Yahoo Kills Messenger In Yahoo Mail Classic

Yahoo announced today in a help forum that it is shutting down Yahoo Messenger in Yahoo Mail Classic. The company writes:

At Yahoo!, we’re focused on making your daily habits more inspiring and entertaining. That means we’re constantly reviewing our products and experiences and in some cases, have to make tough decisions to no longer support a product.

After much thought, we have decided to shut down Messenger in Yahoo! Mail Classic by March 22, 2013. This means that you will no longer be able to send IMs to your contacts from Yahoo! Mail Classic.

Yahoo suggests that you upgrade to the new Yahoo Mail, where Mesenger continues to be available or use the Yahoo Messenger client.

Chromebooks Are Now Available In Six More Countries

Chromebooks are slowly making their way around the world as Google introduces more consumers to its idea of what personal computing should look like. Now consumers, schools and businesses in six more countries can take advantage of the affordable computing provided by Chromebook.

Google announced today that Chromebooks are now available for purchase in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland and The Netherlands. Consumers can go ahead and pick up a new Chromebook from Google itself or a licensed reseller today.

The Chromebooks available for purchase today include those from Acer, HP and Samsung. It’s not immediately clear if the $1,300 Chromebook Pixel will be available in these countries as well.

As for schools and businesses, Google expects that those organizations may have some questions. For schools, Google in Education will be hosting a number of Hangouts next week to address any questions or concerns schools may have with the Chromebooks for Education program:

Australia – Event on March 28th at 10:00 EST

Canada – Event on March 28th at 14:00 EDT

France – Event on March 29th at 16:00 CET

Germany – Event on March 28th at 17:00 CET

Ireland – Event on March 26th at 17:00 GMT

The Netherlands – Event on March 27th at 17:00 CET

Most of today’s news may be focused on Europe, Oceania and our neighbor up north, but Google has a small announcement for the U.S. Chromebook market as well. Starting today, Chromebooks will be available in 1,000 more Best Buy stores around the country for those who prefer to still buy computers at retail stores.

Windows Blue Name-Dropped In Leaked Microsoft Video

Windows Blue is all but confirmed to be the next version of Microsoft’s operating system after showing up in multiple job listings. If you’re still unconvinced, a leaked video may just convince you that Windows Blue is indeed real.

MSFTKitchen got its hands on a video of a demo that was shown internally during Microsoft’s annual TechFest. The team behind Fresh Paint, Microsoft’s touch friendly paint application for Windows 8, showed off their latest version for an operating system called – you guessed it – Windows Blue

The Fresh Paint demo reveals that the team will be adding watercolor in Windows Blue. The team is also adding the ability to import photos from external sources. It’s not exactly groundbreaking innovation, but it does show that Microsoft is working on updating its applications for Windows Blue. It will be interesting to see what updates Microsoft brings to other applications.

Don’t Expect The Next Windows To Actually Be Called Blue

For the past few months, it’s been rumored that the next operating system from Microsoft would be called WIndows Blue. It sounds like a code name, and Microsoft suggests that will remain the case.

In an update on the Official Microsoft Blog, Frank X. Shaw, Corporate Vice President of Corporate Communications, updated us on what the company has planned for this year. He pretty much confirmed that Windows Blue would be part of those plans even if he wasn’t exactly forthcoming:

With a remarkable foundation of products in market and a clear view of how we will evolve the company, product leaders across Microsoft are working together on plans to advance our devices and services, a set of plans referred to internally as “Blue.” – N.B. chances of products being named thusly are slim to none. And don’t start with the “so you’re telling me there’s a chance” bit.

The most interesting takeaway from this is that Shaw says “Blue” refers to “devices and services.” The services would obviously be stuff like Windows Blue for desktops and phones, but what about devices? Is Microsoft readying all new Surface tablets, or could it be the oft-rumored Surface phone?

Shaw also hinted that the rumor of Windows Blue taking the operating system into an annual release cycle is more than just fantasy:

Our customers have already experienced the ongoing rhythm of updates and innovations over the past six months including new devices, new apps and services, better performance and new capabilities. This continuous development cycle is the new normal across Microsoft – we’ll tune everyday experiences as well as introduce bold, connected and exciting new scenarios.

