Microsoft formally released the DirectStorage 1.1 API to game developers on Monday, allowing them to take advantage of GPU-accelerated game asset decompression, to help minimize game loading times. DirectStorage establishes a path for GPUs to directly access storage devices on a system. With version 1.1, the API introduces a way by which the PC can use the GPU to decompress game assets. Microsoft is also promoting GDeflate, a new file compression format developed by NVIDIA, which is optimized for highly parallelized decompression techniques, making it suitable for GPUs. NVIDIA, Intel, and AMD, have each responded positively to this development, and rolled out early drivers with DirectStorage 1.1 support, which can be used by game developers or students. The three will add official DirectStorage 1.1 support to their regular driver update channels later.

DOWNLOAD: DirectStorage 1.1 early-support (not official) drivers for NVIDIA GeForce | AMD Radeon | Intel Arc

Microsoft is finding more genius ways to prevent you from creating an offline (local) account for your Windows 11 PC, with the latest Windows 11 22H2 setup completely missing the option to use a local account, forcing you to either use a Microsoft account, or create one if you lack it. The side-effect of forcing you to either use or create an online account, is that you can no longer clean-install Windows without an active Internet connection. "julianxhokaxhiu" on GitHub Gist found a simple method to bypass this. According to a new method discovered by them, you simply let Windows 11 22H2 setup present you with the screen where it asks for an e-mail address (of your Microsoft account); and enter "test@test.com" with "test" as the password. Let setup fail the login, and click on "next." That's it. Windows setup will proceed without needing an active Internet connection, and you can create a local account.Update Oct 27th: What to do if you don't have Internet, or your network adapter isn't detected by Windows Setup:

Sony Electronics Inc. today announced that it will release LinkBuds S noise canceling truly wireless headphones in a new color variation. Following the white, black, and ecru color versions that have been available since May 2022, a new stylish color, "Earth Blue," has been added to the line-up, created using recycled water bottle materials. Multi-point connection is also being brought to LinkBuds and LinkBuds S for seamless connection between devices will be available. Additionally, a new model "LinkBuds UC for Microsoft Teams" will be released with new features that are compatible with Microsoft Teams.

The comfortable LinkBuds S will be available in the new "Earth Blue" color. Parts of the body and case of LinkBuds S in Earth Blue are made from recycled water bottle materials which creates a unique, one-of-a-kind marble pattern. It was originally developed by Sony in pursuit of a new design expression with the aim of expanding the potential use of recycled materials.

Leading gaming accessories maker Turtle Beach Corporation today unveiled its all-new, eagerly anticipated Turtle Beach VelocityOne Flightstick, a universal simulation controller joystick for air and space combat simulation games. Designed for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and Windows PCs, the VelocityOne Flightstick is the gaming flight stick of the future, equipping gamers with immersive, accurate controls for navigating air and space flight sim and combat games. A total of eight axes, including contactless hall effect sensors on the main X&Y axes, provide precise control while two multifunction levers handle main engine power and adjustment of control surfaces. VelocityOne Flightstick's precise nano trim wheel allows for fine tuning of altitude, and an OLED Flight Management Display makes for easy adjustments. With 27 programmable buttons, a rapid-fire trigger, an integrated trackpad, and Bluetooth connectivity to its companion app, Turtle Beach's VelocityOne Flightstick arms gamers on Xbox and Windows PCs with a multitude of controls. VelocityOne Flightstick is available for pre-order now from www.turtlebeach.com and participating retailers for $129.99 (£119.99/€129.99) MSRP and launches November 17, 2022.

"VelocityOne Flightstick melds Turtle Beach's expertise in controller design with the latest technologies to give air and space combat sim gamers a groundbreaking, modern flight stick controller experience," said Juergen Stark, Chairman and CEO, Turtle Beach Corporation. "While our award-winning VelocityOne Flight products continue to impress the flight simulation community, there's a massive audience of gamers who love air and space flight combat, making the Flightstick perfect for games like Microsoft Flight Sim 2020, X-Plane, Elite Dangerous, War Thunder, Star Citizen, Everspace, and Star Wars flight games to name a few. However gamers want to fly - whether casually, or by the seat of their pants with their hair on fire - it'll be a better experience with VelocityOne Flightstick in their hands."

Back in March 2022, Microsoft formally debuted the DirectStorage 1.0 API that enables direct interactions between a GPU and a storage device; thereby reducing the processing load of the storage stack on the CPU and main memory. This release, however, lacked a killer feature that's available to consoles—asset decompression. With the lukewarm response from game developers to DirectStorage 1.0 for PC, Microsoft has finally updated the API, introducing the feature with DirectStorage 1.1.

