CES 2009

Episode 889

Best of CES Awards
http://ces.cnet.com/best-of-ces/

Web site problems as Windows 7 beta hits
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-10138449-56.html
http://ces.cnet.com/8301-19167_1-10139408-100.html
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/dd353205.aspx

Apple at CES? Unlikely
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-10138499-37.html

Chrome gets Mac deadline, extensions foundation
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-10138388-2.html

Nvidia 480-Core graphics card approaches 2 Teraflops
http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09%2F01%2F09%2F2022231

Palm Pre Touchstone eyes-on
http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/10/palm-pre-touchstone-eyes-on/

Testing CrystalTalk
http://ces.cnet.com/8301-19167_1-10138219-100.html

Dell Adamo
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10138468-1.html
http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/09/dell-adamo-hands-on/

Setting ioSafe’s Solo on fire: The hottest blog ever!
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10138593-1.html

Trojan found at torrent sites insists “downloading is wrong”
http://entertainment.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09%2F01%2F10%2F0336243

The Air Force’s rules of engagement for blogging
http://www.boingboing.net/2009/01/09/the-air-forces-rules.html

E-mail
Hey JaMoTo +1.

I was listening to episode 888 and I was wondering why everyone is drooling over the Palm Pre. Didn’t we do the same thing when the Blackberry Storm was announced? We gave it so much praise until the time came for release. It was a failure. Are we certain this will be Palm’s savior or will the hype rise above what will really happen? Will the Pre truly be the device that brings Palm back or will it be lost and forgotten just as the Storm was?

Chris from Florida

**********

Hey BOL team just wanted to pop in let you guys know orange julius has a brand spankin new drink called the blackberry storm haha included is a pic i took of the ad and a link to the nutrition facts on the 2nd page of the pdf 3rd flavor down of the blackberry storm. I wonder which is slower trying to use the BB storm’s accelerometer feature or trying to get the drink through a straw? haha keep up the good work love the show! Jason Trambley
http://www.orangejulius.com/downloads/OJNutritionalFacts.pdf
–
Jason T

**********

Listening to episode 886. You guys were alking about the sling player
app for iPhone and whether Apple might accept it into the App Store
because it’ll steam video over 3g. I recently started using Orb Live
from the app store. This app works with the Orb client on your pc with
tv tuner at home and you can then stream your tv and any other media
to the iPhone app. Works well. Video quality is good enough over 3g.
So, there’s precedent for it. Hope I’m not jinxing anything by
bringing attention to Orb. Love the show!

Peter on the train in Chicago

**********

Wow, it might not take long for Molly’s prediction to go true:

Seattle P-I up for sale; could go online-only
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008609677_webpi09m.html

I agree with Molly that her prediction is bound to happen. I didn’t think it was going to happen to my local paper though! J

– Jiunwei

Microsoft's message as of 4:50 PM PST.

(Credit: CNET)

Microsoft has been in the software game long enough to know that when you're announcing a release as big as an operating system to millions of itchy-fingered techies, you release it when you say you will and you have the foresight to get your servers in a row.

Yet, the general release of the much-anticipated Windows 7 beta is overdue by hours, Microsoft having first posted the files late, and then pulled them when servers buckled under the traffic. What's left now is a sort-of apologetic, but mostly noncommittal notice that there's no estimated arrival time for the download links, and a lot of angry people disappointed in Redmond once again.

A Microsoft PR representative I got hold of on the Consumer Electronics Show floor had no additional insight.

Lifehacker posted direct download links earlier Friday for your 32- and 64-bit PCs, with a few cursory instructions for installing the ISO files. We'll also host the Windows 7 beta files when we get them, on CNET Download.com.

LAS VEGAS--With my time at the Consumer Electronics Show having drawn to a close, here's a roundup of my observations from the show:

Sign that the economy used to be good
My Sin City accommodations included dual 42-inch flat screen TVs, plus another small LCD screen in the bathroom.

Sign that the economy has tanked
The only reason that spot was for rent (and could be had for as little as $159 a night) is that it was a condo that didn't sell.

Sign No. 2 that the economy has tanked
There were $5 blackjack tables at the Palms in the evening. (Last year it was hard to find a table with less than a $20 minimum.)

Weirdest mix of Silicon Valley and Las Vegas I spotted this year
The giant eBay slot machine I saw as I wound my way through the Venetian casino.

