surface

This might not be what Bill Gates originally envisioned with his "information at your fingertips" concept.

On Wednesday in Las Vegas, the Rio hotel will unveil a new Surface computer application called Flirt, that will let bar patrons "interact" with each other through video cameras and text messages. Another, called Mixologist, will let guests design their own cocktails and send drinks to friends across the room.

The applications are part of a deployment of six Surface units in the Rio's "iBar ultralounge" said Mark Bolger, senior director of marketing for Microsoft Surface. Harrah'… Read more

Microsoft's Surface computing is the kind of Buck Rogers' technology that can dazzle consumers and boost a company's "cool" factor. But in an interview last week, Robbie Bach, Microsoft's president of Entertainment & Devices Division, said he came close on multiple occasions to deep-sixing the project.

"I probably thought about killing it every year it was in development," said Bach, the man who forged a reputation as a hit maker by spearheading Microsoft's Xbox game console.

During the interview, at a Microsoft-sponsored dinner attended by a handful of reporters, Bach said that … Read more

In his waning days as a full-time employee, Bill Gates is getting a little touchy-feely.

I'm not sure whether Gates is getting more emotional, but he is definitely big on the power of new user interfaces, especially touch-screen devices. On Wednesday, he is set to show off Microsoft's latest prototype, known as TouchWall.

The device to be shown Wednesday is something like a giant Surface unit turned on its side.

TouchWall is one of several multitouch prototypes Microsoft Research has created, in addition to the tabletop unit that Microsoft's Surface group has begun to sell commercially. Among … Read more

Stoves may not immediately come to mind when you think of cool gadgets, but that perception could change when you see the Izona CookSurface from New Zealand-based Fisher & Paykel. The colors alone make it look like something out of Tron. An LED indicator tells you how hot the burner is, according to Appliancist, and beside that there are dials to control the flame. But the coolest feature isn't digital at all: The pan supports retract. This means that, when not in use, the CookSurface looks entirely flat. The result is much more surface area to do stuff like … Read more

Going to a cell phone store can be like going to the DMV. Typically you have to wait a long time to be helped, and there's seldom a place to sit while you kill time. The lack of chairs in carrier stores has always baffled me, but then a sales rep at the AT&T in Pasadena, Calif., told my mom that they removed the chairs because some klutz fell off one of them and sued. Who says baseball is the American pastime?

But seriously, buying a cell phone can be a trying experience, particularly if you're … Read more

In case you missed its one-night gig at Caesars in Vegas last month and are still dying to see it, Microsoft's "Surface" is reportedly scheduled to make a debut in four cities today.

Already delayed for months and still a pipe dream for consumers (until at least 2011), the company plans to display the much-anticipated touch-screen tabletop computer at a handful of AT&T stores in New York, Atlanta, San Antonio, and San Bruno, Calif., just south of San Francisco, according to Boy Genius Report. The exact addresses are listed here.

Unfortunately if you wanted to … Read more

It's taken a little bit longer than expected, but Microsoft has its first customer ready to put Surface computers into public use.

Perhaps most interestingly, the first one out of the gate is not one of the company's earliest partners. Instead, it is cellular carrier AT&T that is ready to make use of the touch-screen computers.

The company will use several counter-height units inside its cellular retail stores. The company is beginning with five stores on April 17: two in New York, one in San Francisco, one in San Antonio, and one in Atlanta. Each store … Read more

In targeting casinos, restaurants, and hotels, Microsoft knows it is barely scratching the surface of the demand for its tabletop computer.

The company is convinced there is a mass market for an interactive touch-screen computer, but perhaps not in its current $10,000 version. CEO Steve Ballmer told financial analysts last month that Microsoft had a plan to speed up the arrival of a consumer version of the tabletop computer Surface.

Originally, Microsoft had said it could take up to five years for a home version of Surface, but Microsoft is now aiming to have that out in three years' … Read more

SAN DIEGO, Calif.--The citizens of Serrana, Brazil, are not waiting around for Intel or Nicholas Negroponte to deliver low-cost PCs to their school children. Instead, they're taking the matter into their own hands.

Starting at the end of this month, the Serrana Digital Desk project will get underway when 200 surface PCs that transform into desktop PCs will be placed in classrooms in the city of 45,000. It's a trial run of a new, very local program that is intended to give kids computers in the classroom while involving as many community members as possible in … Read more