With this feature, your GPU can not only directly fetch game assets from the storage device (an SSD that uses either NVMe or AHCI protocols), but also pull them in their natively-stored compressed state. These assets are then decompressed by the GPU using compute shaders, and the decompressed assets remain in the video memory. This will directly impact game loading times, as asset decompression no longer involves the CPU. Its impact on the game's framerate will be minimal, as the API mainly accelerates game loading times, not gameplay itself. Game assets are organized pieces of data such as textures, 3D model files, music, sound effects—pretty much all of the individual pieces of content that make up a 3D scene.

Today, Logitech announced Logitech Sight, an AI-powered tabletop camera that works with the front-of-room camera Rally Bar or Rally Bar Mini to intelligently capture the best perspective of meeting participants and track conversations as they move around the conference room. In today's hybrid work landscape in which 43% of remote employees report not feeling included, Logitech Sight helps solve the disparity between hybrid teams by giving remote workers an "at the table" experience when meeting with in-office colleagues.

"We're no longer all at home in equal-sized video boxes like we were during the height of the pandemic. In a hybrid work world, a mix of in-office and remote workers increases the challenge of delivering equitable experiences to everyone," said Scott Wharton, general manager of Logitech Video Collaboration. "Logitech Sight, when used with Rally Bar or Rally Bar Mini, uses AI to tackle this problem with a model that is less Silicon Valley and more Hollywood—the art of using multiple camera angles and intelligent direction to bring remote participants off the sidelines and into the room. Our customers have told us that this is one of the biggest hybrid work problems to solve to make 'return to the office' work better for teams. We believe, based on years of research and early customer feedback, that we've cracked the code on this must-win critical problem for organizations of all sizes."

Today, the Windows 11 2022 Update rolls out in 190+ countries. The last few years have brought enduring changes in the ways we live, work and learn, with the PC playing a more critical role in our daily lives. Online options that didn't previously exist for meetings, appointments, everyday tasks and access to entertainment emerged out of necessity, but remain due to convenience and efficiency. We formed new habits; and they stuck. The PC has fundamentally connected us in more emotional ways than ever before.

The rapid move to more flexible work and life also dramatically increased security threats for individuals and businesses, with 921 password attacks every second. With last year's launch of Windows 11 we gave the PC a modern refresh, making it faster and easier for you to accomplish the tasks you have relied on your PCs for most. We added foundational security built into Windows at home and at work to help keep you safe and with Windows 365, we took Windows to the cloud, empowering organizations to stream the full Windows experience on any device. More people are using Windows and spending more time on their PCs. In fact, Windows 11 is the most used and most loved version of Windows ever.

Microsoft's USD $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision-Blizzard is running into hurdles with competition regulators in both the UK and the EU, with both Brussels and London hinting at a thorough investigation into the impact the acquisition will have on competition in their respective markets. Microsoft is already a game publisher under Microsoft Games Studio, and makes at least two leading gaming platforms—the Xbox and Windows PC; whereas Activision-Blizzard own a constellation of dozens of game developers, and a mountain of IP over some of the most valuable game franchises of all time.

Britain's Competition and Markets Authority has hinted that the acquisition warrants a "second-phase investigation" since it has concerns that the deal would "result in a substantial lessening of competition within a market or markets in the United Kingdom." Over in Brussels, the EU market regulators, too, are taking a closer look at what the deal could entail for European consumers. Sony Computer Entertainment is particularly unhappy with the acquisition, and is the primary source of opposition to the deal that's invoked by regulators. Sony fears that with this acquisition, Microsoft will be in a position to deny popular game franchises such as "Call of Duty" to the PlayStation platform, and will have too much control over whether Sony can deliver an experience comparable or better than that of the Xbox.Many Thanks to DeathtoGnomes for the tip.

Today, Logitech unveiled two new product series, Brio 500 webcams and Zone Vibe headphones, designed to meet the evolving needs of hybrid workers.A recent study showed more than 89% of work-from-home adults struggle with unflattering camera angles, poor lighting conditions, and field-of-view limitations when using a built-in laptop camera.* Brio 500 webcams and Zone Vibe headphones address the challenges users face when working from home, while modernizing work and play experiences. Both make it easier for IT managers to equip their organizations' remote and hybrid workforces in an environmentally sustainable way.