Less swag, less sushi
Two other visible indicators that things aren't so hot: Both swag and sushi were far less present at the show, notes colleague Rafe Needleman.

Ballmer talks to CNET
It took a bit to get the video up (there's a lot of video being shot and streamed over at the CNET stage). But it's worth a look to hear Steve Ballmer talking about the economy and Windows 7.

Other random CES observances? Feel free to send them my way...

Ford Sync 3.0 offers turn-by-turn directions.

(Credit: Microsoft)

We've been pretty impressed by Sync's Bluetooth phone and MP3 player connectivity, but Version 3.0 of Sync gains a whole new dimension with an array of connected services that includes navigation, traffic conditions, business search, weather, and other information sources. To use these services, you hit the voice command button in a Sync-equipped car and request services. The system uses your Bluetooth paired phone to connect with a server where you can request, by voice, directions, traffic conditions, a local business search, and other services.

The really innovative aspect of this system is that Ford can easily add new services, because they are loaded into a centralized server. For new services, car owners may need to update their version of Sync, but that can be as simple as downloading an update file from Ford's SyncMyRide Web site, putting it on a USB drive, and hooking it up to the car. However, this new version of Sync requires a GPS chip, which wasn't installed with earlier versions of Sync, so there won't be backward compatibility.

Sync can use this simple monochrome display for a variety of services.

(Credit: Microsoft)

The system doesn't require an LCD screen or factory navigation system, either. When you request directions to an address, Sync uses the GPS chip to send your location to the server, which computes your turn-by-turn directions and sends them to the car. If you get off the route, you can ask the system to update the directions, and it will send down a new set based on your current location. Likewise, with business search, you can request a business type by saying florist, or hardware, and it will find the nearest business of that type and send it to the car. With the traffic conditions feature, the system will advise you of any bad traffic on your route, and then suggest an alternative.

Ford will make this new version of Sync available on almost all 2010 Ford, Mercury, and Lincoln models. There is no subscription fee for the first three years of ownership. Ford will determine any future fees at a later date.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer delivers the CES keynote speech Wednesday.

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

LAS VEGAS--Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer arrived at the Consumer Electronics Show with his usual optimism, but he also brings a clear sense of reality: The tech industry is in for some rough times.

"The fact of the matter is, this is not a downturn, this is a bit of a reset. Those are quite different and we're trying to really suss through what we think that means for us," Ballmer said in an interview here with CNET News Thursday, a day after delivering the keynote address at the conference.

Ballmer talked about what the "reset" will mean for Microsoft, as well as lessons learned from Vista and Microsoft's move to put Office on the Web. When it comes to what worries him most, most days it's still Google, although he concedes he has had to spend more time recently on economic issues and making sure Microsoft makes the adjustments it needs to. He wouldn't go into detail on what (and who) Microsoft plans to cut, but it is clear that some changes are coming.

The following is an edited version of that interview:

CNET News: Obviously, Microsoft didn't necessarily get everything it might have hoped for in terms of the critical response for Vista. What are you guys planning to do differently with Windows 7?

Ballmer: Well, I think we made some choices in Vista to improve security at the kind of expense, if you will, of compatibility. With Windows 7, we're able to build compatibly off of Vista and really sort of just tune, if you will, the user interface, the performance, and at the end of the day, it'll be what the users think of the product that we're building, and we'll start getting beta feedback this week.

Q: How hard are you pushing the team to get Windows 7 out this year?

Ballmer: I'm not pushing the team hard, the team is pushing itself. They set some goals and objectives and of course we'll ship the product when it's--as I said last night--both right and ready and when we know when that is, we'll share that.

QR Code, Datamatrix code, Microsoft tag

(Credit: Started Something)

According to Microsoft, Tags create unlimited possibilities for making interactive communications an instant, entertaining part of life. They transform physical media (print advertising, billboards, product packages, information signs, in-store merchandising, or even video images)--into live links for accessing information and entertainment online.

This is all possible after installing some software and using your smartphone's camera, which in turn allows you to interact with these 2-D multicolored triangles in forming a square-like bar code (HCCB format). But unlike traditional tag readers, MS tags don't store the information, but a unique ID that it sends to Microsoft's servers. This allows much more information for both sides. The user can receive current information and the vendor/publisher can get a tally of how many times it has been scanned. You can even create a tag.

