Eliana Willis

picture alliance/Getty Images Microsoft is officially ending production for the HoloLens 2 mixed reality headset, and it doesn’t look like there will be a successor in the future. The company has been emailing this information to its business partners during the past week. Jens Lauritsen, chief product officer at the Danish XR company Virsabi, shared Microsoft’s […] More

Score a Microsoft Office license now at a big discount. StackSocial Whether you’re setting up your new laptop or using a machine you’ve had for years, access to Microsoft Office is a necessity for many of us to get things done. Right now, you can buy a lifetime license to the 2019 version of Microsoft Office Professional […] More

<!–> ZDNET’s key takeaways The AirPods 4 are available for $129 (or $179 with ANC). The fourth-generation lineup features significant improvements to sound quality, noise cancellation, and comfort. The headlining improvements are incremental, which may leave some consumers feeling uninspired to upgrade. more buying choices During Apple’s annual September hardware event, the company released two […] More

In answer to Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days sale, Best Buy More

Kerry Wan/ZDNETIn September, Google announced that all English-speaking Gemini mobile app More

Six years ago, Microsoft confounded customers with a string of buggy Windows 10 updates that collectively marked a low point for the company. Since then, Redmond has changed the way it builds and releases updates.Also: Is your Windows license legal? Should you even care?This version follows that new, drama-free model with a “phased approach” to upgrades. The first updates will go to “eligible devices running Windows 11, version 22H2 and 23H2 for those who have previously opted in to be amongst the first to experience new enhancements.” (To join that cohort, go to Settings > Windows Update and turn on the switch labeled “Get the latest updates as soon as they’re available.”)If you choose not to flip that switch, prepare to wait until Microsoft’s telemetry says your machine is ready:We will notify you when the Windows 11 2024 Update is ready for your device. Look out for the Windows Update tray icon, check the Power Menu, or visit the Windows Update Settings page. We may also send you a notification to ensure you don’t miss out on the latest enhancements.There’s a chance that some machines will be blocked, thanks to hardware or software that has known compatibility issues with the new release. Those blocks are called safeguard holds and are released as issues are resolved.It’s also possible that some PCs equipped with extremely old CPUs might be unable to upgrade to this version. First-generation Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processors might be blocked from receiving the new version via Windows Update, although it will probably be possible to do an in-place upgrade with the new version.Also: The best VPN for Windows: Expert tested and reviewedAnd some PCs powered by processors from 2007 and earlier might be unable to run the latest upgrade. Those PCs could only be upgraded using unsupported techniques, and it’s not without precedent for such ancient hardware to finally stop working with new builds.Of course, you can always force your PC to upgrade by going to Microsoft’s site and using the Upgrade Assistant or downloading the latest ISO and performing an in-place upgrade. But for most people, there’s little reason to jump to the new version, and it’s worth waiting for Microsoft’s servers to offer the update.   More

NicolasMcComber/Getty Images For anyone running Windows 11 on standard PC hardware, the new 24H2 release will be a ho-hum event, with mostly minor tweaks to the Windows experience. But that’s emphatically not the case for anyone with one of the new Copilot+ PCs that debuted earlier this year. Also: What’s new in Windows 11 24H2, […] More