July 3 - 10:55am EDT   Multiple leaks today indicate that Microsoft is set to declare Windows 7 complete in just 10 days. The software developer is now expected to produce a Release to Manufacturing (RTM) build of the operating system on July 13th and is likely timing the news for its Worldwide Partner Conference the same day in New Orleans, which would let it hand companies a finished copy. The RTM version will be what ships to PC builders and retail when the software ships on October 22nd. [full story]

July 2 - 2:15pm EDT   An investigation of Microsoft's licensing for Windows 7 has revealed today that the company plans to introduce a Family Pack bundle for the new OS when it ships in October. Kristan Kenney has found installation rights for "qualified" Family Pack owners that give owners of that special copy the option of installing it on two extra PCs without encountering activation problems. The Family Pack only appears for the Home Premium edition's license and not for Professional or Ultimate. [full story]

July 2 - 1:50pm EDT   A number of prospective buyers are upset at the absence of a cheaper upgrade to Windows 7 Ultimate, accounts suggest. While those moving to Windows 7 Home Premium or Professional may be eligible for Microsoft's discount program, a copy of Ultimate is currently only available at the full $220 price, even if a person already owns Vista Ultimate. "Vista Ultimate owners have already been ripped off once in paying for basically worthless 'Extras,'" says corporate IT worker Lindsey Mundy. "Now to rub salt in the wound, MS is leaving them out...for some reason best only known to them, when offering a reasonable upgrade price for Windows 7." [full story]

July 2 - 10:20am EDT   Archos on Thursday confirmed that it would port its Archos 9 PCtablet to the US. The ultra-mobile PC is due to arrive Stateside in the fall and is one of the first systems known to ship with Windows 7. Adding the OS both gives it reasonable performance with its 1.2GHz Atom chip as well as fuller support for the touchscreen features essential to the design. [full story]

July 1 - 9:30am EDT   Dell on Tuesday announced it will add mapping features to its Inspiron Mini 10 netbooks starting next week. The Wireless 700 add-on combines both an internal GPS card from Broadcom and Wi-Fi triangulation technology from Skyhook Wireless to find its own location, which allows it to operate both indoors and outdoors. Indoors, Wi-Fi access points are used to determine the location via their respective and mapped hardware addresses. Outdoors, or when the line of sight to a satellite is available, it reverts to the assisted GPS chipset for a more accurate, network-independent view. [full story]

June 29 - 9:50am EDT   AVerMedia on Monday announced it has released its AVerTVHD Duet dual TV tuner in North America. The Windows 7-compatible product can receive over-the-air HD Digital TV signals (ATSC) or unencrypted digital cable (ClearQAM) and can either record two programs simultaneously or else allow users to watch one program while recording another. AVerTVHD Duet sports a PCI Express interface that is faster than a traditional PCI connection. [full story]

June 26 - 11:10am EDT   Microsoft is considering offering Windows 7 on USB flash drives to make upgrades easier for systems without optical drives, a source claimed on Friday. The unnamed contact explains to CNET that the company is looking at the move to make it easier to upgrade netbooks in particular, which currently need either an external drive or else the elaborate creation of a bootable USB drive. Whether this would involve copy protection beyond a CD key isn't known. [full story]

June 25 - 3:25pm EDT   Analysts at Gartner today warned that the computer industry is on track to ship 6 percent fewer systems this year than it did in 2008. The new forecast has all companies shipping about 274 million computers versus 292 million and is blamed on both the poor world economy and the move away from desktops, which may plunge by 15.7 percent to make up 125 million of all computers sold. Gartner notes the decline is softer than feared as recently as mid-May but doesn't expect a true reversal until fall and a full recovery in 2010. [full story]

June 25 - 9:55am EDT   Microsoft this morning outlined its final pricing for Windows 7. Extending an olive branch to Windows XP owners refusing to upgrade to Vista, the company says it's allowing both these and Vista owners to pay $120 to upgrade to Windows 7 Home Premium, $200 to move to Windows 7 Professional, and $220 for Windows 7 Ultimate. Full, non-OEM copies will cost $200, $300 and $320 respectively. [full story]

June 23 - 4:35pm EDT   The SK3-series convertible netbook from Kohjinsha spotted yesterday is due for a release in its home market of Japan this Friday. The tablet netbook weighs just 1.6lbs and sports a 7-inch touchscreen with 1024x600 resolution. It is powered by a 1.33GHz Intel Atom CPU and has 1GB of RAM. It is said to support Windows 7, though its 60GB hard drive will not be preloaded with the as-yet unreleased operating system, at least initially. [full story]

June 22 - 2:50pm EDT   Kohjinsha is about to launch a significant overhaul of its convertible tablet netbook that will bring it to the forefront in terms of features, a leak shows. The SK3 will have 802.11n Wi-Fi and, to draw on the better wireless, both outward- and inward-facing cameras for video chats or photography. It's also one of the first tablet netbooks to support Windows 7; what this involves isn't known by UMPC Portal, but it may involve either tighter integration with the touch elements of the Microsoft OS or else a more finger-ready screen. [full story]

June 12 - 11:35am EDT   Netbooks using current-generation Intel Atom chips are unlikely to get an upgrade to or option for Windows 7 due to Microsoft's pricing policies, industry tipsters have said on Friday. Those using the 1.6GHz Atom N270 and 1.66GHz N280 will reportedly be kept on Windows XP as Microsoft's pricing for Windows 7 Starter Edition would push the system price too high. A Windows XP Home license is currently said to cost between $25 and $30, but Microsoft now wants between $45 and $55 for the most basic Windows 7 license; as the prices of netbooks themselves have been driven lower because of N270/N280 prices, the new policy would potentially give up sales. [full story]

June 12 - 8:45am EDT   Microsoft's decision to pull Internet Explorer from Windows 7 in Europe isn't enough to address EU antitrust complaints about the company's abuse of the market, the European Commission said Friday. The continent's officials now say that Microsoft's proposed solution would actually hurt competition as it would leave the five percent of those buying retail copies of Windows each year with few options. Instead of having an immediate choice, buyers would have to resort to obtaining a physical copy of a web browser or else some alternative. [full story]

June 11 - 4:40pm EDT   In addition to the headline-grabbing unveiling of the Windows 7-based Archos 9 tablet, Archos has also released the Archos 13 notebook, Archos 10s netbook and the Archos Digital Satchel educational PC for children on Thursday. The Archos 13 is the French company's first notebook PC, sporting a 13.3-inch, 1280x800 screen. Specs include a 10-cell battery, 120GB hard drive and 1.2GHz Intel Celeron Ultra Low Voltage CPU. Thickness is said to be just 1.08 inches, while weight is fixed at 3.3lbs. [full story]

June 11 - 2:05pm EDT   Archos at its annual press event today launched the Archos 9. Unlike its smaller devices, the company's new tablet runs a full computer operating system in the form of Windows 7. The software gives the 9 full support for touch and is followed by both a button-toggled on-screen keyboard as well as an optical trackpad for more precise control. [full story]