So, when we will start hearing more about Windows Blue? Shaw hints that developers may see some of the stuff Microsoft has planned at Build 2013, Microsoft’s annual developer conference that’s set to take place on June 26.

iPhone 5S Rumor: Launch Could Come As Early As June

Beyond his speculation of an earlier release date, Munster doesn’t really offer much in the way of new information in regards to the iPhone 5S. He regurgitates previous rumors that state the new iPhone will feature updated specs and whatever the next version of iOS brings to the table. He also suspects that Apple will incorporate NFC into the iPhone 5S.

Earlier this month, a rumor suggested that we’d be seeing the iPhone 5S launch in August. Other rumors have backed the claim up, but an analyst has come forward with speculation that we could be seeing the iPhone 5S even sooner.

In a recent investors note, Piper Jaffrayanalyst Gene Munster said that Apple will likely launch the iPhone 5S in late June. He also predicts that Apple will sell 4 million units before the end of the month. As for total iPhone sales, he expects those to be around 30 million by the end of the June quarter.

With all this talk about the iPhone 5S, it’s easy to forget that Apple may be launching a cheaper iPhone this year as well. A report from earlier this year suggested that the device would meld the designs of the iPod Touch and iPod Classic for a plastic chassis iPhone that would significantly reduce manufacturing costs. Munster predicts that we’ll be seeing this cheaper iPhone at some point in September, and that it will cost $250. Don’t expect it to see it in the U.S., though, as the phone is reportedly targeted exclusively at emerging markets like China and South America.

Outside of phones, Munster drops some new speculation about the Apple TV and the rumored iWatch. He suspects that the oft-rumored Apple TV will finally be announced later this year with an iWatch announcement coming soon after.

Like always, you should take anything analysts say with a grain of salt. They are only providing guidance to investors, and can be wrong. That being said, a June launch for the iPhone 5S would help Apple better combat the impending launch of the Galaxy S 4 and other top-tier Android handsets launching in the next few months.

Windows Blue Leak Reveals New Customization Options, Internet Explorer 11

After numerous leaks, it’s pretty much a given that Microsoft’s next OS will be Windows Blue. What we don’t know is when it will be released. A leak of an early build over the weekend suggests that we may be seeing the new OS sooner than we thought.

Some intrepid Windows explorers have installed Windows Blue already and are now just starting to find out what’s in the updated OS. It seems that Windows Blue is a small update to Windows 8 with a number of new customization options alongside a few updates to programs.

The major update, of course, is that the Start Screen, or Metro interface, has received a few needed upgrades. For starters, Live Tiles can now be resized so users can enlarge the presence of more important apps, and reduce the size of less used apps.

Multitasking in the Metro interface has also been improved with two apps now being able to share equal width on the screen. Before, one app would always take up the majority of the screen thus making the other app kind of worthless as only a small portion of it would be visible.

As for programs, Windows Blue will apparently ship with Internet Explorer 11. There’s not many details on what improvements Microsoft have made, but there’s bound to be more information released as people dig around in the new browser.
If you want to get more in-depth with Windows Blue, YouTube user sM4llziE has uploaded a walkthrough of the changes coming to Microsoft’s next OS:

Zuckerberg Leads Push to Form New Super PAC [REPORT]

According to sources quotes by the San Francisco Chronicle, Zuckerberg has already pledged as much as $20 million into the new group – and has already gotten others to pledge a few million dollars of their own

\.

Some Silicon Valley leaders, led by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, are looking to form their own SuperPAC to tackle a variety of issues in Washington.

The group looks to be leaning heavy to the right (at least in its initial leadership), according to the reports. The group will include a well-known Republican strategist, Jon Lerner, who is tied to Grover Norquist (of the no tax pledge) as well as Rob Jesmer, who previously worked with Republican Senator John Cornyn. Apparently, the whole thing was set into motion by Zuckerberg’s old Harvard roommate Joe Green (co-founder of Causes and NationBuilder).

As you may remember, Zuckerberg was among 100 tech presidents, CEOs, and chairmen who penned a letter to President Obama and Congressional leadership earlier this month asking for them to move on comprehensive immigration reform. They argued that immigrant entrepreneurs have founded thousands of companies, and that our outdated system is forcing out highly-skilled, great minds. Basically, better immigration policy is good for business.

The letter was also signed by Google Chairman Eric Schmidt, HP CEO Meg Whitman, and Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer.