"Many remote and hybrid workers are still underequipped and grappling with pre-pandemic era solutions," said Scott Wharton, general manager of Logitech Video Collaboration. "Our innovative new genre of Brio webcams and Zone Vibe headphones answer the call of modern workers who need business-grade quality, style, and affordability for work and play. Transformational features like Brio's Show Mode open up new sharing opportunities for teachers, designers, and architects to easily present physical objects, notes, and sketches remotely over video."

Microsoft is reportedly planning to merge its ARM-powered Surface Pro X brand into the main Surface Pro line starting with the upcoming Surface Pro 9. This would see the Surface Pro 9 being offered with the upcoming Microsoft SQ3 processor which is derived from the Snapdragon 8cx Gen3. Microsoft has previously announced a desktop ARM developer kit codenamed "Project Volterra" featuring the Snapdragon 8cx Gen3 SoC and a neural processing unit that should offer similar performance. The Surface Pro 9 is also expected to gain 5G connectivity when it is announced alongside updated Surface Studio, and Surface Laptop products in the coming weeks.

Considering Sony's recently announced price hike for the PS5 (in whatever soil lies outside the U.S.), the question remained whether Microsoft would follow suit. Sony's claimed reasons for the price hike, stemming from rising inflation and increased production costs, are certainly general and actual enough that they could be true for any business. Yet it seems that Microsoft is either not operating in the same global landscape as Sony - or perhaps the company is merely more willing to shoulder the additional costs so as not to increase pricing.

Speaking with Windows Central, Microsoft clarified that "We are constantly evaluating our business to offer our fans great gaming options. Our Xbox Series S suggested retail price remains at $299 (£250, €300) the Xbox Series X is $499 (£450, €500)." Which is actually a great thing, especially considering that gamers around the world are still underserved in the amount of available PS5 and Xbox consoles that have been made available to buy. The Xbox stock situation has improved faster than that of the PS5, but there are still millions of gamers who haven't been able to get their hands on one or the other - and those still waiting for a PS5 console for no fault of their own are now dealing with increased pricing on an almost 2-year-old console.

We're always looking for ways to deliver experiences that offer players more choice and value in how they discover and experience games with their community. Starting today in Colombia and Ireland, Xbox Insiders can begin to preview a plan that allows multiple people to share Game Pass Ultimate benefits.

This makes it even easier to play the best Game Pass games with friends and family across console, PC, and cloud by enabling you to add up to four people to your subscription, all with their own unique access to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate games, content, and benefits. To participate in the preview, you need to purchase the "Xbox Game Pass - Insider Preview" Game Pass plan in the Microsoft Store.

Microsoft Corp. today announced the following results for the quarter ended June 30, 2022, as compared to the corresponding period of last fiscal year:

• Revenue was $51.9 billion and increased 12% (up 16% in constant currency)
• Operating income was $20.5 billion and increased 8% (up 14% in constant currency)
• Net income was $16.7 billion and increased 2% (up 7% in constant currency)
• Diluted earnings per share was $2.23 and increased 3% (up 8% in constant currency)

"We see real opportunity to help every customer in every industry use digital technology to overcome today's challenges and emerge stronger," said Satya Nadella, chairman and chief executive officer of Microsoft. "No company is better positioned than Microsoft to help organizations deliver on their digital imperative - so they can do more with less."

Microsoft has recently published a new build for the Xbox Insider Program which improves boot times for Xbox Series X/S consoles by up to 5 seconds. The improvement only applies to consoles with Energy Saver mode enabled with the total boot time decreasing from 20s to 15s including a new boot animation that has been reduced from nine seconds down to four. The changes will not impact users who are using Standby mode as the console never fully powers off with this enabled which results in higher power consumption. Microsoft made Energy Saver the default power option for consoles earlier this year so these changes should benefit most users when they are rolled out.

The newest addition to the Razer Blade laptop family, the Blade 14, is now available in the fan-favorite colorway Quartz. The Quartz edition will be available specifically on the Blade 14 model that features the NVIDIA GeForce 3070 Ti Laptop GPU alongside the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX processor for the best balance between power and portability. Additionally, new models of both the Quartz and Black colorways. Existing Razer Blade 14 2022 models will require a software update to utilize these new features.

The updated USB C ports offer speeds up to 40 Gbps and allow for Thunderbolt functionality, meaning that the Blade 14 can be paired with external GPUs like the Razer Core X Chroma.

Microsoft is planning a speedy launch cycle for its next-generation Windows 12 operating system, with reports pointing to a 2024 release to market. This would give Windows 11 roughly 3 years as the company's latest client OS. It could use a major release like Windows 12 to significantly change the user interface, introduce support for newer types of hardware, as well as newer APIs. At this point, Windows 12 hasn't hit any of the public Insider release cycles, so there are no hints as to what direction the OS's development is headed.