The software is free and available for download via your mobile smartphone browser @ http://gettag.mobi/ . We've come a long way from the old-fashioned black and white bar code.

LAS VEGAS - Bill Veghte may not be as well known as his boss at Microsoft, Steve Ballmer. But as the head of the company's Windows business, Veghte is one of the key executives to the future of the company.

At the Consumer Electronics Show here Wednesday, Veghte sat with CNET News senior writer Ina Fried for a wide-ranging interview, touching on everything from the planned release of Windows 7 to future of Microsoft's gee-whiz touch technology. The following is a condensed and edited version of that interview:

Bill Veghte, Microsoft's senior vice president for the Windows Business

(Credit: Microsoft)

Q: It's fair to say that you guys would like to have Windows 7 out in time for the holidays?
Veghte: We will ship it when the quality is right, and earlier is always better, but not at the cost of (ecosystem support), and not at the cost of quality.

In the past, one of the tools that Microsoft and other companies used to help manage that transition is some sort of technology guarantee: if you buy Vista after this point, you'll get 7 for free. My understanding is that you guys are planning something similar with 7?
Veghte: Certainly we want to make sure that Windows customers have an easy transition to Windows 7, and over the years we've provided a variety of offerings to customers...guarantee is one of them. And while we have nothing to announce today, we're certainly evaluating the options to make sure that we can help and support our customers in that transition.

One of the things with Windows 7, some of the cool features, particularly multitouch, require the hardware makers to build hardware that has the necessary things to take advantage of that. What is Microsoft doing to make sure that it's more than just a couple showcase machines that have touch?
Veghte: One of the things that we've worked very hard on in this release is engaging with the hardware vendors, taking their feedback, highlighting those opportunities, and then in the high quality releases doing deep engineering cooperation across the organization. Michael Dell, for example, went on record saying Dell worked with Microsoft for many, many years many releases of Windows, and this is one of the best, deepest cooperations that we've ever had...The beta is a big milestone, because we sort of unveil a lot of the capabilities that were not there in the developer release.

Do you have a goal in terms of how many people you want to try out this beta?
Veghte: Traditionally several million people is a good number. Several million means you can take all the feedback. It's important that as people are thinking about whether they download the beta, they actually use it (and share) that information with us. But if we have a couple million active beta testers, then we're going to be in great shape. This release is all about listening to customers, and we certainly have features and capabilities that you're familiar with, and now in the beta, a couple million people banging on it over the next couple of months.

What is the consumer pitch for Windows 7?
Veghte: You know, I get really excited about Windows 7 for a couple of different reasons. One is that it takes a set of everyday tasks that I do all the time, and it makes them faster and simpler. The second reason that I get excited about Windows 7 is there's a set of things that I expect my computer to do the way I want it to do, whether it be around reliability or security or battery life or performance or (controlling) messages popping up. And in Windows 7 on each one of those dimensions there's a set of improvements that we hope to deliver.

The next piece is in every release of Windows you have the opportunity to enable a set of scenarios or capabilities that are not (well-served now)...Like by providing touch support in Windows, whether you're a (third-party developer) or a hardware developer, you'll think about, "Do I touch-enable my notebook or do I touch-enable my application?" That's going to enable a whole set of new capabilities and interaction models for people.

Since we're at the Consumer Electronics Show here, the number of -- the amount of music, photos and video that is increasingly in my household, my PC, my wife's PC, you know, it's all over the place, and I just want one library one library of all of the Veghte photos or all the Veghte music. I don't really care about the physical location. And in Windows 7 we've taken that, through the combination of the new explorer, the PlayTo capabilities, the library construct, and made it much easier for people to manage, store, share their digital content.

The popular sentiment, or what I've heard most often from people who have played with 7, is this is Vista done right. What's your reaction to that?
Veghte: The next release is always (going to be better) and that's called innovation. And so we've got to satisfy a set of customers in Windows Vista now, we've got people announcing exciting new license numbers in terms of the continued growth of Windows Vista, but the investments in the innovation that we did in Windows Vista architecturally are enabling a set of capabilities that we couldn't do.

Many businesses have not jumped to Vista. What's the business message going to be around 7?
Veghte: When I think about the conversations with business customers, they want not only things that we do for end users, but they want great manageability and security. And clearly two years after the delivery of Windows Vista, we've demonstrated a higher degree of manageability and security.