This new SuperPAC won’t be an immigration-minded entity, however. Sources say that the group’s focus will be “more far-ranging and deal with an agenda of topics related to economic growth and vitality.”

Zuckerberg, who up until recently had not made huge waves in the political arena, hosted a big fundraiser for Republican Governor of New Jersey Chris Christie as his Palo Alto home.

Turn Sites into Playable Mazes with New Chrome Experiment

Since the NCAA tournament started today and we know you’re not doing any real work anyway, how about a fun little game to waste more of your time?

A new Chrome Experiment lets you turn almost any site into a giant, 3D maze that you can play.

You get to control a marble and direct it around the site maze, picking up little blue crystals for points. You have a time limit, and a limited amount of lives.

What’s really cool is that you can sync your mobile device and play with your phone as a controller. You can connect Chrome on mobile to Chrome on your PC using Android 4.0 or greater or iOS 5.

Or, you can just play using your arrow keys. Either way, it’s pretty fun. Definitely more fun than actual work.

Just visit chrome.com/maze to start playing. Shhh…we won’t tell anyone.

Android Smart Watch In The Works [Report]

In recent months the rumors have been picking up that both Google and Apple are working on smart watches. A new report from the Financial Times indicates that Google is indeed working on one, and it has its Android unit developing it.

To be clear, this is still in going to have to be filed in the rumors department, and the report is careful to make note of that, but it does say:

While Glass is being created in its X Lab, home to experimental “moonshot” projects such as the self-driving car, Google’s smart watch is being developed by its Android unit, according to a person briefed on the project, to act as an extension to the smartphones using that operating system. The project is separate from Samsung’s efforts, the source said, although there is no indication of when it might launch.

Google has been going to great lengths to build buzz for its “moonshot” Glass concept, but if the Android team is working on a smart watch, such a device getting into consumers’ hands (or on their wrists, rather) in the near future seems like a real possibility – particularly with Apple (allegedly) and Samsung getting into the space. It looks like Sundar Pichai has quite a bit on his plate.

Two months ago, reports came out that Google was “actively exploring the idea of making its own smart watch,” and “looking at ways it might be able to market” it.

Google secured a patent for such a device last fall.

A smart watch would be one more device Google could sell in a retail store should it ever decide to open a chain.

Job Listing Points To Microsoft Launching Next Windows Phone This Holiday Season

Windows Phone 8, Microsoft’s latest attempt to snag a chunk of the smartphone market, launched across the U.S. in November. That gave Windows Phone a boost during the holiday season that saw the Lumia 920selling through a few million devices. It looks like Microsoft wants to recreate that mild success with a similar launch for the next iteration.

In a job listing for a software development engineer, Microsoft hints that its next Windows Phone platform will be launching this holiday season. Here’s the relevant sentence:

This is a great time to join as we’re completing our current release are getting ready for our next release targeting the holiday of this year and we’re chartered with keeping the momentum for Windows Phone by bringing new killer devices and delightful user experiences.

Of course, Microsoft isn’t outright saying what its next Windows Phone platform is. Next release could mean an incremental update to Windows Phone 8, or it could mean the rumored Windows Blue platform that will also reportedly come to Windows Phone.

If it is Windows Blue, it might be the start of the rumored annual release cycle for all Windows products. It would make Microsoft more like pretty much every other player in the industry as it tries to keep up with the fast pace of the mobile device industry. it remains to be seen if Microsoft’s hardware partners – Samsung, Nokia and HTC – will keep up with this new strategy, especially as Samsung and HTC are now focusing on flagship Android product launches this year

Windows Blue Name-Dropped In Leaked Microsoft Video

Windows Blue is all but confirmed to be the next version of Microsoft’s operating system after showing up in multiple job listings. If you’re still unconvinced, a leaked video may just convince you that Windows Blue is indeed real.

MSFTKitchen got its hands on a video of a demo that was shown internally during Microsoft’s annual TechFest. The team behind Fresh Paint, Microsoft’s touch friendly paint application for Windows 8, showed off their latest version for an operating system called – you guessed it – Windows Blue.

The Fresh Paint demo reveals that the team will be adding watercolor in Windows Blue. The team is also adding the ability to import photos from external sources. It’s not exactly groundbreaking innovation, but it does show that Microsoft is working on updating its applications for Windows Blue. It will be interesting to see what updates Microsoft brings to other applications.

