The Xbox team has just announced the second wave of games coming to Xbox Game Pass for Console in January. A Plague Tale: Innocence, which was previously announced for Xbox Game Pass for PC, will be available on both PC and console tomorrow, January 23. Since the PC game has yet to make its way to the Windows 10 Microsoft Store, it’s not clear yet if the PC and Xbox One versions will share cloud saves and achievements.

For those unfamiliar, A Plague Tale: Innocence is an action horror stealth game developed by Asobo Studio, a French developer currently working on Microsoft’s next Flight Simulator Game. A Plague Tale: Innocence ended up in several “Game of the year” lists last year, and it’s definitely one of the most exciting additions to the Xbox Game Pass catalog following other recent games like Devil May Cry 5 or The Outer Worlds.

The other game coming to Xbox Game Pass for console tomorrow is Indivisible, an action RPG title released back in October 2019. Two other games will follow on January 30 with Fishing Sim World: Pro Tour and the action strategy game Sea Salt.

Overall, it’s been an exciting past couple of weeks for Xbox Game Pass subscribers. AAA games like The Witcher 3 and GTA V recently joined the catalog, along with smaller jewels such as Overcooked 2 or Untitled Goose Game. If you have yet to subscribe, we remind that you can get your first month of Xbox Game Ultimate (which also includes Xbox Live Gold and Xbox Game Pass for PC) for just $1 instead of $14.99.

After Microsoft unveiled its next-gen Xbox Series X console last month, there has been some speculation about what ports would be included on the new hardware, especially after AMD admitted to showing an unofficial render of the console back at CES. Well, two pictures of an Xbox Series X prototype have been shared on Twitter a couple of hours ago, and Brad Sams from Thurrott.com has since confirmed their authenticity.

@IdleSloth1984 @blueisviolet @XcloudTimdog pic.twitter.com/qmVlhTTaqi

— Doug – XBOX SERIES X (@Doug_DragoX) January 22, 2020

As we can see from these leaked pictures, the back panel of the console features a power input, an HDMI out port, an Ethernet port, two USB-A port, as well as an optical audio port. According to Sams, “the holes on the side of the ports are for venting and that large rectangle port in the middle is for diagnostic reporting. I don’t expect that port to be on the final hardware and as always, these ports could change.”

You’ll notice that the HDMI In port that has been included on all Xbox One consoles since launch is gone on this prototype. Microsoft made quite a big deal of this HDMI passthrough feature at the beginning of the 8th gen, but it’s apparently the latest port to get scrapped after Microsoft removed the dedicated Kinect port on the Xbox One S and Xbox One X.

The Xbox Series X will also have a USB-A port in the front, but this prototype doesn’t have any USB-C ports. That’s a bit surprising considering the new Xbox Elite Series 2 controller is the first to use a USB-C port for charging, but the lack of USB-C ports on the console shouldn’t be an issue for most consumers.

As this is a prototype, things could still change before the console launches in holiday 2020, but it will be interesting to see if Sony has a more forward-thinking approach for its PlayStation 5.

The iconic original three Mortal Kombat video games may be getting a re-release on modern consoles such as the Xbox One according to a new PEGI rating (via IGN) which was filed recently.

According to the filing, the three games will be updated with improved graphics and gameplay and will also be given some form of online functionality. Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat 2, and Mortal Kombat 3 will be bundled together as the Mortal Kombat Kollection Online and it’s currently set for release on Xbox One, PS4, PC, and Nintendo Switch on January 21st 2020.

Clearly that release date is just a placeholder as it’s now January 22nd and Mortal Kombat Kollection Online has yet to appear anywhere and no official announcements have yet to be made.

Would you like to see the original MK games on Xbox One? Let us know why or why not in the comments below and then follow us on Pinterest, Twitter, and Facebook for more Xbox gaming news.

Microsoft ceased regular support for Windows 7 a week ago but usage by large businesses remains “nearly universal,” according to a study by security firm BitSight. After Windows 7’s end-of-life on January 14, the BitSight Data Science Team looked at operating system adoption among 60,000 organisations.

The report confirms what many will have long suspected: most large enterprises have not yet entirely migrated to Windows 10. Almost 90% of organisations with over 10,000 employees are still using Windows 7 on at least one machine. The figure falls to 61% for companies with less than 1,000 employees.

Larger enterprises tend to find it more difficult to move to new computing platforms. Their operating scale and reliance on legacy processes make overnight migrations impossible. The statistics indicate that the majority of the world’s largest businesses have delayed migration away from Windows 7, although it’s likely that individual reasons will vary significantly.

Some organisations may rely on Windows 7 from a technical perspective. Legacy apps and devices might be incompatible with newer operating systems, leaving businesses stranded on older platforms. For other companies, more fundamental issues such as poor planning or concerns over costs may be responsible for the delay.

BitSight studied Windows 7 usage in different industries and found it has the greatest dominance in the education and government sectors. 84% of organisations in the education industry have a machine running Windows 7; the figure is 82% for government bodies.

The report also looks at “dependence” on Windows 7, evaluating its usage relative to an organisation’s total fleet size. BitSight found the finance and healthcare sectors are most reliant on the platform. 45% of healthcare organisations with more than 10,000 employees run Windows 7 on more than 25% of their total device count. The figure rises to 46% for businesses in the financial sector.

Although the report can be interpreted as evidence that Windows 7 will persist for a lot longer, it also indicates that organisations are aware of the need to migrate away. Although most enterprises still use Windows 7 in some capacity, the dependency figures reveal that few businesses are wholly reliant on it. It appears Windows 7 usage is becoming restricted to just business-critical workloads which have no direct migration pathway onto Windows 10.

