple's Mac and Microsoft's Windows to make video chats available on computer screens for Facebook users.

Microsoft announced this week that Windows 10 has hit a significant milestone. The flagship operating system is now in use on 1 billion - with a "B" - active devices each month.

Recent Windows on ARM laptops were too expensive to begin with.

Protect yourself now

The Microsoft co-founder said he doesn't wish a government push for a corporate breakup on anyone.

Microsoft looks to be making Windows 10X available not just on dual-screen and foldable devices, but on clamshell laptops, as well, according to newly leaked documents.

Windows ships with a full volume encryption tool called BitLocker.

900 million devices and counting

Microsoft is warning Windows 10 users to update their operating system immediately because of two "critical" vulnerabilities.

Researchers at Bitdefender claim that "every machine" that uses an Intel processor and that runs Windows, Linux or FreeBSD is impacted by the vulnerability, which comes just months after the hugely damaging Spectre and Meltdown scares.

Samsung's Galaxy Note 10 has more Microsoft in it than any other Android phone

The new Windows Subsystem for Linux will use a real Linux kernel.

Microsoft is making a Chrome OS-like version of Windows

Under its current framework agreement with Microsoft, Israel pays more than 100 million shekels ($27 million) a year for the procurement of Office desktop software, Windows and server software for ministries and government offices.

Intel introduced new 8th Gen Intel Core vPro processors, the Intel Core processor family and Intel Xeon E-2100M processors designed for mobile workstations. Engineered to help make digital transformation real, organizations of all sizes can upgrade their fleets with these latest processors to optimize productivity with Windows 10 and help protect company assets, while also managing costs.

Microsoft said Tuesday that it has expanded its ongoing efforts to patch the Meltdown and Spectre vulnerabilities in two directions: by providing patches for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1, and archiving microcode patches for Intel's Skylake, Kaby Lake, and Coffee Lake chips. To address Meltdown and Spectre, PC owners need patches for both the operating system and the processor on their device.

We're getting a slightly clearer picture of the performance hits on PCs from the Spectre/Meltdown vulnerability patches.

A serious design flaw and security vulnerability has been discovered in Intel's CPUs that will require an update at the operating system level to fix, reports The Register. All modern computers with Intel chips from the last 10 years appear to be affected, including those running Windows, Linux, and macOS.

The Dell Visor, Dell's first headset for Microsoft's Windows Mixed Reality platform, will be available this October for $349.99 or in a bundle with two controllers for $449.99.

When you're a bad guy breaking into a network, the first problem you need to solve is, of course, getting into the remote system and running your malware on it. But once you're there, the next challenge is usually to make sure that your activity is as hard to detect as possible. Microsoft has detailed a neat technique used by a group in Southeast Asia that abuses legitimate management tools to evade firewalls and other endpoint-based network monitoring.

AMD's new Ryzen chips based on the company's Zen CPU architecture are winning some accolades for providing good performance at competitive pricing. The high-end Ryzen 7 series were the first to ship, and the midrange Ryzen 5 series chips have also hit the market.

StatCounter is out today with its data for February 2017 and highlights that Android is inching closer to passing Windows as the most popular operating system for internet usage worldwide.

Despite a turbulent past, Windows PCs with ARM are making a grand return later this year, but only with Qualcomm chips. Another big ARM chipmaker, MediaTek, is sitting out the opportunity to put its ARM-based chips in Windows PCs because the company sees it as a limited opportunity.

AMD won't be providing Windows 7 drivers for its upcoming Ryzen processors, the company said, contradicting recent reports that indicated AMD would support Microsoft's older operating system.

At its Windows Hardware Engineering (WinHEC) conference in Shenzhen, China, Microsoft said Thursday morning that it's partnered with Qualcomm to enable new, low-cost PCs. These are intended to replace Windows tablets built around Intel's Atom, a chip the company's essentially discontinued.