YouTube Now Serves a Billion+ Unique Users a Month

YouTube has just announced a huge milestone, one that shows just how powerful the world of online video really is.

The Google property and most popular video site on the internet has just hit a billion unique users every month.

“In the last eight years you’ve come to YouTube to watch, share and fall in love with videos from all over the world. Tens of thousands of partners have created channels that have found and built businesses for passionate, engaged audiences,” says YouTube.

“From the aspiring filmmaker in his basement and the next great pop musician, to the fans all around the world who tune in, subscribe and share their favorite videos with the planet, thank you for making YouTube what it is today. You have truly created something special.”

The only other comparable network would be Facebook, which has over a billion monthly active users.

When you think about a billion uniques in a month, the number itself is simply staggering. In just one month, about 10 Super Bowl-sized audiences watch at least one video on YouTube. If YouTube’s monthly unique audience were a country, it was be the third biggest country in the world (behind China and India).

Almost half of all people on the internet watches a video on YouTube each month.

Considering that there are about 6.9 billion people on Earth, 1 billion would represent about 14.5% of the entire world.

And the mind-blowing comparisons could go on and on. The point is simply this: YouTube is hands down one of the most ubiquitous presences in our lives.

In other YouTube-related billion view milestones, last December, viral smash “Gangnam Style” became the first video to ever break the 1 billion view milestone.

Google Keep Arrives (In An Official Capacity)

Earlier this week, Google Keep was spotted in the wild, and was quickly pulled down from view by the company. Today, Google announced the product.

“Every day we all see, hear or think of things we need to remember,” says Google software engineer Katherine Kuan. “Usually we grab a pad of sticky-notes, scribble a reminder and put it on the desk, the fridge or the relevant page of a magazine. Unfortunately, if you’re like me you probably often discover that the desk, fridge or magazine wasn’t such a clever place to leave the note after all…it’s rarely where you need it when you need it.”

“To solve this problem we’ve created Google Keep,” adds Kuan. “With Keep you can quickly jot ideas down when you think of them and even include checklists and photos to keep track of what’s important to you. Your notes are safely stored in Google Drive and synced to all your devices so you can always have them at hand.”

The app transcribes voice memos for you, and the search is “super-fast” according to the company.

It’s available in Google Play for devices running Android 4.0 and up. Notes can also be accessed, edited and created from drive.google/keep.

Schmidt: Chrome And Android To Remain Separate (But With More Overlap)

Some of us have expected that Google’s Android and Chrome operating systems would eventually converge into one operaring system. That’s mostly because Google co-founder Sergey Brin once implied that this would be the case. Since then, Google has given off other signals that this could potentially happen.

For example, we’ve recently seen indications of Android’s Google Now functionality coming to Chrome. Even more recently, Android chief Andy Rubin has stepped away from leading the operating system, as Google now has Sundar Pichai leading both Android and Chrome.

Now, former CEO and current Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt has come out and said that Android and Chrome will remain separate products, though we can expect more overlap between the two, according to a report from Reuters. He also said that rumors about him leaving Google were “completely false,” which is helpful to know.

It will be interesting to see just how much overlap does take place between Google’s dueling operating systems, particularly as it is now pushing notebooks with touchscreens (the Chromebook Pixel).

Eventually, it seems, it would make sense for the two to converge as the overlap increases, but even if it’s not going to happen in the near future, who is to say that it never will?

Android has already attained massive popularity, but Chromebook options and availability are really just starting to take off. This week, the company announced availability in six more countries.

BlackBerry 10 Now Has Over 100,000 Apps

When BlackBerry 10 was first unveiled, BlackBerry said that the devices would launch with over 70,000 apps. It’s been almost two months since then and the platform is starting to pick up the pace.