Is it disappointing that it hasn't translated better?
Veghte: No, but in some fashion -- that's why I look at it and say, from a marketing perspective we did make that statement. We said Windows Vista is the most secure desktop OS release we've ever done. By virtue of the release of Windows Vista, we were going to have lots and lots of people going after it. And under that, Windows Vista has stood up very, very strongly... When I think about the conversation with CIOs or with businesses, in this era, this modern desktop era, you want security, you want manageability at a different level than you want it in 1999. And as such, Windows Vista meets that bar and Windows 7 builds on it...And we have to protect the investments that customers are making today in Windows Vista.

Have you changed your marketing approach because of the economy?
Veghte: Can I broaden the question a little bit? When you think about the economic situation, what does that mean to the Windows?

Sure.
Veghte: Windows PCs have always represented a great value relative to other companies in the marketplace, both in terms of the whole range of price points and all the capabilities that you get out of the box.

Given the economic situation, as shareholders would expect us to tighten our belt, but with the things that are most important, and customers would expect us to do that while continuing to innovate. And this is why even in this touch economic situation it's exciting to be able to look at the product pipeline we've got with Internet Explorer 8, Windows 7 and Windows Live...and the next generation of Windows Live, and look at all of the advances that we're offering to customers. A Windows PC is an unbelievable entertainment investment.

It's reasonable to think though that you guys might be spending less on ads and other marketing.
Veghte: The expectation is that the dollars we spend on advertising today will go further than it did (before). But the Windows business is pretty core to Microsoft, it's core to the Microsoft brand, so we will continue to invest in support of Windows.

Do you think the same holds true when we look at things like headcount?
Veghte: Windows is core to the success of the company. I'm certainly looking at how we can be more efficient, and given the mission in our advertising spending that we just talked about, efficient in where we apply our headcount and efficient, but not at the risk of jeopardizing the opportunity that we have, and the opportunity in these economic conditions.

Do you think Microsoft will have do more than you have in the past in terms of reacting to the economy?
Veghte: I think certainly Bill's philosophy and Steve's philosophy has been to take a long term view. The long term view is (stick with) the investments we make in R&D, and then patiently and steadily and tenaciously deliver on that opportunity.

Obviously a lot of the marketing that you guys rolled out as part of the new ad campaign is pretty deliberately trying to say this is what Windows is, and really this is what Windows is vis-à-vis Apple. Where do you see the competitive landscape having shifted from where it was say a few months ago?
Veghte: In the fall we did two things: One is we were clear on what Windows represents... to be clear on what Windows stood for, and give people, Windows customers the opportunity to be proud of who and what (they stand for) in rolling out the tag line, saying "I am a PC." Now, you can decide whether that's competitive context or not. I choose to sort of think about it as we need communicate what Windows stands for, and we need to give our customers the opportunity to celebrate who and what they've chosen.

Microsoft's history with Windows is taking things, concepts, technologies, and making them accessible to the average user. And your competitor, Apple, you know, typically gets a lot of credit for innovating. Are there things that Microsoft is doing in the desktop OS that you believe you aren't getting credit for?
Veghte: I think the important thing for us is making sure that we're serving our customers well. You look at how we've listened and the things that we've picked up on and delivered in Windows 7 or Windows Live Wave 3 or Internet Explorer 8, it's I think a set of everyday tasks, that's huge innovation. I think it's huge innovation when you realize that on average over a third of the time people have four or more windows open. If I can dramatically simplify that, that's innovation...And so when I look sort of against the backdrop of history and sort of the current economic landscape, I think we've got -- we have a tremendous value proposition to bring to market.

CES has officially begun and we discuss a slew of offerings from the show floor, as well as the Steve Ballmer keynote. Also, Tom is offered the chance to record his voice for TomTom GPS devices. That's a lot of Tom!

