Microsoft delivers Office for rival Apple's iPad

Microsoft unveiled a version of its popular Office software suite for iPad tablets Thursday as the company's new chief moved to expand its "Internet cloud" footprint.

Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella laid out a vision of making the company the master of programs and services offered in the cloud for whatever gadgets people prefer.


The US technology titan underscored that goal with the release of Office software tailored for iPads made by longtime rival Apple.

"Today is the first step on a journey to make this a great innovation vector for all of Microsoft," Nadella said in his first press briefing since taking the helm of the company.


"We are committed to making our applications run cross-platform."


The news comes with Microsoft's Surface having only limited impact in the fast-growing tablet market led by Apple and its iPad.

Nadella said he wants to provide full-feature versions of its widely used programs available for all types of devices as one aspect of Microsoft's overall strategy under his watch.


He was adamant that the company is committed to Windows operating systems for powering computers and promised more along those lines would be revealed at Microsoft's "build" conference for developers next week in San Francisco.

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Top apps that could get bigger

TED: Want to hear what some of the brightest minds have to say? Try TED app. It's free for iPhone, iPad & Android.

Google Maps: Whether you use iPhone or Android, it's likely that you use Google Maps. In India where Apple Maps lacks detail and doesn't offer navigation or traffic details, this is a must-have app for a smartphone user.


Whats App: Did you Whats App your friends today? Well, you are part of the Whats App generation that can't live without texting and yet doesn't spend a paisa on texting.

Instant Heart Rate: It's almost magical. And accurate enough for casual use in a gym. This app uses the fl ash and the camera in a smartphone to record blood flow in fi ngertips and calculates how fast or slow your heart is beating.

Rayman Jungle Run: Rayman, the limbless duck-like fellow from the mid-90s, appeared on smartphones this year. It stole our hearts and countless hours, as we guided him through the magical forest in his quest.


Chrome: 2012 saw the browser come to iPhone and iPad. If you use a tablet or smartphone, Chrome is a must-have. Reasons: It's slick, fast and can sync your browsing history, including open tabs, across devices.


Instagram: A fan favourite of iPhone users, Instagram hit Android this year and became one of the top apps. After all, everyone knows that the best way to share images of the fancy food they are eating is to 'instagram it'.


Pocket: There are times when we want to take a break from information overdose on tablets and smartphones. Pocket, with a beautiful and simple user interface, allows us to exactly do that by saving lengthy articles for reading them later.


Swiftkeyx: If you've got a new Android smartphone, spend some bucks on SwiftkeyX. It's astoundingly good at correcting typos and predicting your next word in a sentence.


Angry Birds Space: Angry Birds meet Star Wars. That was enough to make the game, which is full of pigs in Darth Vader mask and birds wielding light saber, one of the most popular apps of the year.

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Kindle Fire won't go big to take on iPads

Amazon next week will announce two 7-inch Kindle Fire models, one with new hardware and the other an updated version of the original, CNET has learned. That's counter to rumors it would launch a larger version.

Amazon plans to double down on the 7-inch tablet market with two new Kindle Fire models, CNET has learned.


Despite speculation that Amazon was preparing a larger 8.9 or 10-inch version, the company will only unveil a new 7-inch Kindle Fire and a slightly revamped version of the original tablet in an event scheduled for next week, according to a person who has seen the products.

The new Kindle Fire tablets are crucial in keeping Amazon competitive in the tablet business, which already faces tougher competition from Google's own Nexus 7 and the prospects of a lower-priced, smaller iPad Mini from Apple. They play into Amazon's broader strategy of playing a more significant role in the mobile consumer world. 

Amazon vaulted into the tablet market a year ago with the Kindle Fire, with $199 price tag that many felt was the most innovative aspect of the product. The attractive price tag, access to Amazon Prime content, and a featured spot on the online retailer's home page generated a lot of buzz for the product, with many believing it would end up being the No. 2 tablet player behind Apple.

Unlike other equipment makers, which generate their profit off of the hardware itself, Amazon views the Kindle Fire as another storefront -- one that consumers can take with them wherever they go. As a result, it was able to offer the tablet at such a low price. The company can make up the difference on books, DVDs, and other products that consumers end up ordering through the tablet. But with the emergence of several other low-cost tablets, including the $199 Nexus 7, its price advantage has been negated.

Rather than expand its potential market and launch a larger Kindle Fire to compete against the iPad, Amazon will stick with the two 7-inch tablets. The company said earlier this week that the original Kindle Fire was "sold out," a convenient announcement given the upcoming event next week.

But Amazon appears to be making room for a slightly upgraded version of the original Kindle Fire, which includes a new user interface. While the person didn't have any pricing information, the company will almost certainly charge a lower price for the device than the original.

The more exciting product is the new higher-end 7-inch Kindle Fire model, which will feature more hardware improvements, including a faster processor, a camera, physical volume controls, and an HDMI port. It will also have larger storage capacity, but it will still not be expandable. There is no pricing information on the device.

The Verge posted a picture of the new Kindle Fire yesterday.

It's unclear whether the two versions will have different names. CNET contacted Amazon for comment, and we'll update the story when the company responds.

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Apple investigating iPad Smart Cover with secondary display

Apple has shown interest in creating an iPad Smart Cover that would act as a secondary touchscreen display for the device, showing simple status messages or even acting as a full-fledged touch keyboard.

The details were unveiled in a new patent application published on Thursday by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and discovered by AppleInsider. The filing, entitled "Cover Attachment with Flexible Display," shows an iPad Smart Cover that would feature a MagSafe-like magnetic connection to the iPad, sharing data that would be shown on the external display.


Apple's filing presents a number of unique ideas how a touch-capable Smart Cover display could add new functionality to the iPad. In the most basic example, the cover shows an additional row of icons on the home screen, while a more complex concept shows movie playback controls at a user's fingertips on the rear of the device while in use.


Another example shows the Smart Cover acting as a touch keyboard for the iPad, a feature that would be very similar to Microsoft's "Touch Cover" keyboard for its forthcoming Windows 8 Surface tablets.


But Apple's Smart Cover display would go many steps further, and could allow even more versatile functionality. One example in the application shows a user wielding a stylus to draw an Apple on the secondary display.

In another example, the secondary display is on the outside of the iPad when the Smart Cover is closed. There, the user is presented with system-saved reminders such as daily appointments, but the touchscreen functionality would also allow users to write in new reminders without the need to open the Smart Cover.


The concept, made public this week by the USPTO, was first filed by Apple in August of 2011. It is credited to Fletcher R. Rothkopf.

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Apple's Steve Jobs was open to making smaller iPad: Executive

SAN JOSE: Steve Jobs was receptive to Apple Inc making a smaller tablet, a senior executive said in a 2011 email revealed on Friday, fanning speculation it plans to make a mini-iPad to take on cheaper gadgets from Google Inc and Amazon.

An Apple mini-version of the market-dominating 10-inch iPad could counter increasing inroads made by tablets such as the Kindle Fire and Nexus 7. But the company has never confirmed the intensifying talk of such a launch.


Vice President Eddy Cue urged then-chief operating officer Tim Cook in January 2011 to build a 7-inch tablet, according to an email from Cue that Samsung Electronics presented as evidence in a U.S. patent trial.

In an email addressed also to software chief Scott Forstall and marketing head Phil Schiller, Cue said he believed there was a market for a 7-inch tablet and that "we should do one."


Cue's brief email was introduced on Friday as part of a high-wattage trial that will play out in a San Jose courtroom this summer and is expected to transfix the technology industry.

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