Hyperscalers such as Microsoft, Google, Amazon, etc., all run their cloud divisions with a specific goal. To provide their hardware to someone else in a form called instance and have the user pay for it by the hour. However, instances are usually bound by a specific CPU and memory configuration, which you can not configure yourself. But instead, you can only choose from the few available options that are listed. For example, when selecting one virtual CPU core, you get two GB of RAM and can go as high as you want with CPU cores. However, the available RAM will also double, even though you might not need it. When renting an instance, the allocated CPU cores and memory are yours until the instance is turned off.

And it is precisely this that hyperscalers are dealing with. Many instances don't fully utilize their DRAM, making the whole data center usage inefficient. Microsoft Azure, one of the largest cloud providers, measured that 50% of all VMs never touch 50% of their rented memory. This makes memory stranded in a rented VM, making it unusable for anything else.

At Azure, we find that a major contributor to DRAM inefficiency is platform-level memory stranding. Memory stranding occurs when a server's cores are fully rented to virtual machines (VMs), but unrented memory remains. With the cores exhausted, the remaining memory is unrentable on its own, and is thus stranded. Surprisingly, we find that up to 25% of DRAM may become stranded at any given moment.

The recent semiconductor shortage has put an unprecedented amount of focus on the industry. Both commercial and government entities have come to recognize the lack of advanced node semiconductor manufacturing capabilities onshore in the United States. Intel Foundry Services (IFS) entry into the commercial foundry space is poised to change all that. As part of IFS Accelerator program, Intel recently announced their new IFS Cloud Alliance program, with Microsoft Azure as one of the inaugural members.

This is the latest chapter in a partnership between Intel and Microsoft that stretches back decades all the way back to the early days of the personal computer. In the last few years, Intel and Microsoft have collaborated on advancing semiconductor design on the cloud by working together to bring out EDA centric cloud compute such as the FX series on Azure, working with EDA vendors to enhance their software to better take advantage of the elasticity of the Azure cloud, as well as collaborating on a secure cloud-based semiconductor development platform for the US Department of Defense RAMP and RAMP-C programs.

Even as the Russo-Ukrainian war continues grassing with no end in sight, Microsoft has warned that Russia is increasing its cyberwarfare-based attacks against Ukraine and the countries that have vowed to support it against external aggressions. The Redmond-based company says that Russia is increasing the rate and complexity of its attacks not only on government agencies, but also on supporting infrastructures such as think thanks, telecommunications, energy, and defense companies. Even humanitarian groups, which have been tirelessly providing Ukraine's population with the resources needed for bare survival, have been in the sights of the former Soviet Union.

All in all, Microsoft has registered attacks 102 organizations from as many as 42 countries. Microsoft's numbers place around 60% of the attacks against NATO members - with the US being one of the favorite targets. Poland too has been particularly affected, being one of the distribution centers for provisions - and a hub for refugees to leave the embattled country. Despite that, Microsoft says only around 29% of the attacks have been successful - likely a testament to both Russia's technological difficulties and the overall reinforced networks and cybersecurity defenses of NATO countries. Even so, resources spent fighting Russia's attacks have an opportunity cost - they can't be spent elsewhere.

Microsoft has discussed upcoming additions to Xbox Cloud Gaming including mouse and keyboard support along with latency improvements during a recent developer event. The current list of Xbox titles supporting keyboard and mouse input is currently quite short but as Microsoft promotes this new feature we would expect this lineup to grow. Microsoft also announced a new Direct Capture feature in their Display Details API that can reduce latency by up to 72 ms to as low as 2 -12 ms compared to 8 - 74 ms with the current pipeline.

This new API does come with some limitations however such as only allowing a maximum resolution of 1440p and not supporting dynamic resolution or HDR yet. These limitations should have a minimal effect on developers as streams are currently limited to 720p on mobile and 1080p on other platforms. Microsoft also plans to launch several new tools soon to assist developers in adding Direct Capture support to their games.

Morgan Brown - Software Engineer @ XboxXbox has been supporting keyboard and mouse for a few years now, and we're working on adding it to streaming for PC users

Today, at the Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase, we went under the hood to share what we've been working on: The next generation of Forza Motorsport to immerse you in the spectacle of racing like you've never seen before. Captured in-game and running on Xbox Series X, we unveiled a brand-new trailer, which debuted alongside the first ever gameplay of Forza Motorsport, showcasing how Maple Valley - a beloved, fan-favorite track since the very first Motorsport game launched in 2005 - is being brought to life in stunning detail and beauty.