EPISODE 887

Ballmer Keynote
http://ces.cnet.com/8301-19167_1-10131585-100.html
http://arstechnica.com/articles/culture/ces2009-microsoft-keynote.ars

Windows 7 goes Beta this Friday
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-10135791-56.html
http://news.cnet.com/8301-10805_3-10136418-75.html

Windows 7 might not come in '09
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-10135943-56.html

CES Press conference roundup:
Samsung: super thin OLED
http://ces.cnet.com/8301-19167_1-10135532-100.html

Vizio takes the cover off Connected HDTV: Netflix, Blockbuster, Amazon, Yahoo! and more
http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/07/vizio-takes-the-cover-off-connected-hdtv-netflix-blockbuster/

Yahoo! recaps a day of setting the Internet-on-TV movement on fire with Widgets
http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/08/yahoo-recaps-a-day-of-setting-the-internet-on-tv-movement-on-fi/

Wall-mountable Blu-Ray player
http://ces.cnet.com/8301-19167_1-10134004-100.html

Audiovox, PlayStation 2 roll out
http://ces.cnet.com/8301-19167_1-10135464-100.html

Acoustic Research Harmony killers
http://ces.cnet.com/8301-19167_1-10133953-100.html

LG’s 240Hz LCDs flash backlights really fast
http://ces.cnet.com/8301-19167_1-10135326-100.html
http://ces.cnet.com/8301-19167_1-10135175-100.html

LG to implement noise-canceling in many of its phones
http://ces.cnet.com/8301-19167_1-10134765-100.html

The Sony P-series Lifestyle PC: Just don’t call it a Netbook
http://ces.cnet.com/8301-19167_1-10131906-100.html

OQO launches world’s smallest Vista PC with OLED screen
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20090107-oqo-launches-worlds-smallest-vista-pc-with-oled-screen-see-notes.html

Pols hit panic button as DTV coupon program goes broke
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20090107-pols-hit-panic-button-as-dtv-coupon-program-goes-broke.html

New energy efficiency rules for TVs sold in California
http://news.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09%2F01%2F07%2F1946223

E-MAIL
Hey Tom, Molly, and Justin,

I was listening to show 886, and something caught my attention when
Natali was talking about the Giffen good. She said that when demand
increases, price increases when talking about high-priced technology
products. What she was actually referring to is called a Veblen good;
a Giffen good is when the price of an inferior good, a good that low-
income people generally prefer (ramen, bread, etc), rises and those
low-income people end up buying more of that good. A Veblen good is
like a Giffen good, but Veblen goods are generally luxury goods, such
as that new 17-inch MacBook Pro or a Lamborghini, etc. People buy
these Veblen goods at higher prices because it is considered to be a
mark of your financial status.

Sorry for such a long email, feel free to truncate it however you
wish, just wanted to clear that up.

Love the show, keep it up!
Daniel Byon

***********

Hey jamoto,

In Replyness to Daniels Email from Wednesday, I am also a UK listener and would like to say that the BBC does indeed broadcast their tv shows live on the internet. To clarify, the BBC iplayer is where viewers can watch shows from up to 7 days in the past and they also have a bbc watch live service which at this very moment I am watching live tv on the internet and on my terrestrial tv. This was also in place last year so Tom, you do get another correct prediction from 2008.

Chris Hisgrove

***********

Hi Buzz crew,

Tom, did I heard correctly in episode 884 that you'd love to get your voice on a TomTom? That's great news!
An even better news is that you don't even have to license your voice to us. You just have to record a few voice commands, convert them in a TomTom format and publish yourself on our TomTom HOME platform where Buzz-fans from all over the world can download it for free and put it on their TomTom. I'd sure be one of them!

It's a rather easy process for geeks like us and I'd be very happy to assist.

All the best,
Jeff from TomTom and long time listener

PS: Love the show

***********

Hey Buzz Crew,

Hope your enjoying CES. I’m stuck in snow snow and more snow…

I was listening to yesterday’s show (1/7) where you talked about a 10
meg max download over 3G for iTunes on the iPhone. While this is
true, I just go to your www and download the mp3. This works fine, so
I’m not sure why AT&T doesn’t block this then?!?

- Bob, the Nuclear Engineer

LAS VEGAS--With Bill Gates now a Microsoft part-timer, company CEO Steve Ballmer is filling in at this year's opening keynote for the Consumer Electronics Show. We're bringing you live coverage of his speech, which started at about 6:30 p.m. PST. Windows 7 is likely to be the centerpiece of Ballmer's discussion. Another piece of his keynote--a deal with Verizon Wireless--leaked out earlier in the day Wednesday. It's a five-year pact that will see Microsoft's search show up on all of the carriers' phones.

