Microsoft woos iOS devs to write Windows apps

By Ed Sutherland on Dec 28, 2012

Android and iOS may have been all the rage in 2012 – and especially on Christmas Day when App Store downloads surged 87 percent versus the December 2012 average – but what about Microsoft?

While sales of Windows 8 tablets and Windows Phones have yet to reach a critical mass, the Redmond firm understands it needs more quality apps to lure users.

Quite an interesting get-together recently happened at Microsoft’s headquarters as the firm met with a cherry-picked group of iOS developers in an attempt to encourage them to produce versions of their apps for the Windows Phone platform. Is Microsoft throwing money at iOS devs’ feet? This reminds us of how the firm spent millions in the gaming space to steal PlayStation exclusives, much to its advantage… Read More

 

Apple Stores outsold Microsoft Stores nearly 5 to 1 in Black Friday purchases

By Christian Zibreg on Nov 26, 2012

A quick side-by-side video MacWeekend.com shot early morning on Black Friday at Lone Tree’s Park Meadow Mall where both Apple and Microsoft have their respective retail stores shows one is packed and the other is not. Apple’s place is much smaller versus Microsoft’s so it feels busier, of course. And over at the Apple Store in the Mall of America in Minneapolis, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster and his crew counted heads at both Apple’s store and the Microsoft Store directly across the hall.

Although non-scientific, their comparison survey tells us that shoppers picked up nearly five times as many items per hour at the Apple store. We already knew the iPad dominated mobile shopping on Black Friday. And if you ask kids, Apple’s tablet is the #1 item on their holiday wish list. Looks like Apple’s gonna own Christmas this year… Read More