BlackBerry announced today that the BlackBerry 10 platform now has over 100,000 apps. The company says that it added 30,000 apps over the span of seven weeks, which is pretty impressive no matter how you look at it. The platform isn’t slowing down either with BlackBerry 10 adding a number of new apps to BlackBerry World over the next few weeks:

Amazon Kindle

OpenTable

The Wall Street Journal

CNN

The Daily Show Headlines

eBay

eMusic

Maxim

MLB at Bat

MTV News

Pageonce

PGA

Rdio

Skype

Soundhound

Viber

“The response to the BlackBerry 10 platform and applications has been outstanding. Customers are thrilled with the applications already available, and the catalog just keeps growing, now with more than 100,000 apps,” said Martyn Mallick, Vice President, Global Alliances at BlackBerry. “Top brands and application providers are joining us every day and are seeing the benefits of being early supporters of the new platform. We constantly hear from developers that the BlackBerry 10 tools are easy to build with and that we provide opportunities for app differentiation that they do not see on other platforms.”

So where does BlackBerry 10 stand in comparison to the competition? WIndows Phone 8 has only just recently passed the 130,000 app mark so BlackBerry 10 could very well eclipse Microsoft’s platform if the Redmond giant’s current plan to spark app development doesn’t work out.

As for Android and iOS, it’s a little unfair to compare at this point. Both platforms have around a quarter of a million apps as they’re both well established. As Windows Phone 8 and BlackBerry 10 become more established themselves, expect their respective app stores to grow.

What’s Going on with Google Now for iOS?

So, what the hell is happening with Google Now for iOS? According to conflicting reports from people on each end, it’s stuck in some sort of non-existent approval limbo.

Speaking at the Big Tent Summit in India earlier, Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt made a sort of off-handed remark about Google Now and whether we’ll be seeing it pop up for iOS in the near future.

“You’ll need to discuss that with Apple,” Schmidt said. “Apple has a policy of approving or disapproving apps that are submitted into its store, and some of them they approve and some of them they don’t.”

Not exactly crystal in its clarity, but it suggests that Google Now for iOS’ fate currently rests in the hands of Apple.

Now, Apple is denying this, Apple told that Google Now has not even been submitted to the App Store for approval. Apparently, Schmidt is misinformed, at best.

Nearly a year ago, Google Now launched at an Android-exclusive product. It may be coming to Chrome pretty soon, but it looks like its fate on iOS, if it exists, is up in the air.

Last week, a video “leaked” (or surfaced, depending on whether not not you feel it’s legitimate) showing Google Now for iOS. It looks official enough, and it led many to believe that Google Now would be heading to iPhone and iPad sooner than later.

Have a MacBook Pro with a LG-made Retina screen?

                        You’re part of a class-action suit

Have you noticed any ghosting or burn-in with your 15.6-inch MacBook Pro Retina displays? Does your Pro’s Retina display “suffer from brightness, color and image display flaws?” If so, you could benefit from a class-action suit one MacBook Pro owner filed against Apple for faulty Retina displays made by LG.

Ghosting is usually more common on Plasma televisions and e-readers. It’s when a silhouette of what was just on-screen remains behind when you turn off the screen or watch something else, and it’s been plaguing some MacBook Pro owners with Retina displays produced by LG, as you can see in this side-by-side comparison by berryloui. (Samsung is the other supplier of Retina screens for MacBook Pros, and they’ve been relatively problem-free.) Judging by the almost 370,000 views of the “MacBook Pro Retina display burn-in” thread on the Apple Support forum, it seems there are a lot of Pro owners out there who paid top dollar for what they thought would be the best screen on the market, but turned out to be highly problematic.

As reported, fellow MacBook Pro owner Beau Hodges just filed a class-action lawsuit against Apple on Wednesday, claiming that MacBook Pro customers have no way of knowing ahead of time whether they are purchasing a unit with a LG or Samsung display. In his complaint, Hodges also alleged that Apple must be aware of the difference in quality and performance between the two brands, even though, “None of Apple’s advertisements or representations discloses that it produces the computers with display screens that exhibit different levels of performance and quality.”

He is seeking unspecified damages for MacBook Pro owners with LG-made Retina screens in the United States, but it is a bit too early to start breaking out the champagne just yet. After all, we don’t know if this case will get tossed out by the judge, or what Apple’s response may be. It seems most Pro owners who have problems with their Retina displays are already able to ask for a Samsung-made screen replacement, just by walking into an Apple Store, so what would Apple do differently to settle the suit? Even if Apple issues a mass recall of MacBook Pros with LG-made displays, it would be such a hassle to have to be temporarily without your laptop while it goes in for repair that it would hardly feel like a victory for consumers. We’ll be following this case as it develops, so stay tuned!