Steve Ballmer at CES

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

6:28 p.m.: Waiting for Ballmer, some very loud rappers just finished their set.

6:30 p.m.: And here he is...Well, Gary Shapiro, the head of the consumer electronics association

6:32 p.m.: Shapiro is still talking, but the embargo has lifted, so you can check out all of the news here.

6:33 p.m.: Also, I have a story here from an interview I did with Windows executive Bill Veghte. The key takeaway: Microsoft is still hoping to get Windows 7 out in time for the holidays, but it has told PC makers it could still be this year or early next year. Microsoft has said it will be out by the third anniversary of Vista's January 2007 launch.

6:34 p.m.: Ballmer's not out. There's video, but so far it's not the usual funny video. It's shots of Windows and Windows Live.

6:36 p.m.: Now Ballmer's out. Red sweater and blue shirt, slacks, not that his wardrobe is a big deal.

6:37 p.m.: "So this is CES," Ballmer said as he took the stage, noting that he is taking the reins from Gates. "Bill is now devoting most of his time to helping people around the world."

6:38 p.m.: Ballmer said he got a series of messages from an "eclectic group" of people today. Showing fake IMs from Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, Treasure Secretary Henry Paulson, Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang, and others.

6:39 p.m.: Yang wanted to know why Ballmer keeps ignoring his friend request on Facebook, Ballmer said. Paulson, meanwhile, asked for a copy of Microsoft Money, according to the IM shown on-stage.

6:41 p.m.: Ballmer's now talking about Microsoft's focus on entertainment convergence, the so-called three screens: PC, TV, and phone. "Now it's no longer just about the desktop but really about a broader vision," he said.

6:44 p.m.: The TV is the oldest of the three screens, but in many ways the least evolved, he said, though that is rapidly changing. The boundary between the TV and the PC will disappear, he said.

The second area of change, he said, centers on how we interact with all of these devices. The computer will be able to hear you and see you. Speech gestures and handwriting will become a normal way of how we interact. We will still use a keyboard and a mouse when it makes sense.

6:46 p.m.: Ballmer said that Windows is poised to play a role not just on the phone, but also on the Web and on phones. "Windows has become the language that over a billion people speak around the world."

6:48 p.m.: They are showing a video with the latest Windows PCs and Windows Mobile phones.

6:50 p.m.: Subtle dig at Apple: "At this time economically when people are struggling to make every dollar count" the choice that offers the most power and most value for the money is a PC, Ballmer said.

6:52 p.m.: Now shifting to Windows 7. "We are on track to deliver the best version of Windows ever. We are putting in all the right ingredients...and working hard to get it right and to get it ready."

Windows 7 should boot more quickly, have better battery life, and not pop up as many alerts, he said.

"We are releasing the beta of Windows 7," he said, to a smattering of applause.

Windows 7 beta will be released

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

6:53 p.m.: "I encourage you all to get out and download it," he said. Now he's talking about Windows Live.

6:54 p.m.: Three big announcements on Windows Live: Windows Live Messenger, Windows Live Photo Gallery, and Windows Live Mail. It's final, it's free and it works on Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7 beta.

6:55 p.m.: Also the Facebook deal, which will allow people to have their Windows Live network notified when they post updates or photos to Facebook.

Microsoft and Verizon announced a mobile search deal Tuesday.

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

6:56 p.m.: Third are distribution deals with both Dell and Verizon Wireless. (The Verizon deal leaked out earlier Wednesday, but he didn't pull a Steve Jobs and strip out mention of them from his speech)

6:57 p.m.: Now getting a demo of Windows 7 as well as the new Windows Live and some Windows Mobile stuff.

6:59 p.m.: This is the eye candy portion of the talk, with Microsoft showing off the improved taskbar for managing multiple windows as well as a button that clears the screen of all open windows. It's the same stuff shown at the PDC in October.

7:00 p.m.: Those expecting some secret new features of Windows 7 to show up in the beta will be disappointed. It's basically the stuff that was in the pre-beta along with the user interface stuff that was shown at the PDC.

7:01 p.m.: Now they are showing off the "Homegroup" feature designed to make home networking easier to set up and also more intuitive. (The catch: all the PCs involved have to be Windows 7 machines in order for Homegroup to work.)