In addition to Maple Valley, our trailer introduced players to returning fan-favorite tracks Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps and Laguna Seca Raceway. We also revealed Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit, a South African track making its Forza Motorsport debut, and the all-new Circuit Hakone set in Japan, an original, high-speed Grand Prix circuit built to showcase the technically advanced, state of the art immersion of the new Forza Motorsport.

Samsung Electronics, today announced that Xbox is joining Samsung Gaming Hub, a new game streaming discovery platform available on 2022 Samsung Smart TVs including Neo QLED 8K, Neo QLED 4K, QLEDs and 2022 Smart Monitor Series. Samsung Gaming Hub will become the world's first Smart TV platform to include the Xbox app on Smart TVs. With this partnership, Samsung Gaming Hub users are now able to stream over 100 high quality games, through the Xbox app, including blockbuster titles like Halo Infinite and Forza Horizon 5. Moreover, they can play new games on day one of release from Xbox Game Studios and enjoy iconic franchises from Bethesda Softworks and more.

Powered by Tizen, Samsung Gaming Hub is a new game streaming discovery platform bridging hardware and software for a better player experience on 2022 Samsung Smart TVs, enabling gamers to instantly access the games they love from industry-leading content partners. In addition to the Xbox app offering hundreds of their favorite games via Xbox Game Pass, gamers can also look forward to an amazing gaming experience with minimized latency and amazing visual graphics thanks to advanced motion enhancements and game-play performance technology across Samsung's 2022 Smart TV lineup and 2022 Smart Monitor Series.

PC OEMs have revealed to market intelligence firm Trendfocus that Microsoft wants them to stop the use of hard-disk drives (HDDs, or mechanical hard-drives) as the main boot device in products powered by Windows 11, from 2023. It's not known how the company will go about enforcing this. One theory holds that it may amend the Minimum System Requirements for the operating system to specify a flash-based storage device, such as an SSD. If push comes to shove, the OS could even refuse to deploy on a machine with an HDD as the boot device.

What's also not known is how this affects SSHDs (hard drives with tiny flash-based storage media and an access-based data-juggling mechanism). Microsoft's decision should come as a boon for entry-level notebook and desktop buyers; as this segment sees OEMs use HDDs as the boot device, the most. There could be a push toward at least DRAMless QLC SSDs, or even single-chip SSDs. Regardless, it's clear that 2.5-inch HDDs are on their way out of the industry. HDD as a technology may still exist in the 3.5-inch form-factor, as they are in high demand from the data-center and surveillance markets as cold storage devices.

The new Microsoft adaptive accessories provide a highly adaptable, easy-to-use system. Each piece is designed in partnership with the disability community to empower people who may have difficulty using a traditional mouse and keyboard to create their ideal setup, increase productivity, and use their favorite apps more effectively. A traditional mouse and keyboard may pose obstacles for someone with limit mobility. These adaptive accessories can perform a variety of functions, thereby alleviating a pain point for those who find it challenging to get the most out of their PC. The Microsoft adaptive accessories have three main components that empower you to configure, 3D print, and customize your own mouse, keyboard inputs, and shortcuts in ways that work best for your specific needs.

The first component is the Microsoft Adaptive Mouse that you can customize with the Microsoft Adaptive Mouse Tail and Thumb Support, or 3D printed tails, to make a mouse that truly works for you. The Microsoft Adaptive mouse core, tail extension, and thumb support come together to create a traditional mouse that's light and portable. Additionally, the thumb support accessory easily switches sides for left or right-handedness.

In a joint effort to make the web more secure and usable for all, Apple, Google and Microsoft today announced plans to expand support for a common passwordless sign-in standard created by the FIDO Alliance and the World Wide Web Consortium. The new capability will allow websites and apps to offer consistent, secure, and easy passwordless sign-ins to consumers across devices and platforms. Password-only authentication is one of the biggest security problems on the web, and managing so many passwords is cumbersome for consumers, which often leads consumers to reuse the same ones across services. This practice can lead to costly account takeovers, data breaches, and even stolen identities. While password managers and legacy forms of two-factor authentication offer incremental improvements, there has been industry-wide collaboration to create sign-in technology that is more convenient and more secure.

The expanded standards-based capabilities will give websites and apps the ability to offer an end-to-end passwordless option. Users will sign in through the same action that they take multiple times each day to unlock their devices, such as a simple verification of their fingerprint or face, or a device PIN. This new approach protects against phishing and sign-in will be radically more secure when compared to passwords and legacy multi-factor technologies such as one-time passcodes sent over SMS.