7:02 p.m.: Another Windows 7 feature, called "Play To" lets users send music and other media to an Xbox, a Roku box, or other devices on a home network.

7:03 p.m.: Now they are showing multitouch using a touchscreen to navigate through a 3D map of Manhattan. "We built touch into the DNA of Windows 7," said Charlotte Jones, a group product manager who is doing the Windows demos.

Touchscreen mapping demo

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

7:04 p.m.: For those who were at PDC--or read about it--there's not a lot new here. The only new thing so far is that it has reached beta.

7:05 p.m.: Windows Mobile demo also not new. It's the version of Internet Explorer 6 for phones. The big deal is that, unlike the iPhone's Safari browser, it can play Flash content. The code was finalized late last year. But it will start showing up in phones this year.

7:09 p.m.: Jones is now showing how Microsoft is trying to make the Windows Live home page a sort of network of social networks, showing the updates that people make both within Windows Live as well as in other places like Twitter, Flickr, and now Facebook.

7:14 p.m.: There's a band now on stage. Apparently called Tripod. According to Wikipedia, they are an Australian musical comedy act.

7:15 p.m.: They are singing about being ready to be with their girlfriend just as soon as they finish their game. "Can you move a little to the left? I can't see the TV."

Sadly, it's probably the best part of the keynote so far--and getting the most audience reaction.

Robbie Bach, president of Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices unit.

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

7:16 p.m.: Now taking the stage, Microsoft Entertainment and Devices unit President Robbie Bach.

He mentions that Ford is introducing a new version of its Sync in-car entertainment.

7:19 p.m.: Zune has also had a great year, Bach said. There are 2 million people on Zune social. He's also touting the innovations on subscriptions, but no numbers as usual (late last year, Microsoft conceded subscriptions were lagging expectations).

7:20 p.m.: He also didn't give an update on Zune unit sales. Now he's talking about IPTV.

Bach talks about a new feature that SingTel (a Singapore telecom firm) is adopting that essentially lets you go back in time to select a program that previously aired but wasn't recorded.

7:21 p.m.: It will be up to carriers to decide how far back customers will be able to go back to get a show on-demand.

7:22 p.m.: Now he's talking Xbox, noting that the company is in the key selling period in terms of unit sales, as its price has reached below $200. He promised "accelerating momentum."

He gets some applause as he talks about the two new Halo products coming--Halo Wars and Halo 3 ODST.

7:23 p.m.: Halo Wars is a strategy game and due out February 28, with a demo that will be available February 5. Halo 3 ODST is out this fall, action-style game with new characters and scenarios.

7:26 p.m.: Demoing Xbox Live Primetime, a place for live interaction. Demo is 1 vs. 100, an Xbox game show where people can win real prizes. Microsoft talked about it briefly at E3, but this is the first demo, I believe.

Demoing Xbox Live Primetime.

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

7:30 p.m.: First glitch of the night: Robbie's Xbox controller wasn't working as he tried to navigate his Netflix queue. Working now.

7:33 p.m.: Talks about the popularity of music games. 60 millon tracks downloaded for games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero via Xbox Live.

7:34 p.m.: Demoing Kodu, a tool from Microsoft Research that allows users to create games without having to know a traditional programming language.

Kodu

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

7:35 p.m.: Kodu was formerly known as Boku, though a Google search for that name turns up some extremely not-safe-for-kids images.

7:36 p.m.: Microsoft had said it planned to change the name. Bach has a kid on stage showing how she created a game using the tool.

7:39 p.m.: The 12-year-old beats Bach handily at the game she created. Ballmer comes back on stage. "If anyone thinks he threw that game on purpose, that would be wrong."

Robbie Bach and Sparrow

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

7:42 p.m.: Should be wrapping up soon. Microsoft Research is showing some stuff from the labs, including a digital anatomy textbook.

7:44 p.m.: Showing a simulation of caffeine and your brain. Man, i could use a little of that right now.

7:48 p.m.: She shows a flexible display less than 1mm thick in color. This is pretty cool.

Microsoft Research

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

And, she's done.

7:49 p.m.: "Despite the economy, I hope you will all agree with me that our industry has an incredible, incredible opportunity ahead of us," Ballmer said, in wrapping up.

End of keynote.

7:50 p.m.: Tripod comes back for one more song.

CNET News' Marguerite Reardon contributed to this report.