Microsoft has faced criticism in the past for the “ads” scatted throughout some of the apps Windows 10, but a much-loved free component of Windows might soon be part of the story now too. According to a tweet from Microsoft MVP Rafael Rivera, Microsoft might be considering adding ads for the Office web apps to WordPad in Windows 10.

As seen in the featured image above, Microsoft appears to be working on six different variants of these “ads.” They all will show up under the ribbon of WordPad and in a yellow shade with an actionable clickable text box, which presumably will take the user to the Office web apps.

Three variations are themed towards Word, and suggest to “Try Word online for free,” “Try Word for free online,” and “Use Word for free online.”  Another three variations also suggest the other Office online apps. These mention to “Try Word, Excel, and PowerPoint for free online,” “Use Word, Excel and PowerPoint for free online,” and “Try Office for free online.”

To be fair, these “ads” are relatively harmless suggestions. They are not in the way of the user, nor do they tell you to buy a product. Instead, Microsoft is suggesting for you to use what many might see as a more “complete” text-editor, which more features.

It’s also worth mentioning that these “ads” are not in the current version of WordPad, and might not even ship at all. As Rafael points out, it could rather be designed to increase monthly user engagement.

If the next massive Xbox Store sale has yet to be announced this year, Microsoft is currently discounting more than 300 Xbox games for a limited time. In addition to the weekly Deals with Gold and Spotlight Sale, you may want to check out this week’s Artistic Adventure Sale featuring games like Outer Wilds, What Remains of Edith Finch, Oxenfree, or Thief of Thieves. Many games in this list are available with Xbox Game Pass or were previously offered with the Games with Gold program, but you can now purchase them without breaking the bank.

The separate Lunar New Year Sale is much more interesting, as it includes many titles from the Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, and Dark Souls franchises, as well as recent games such as Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown, Destiny 2: Shadowkeep (33% off), Jump Force, Life is Strange 2, Monster Hunter World: Iceborne (25% off), NBA 2K20, and Red Dead Redemption 2 (50% off).

This week’s Deals with Gold are slightly less interesting this week, except for the discounts on Forza Motorsport 7, Need for Speed Heat, Overcooked 2, and Star Wars: Battlefront II.  All discounts will be available through Monday, January 27, and you can check the full list of deals on Major Nelson’s website.

The first Microsoft Reactor has been announced for the Abu Dhabi region which will be used to help foster tech startups and developers both from the area and those that have moved to Abu Dhabi from abroad.

“Built to support the Gulf’s unprecedented rate of digital transformation, we are thrilled to open a Microsoft Reactor within Hub71,”Microsoft’s general manager of cloud and AI division, Jeana Jorgensen, said in a statement. “The concentration of globally minded startups, investors and industry, represents an enormous opportunity. We believe bringing these elements together with Mubadala and Hub71 will be a catalyst for the region.”

Microsoft Reactors are a combination of spaces and programs to assist tech communities by offering the increased opportunity for hosting events, hackathons, and accelerator projects for those either preparing to launch products or who need assistance or encouragement during the final phases.
Microsoft Reactors have already launched in Philadelphia, London, and New York.

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The Disney streaming platform, Disney+ (or Disney Plus), was expected to rollout to the UK, Austria, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Spain, and Switzerland on March 31st but it’s been officially announced today via a press release from Disney that it will launch a week earlier in these regions on March 24th instead.

The rollout of Disney+ has been a gradual one with North America getting it first in early-November of last year, followed by Australia, New Zealand, and Puerto Rico a couple of weeks later.

This strategy has been rather frustrating for a lot of Disney, Marvel, and Star Wars loyalists mostly due to the hit Disney+ exclusive TV series, The Mandalorian, which has already finished its first season and has left many in regions without the streaming service having to resort to piracy to view it.

With more Disney+ exclusive shows on the way, many of which feature Star Wars and Marvel characters, it’s good that the service is being made available as quickly as possible, however, Latin American and Asian regions are still going to have to go without until October 2020 and 2021 or 2022 respectively.

Disney+ is viewable on Xbox One consoles with the official Xbox One Disney+ app and on Windows 10 devices via a web browser. Tech savvy individuals can also try their hands at making a Disney+ UWP app if they so choose.

Do you use Disney+? Let us know which region you’re in and how you watch it in the comments below and then follow us on Pinterest and YouTube for more tech news.

Download
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Disney+

Developer:
Disney

Price:
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Dying Light 2, the sequel to the hit Dying Light video game, was originally set to launch this spring but has been delayed until an unspecified time in the future.

The announcement came via a post on the official Dying Light Twitter account which stated that the developers needed more time to fully deliver on their vision for the title.

You can read the full announcement here:

Hey Survivors!
Here's the Dying Light 2 Development Update. pic.twitter.com/CKMkAe2eD7

— Dying Light (@DyingLightGame) January 20, 2020

Dying Light 2 joins Marvel’s The Avengers and Cyberpunk 2077 in the growing list of major video games set for launch on Microsoft’s family of Xbox One consoles in 2020 that have had their debuts pushed back.

While this could potentially be cause for concern, this also means that those involved behind the scenes are unwilling to launch a poor user experience and likely have faith that the titles will still sell well regardless of when they hit store shelves and digital storefronts.

Are you disappointed by these delays or are you willing to wait for a better product? Share your thoughts with the community in the comments below and then follow us on Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook, and YouTube for more Xbox gaming content.

Outlook is one of the core desktop applications in Office 365. Many businesses and individuals use it daily to send out emails and keep tabs on meetings with clients, coworkers and much more. However, it is also one of the most customizable apps in the Office 365 suite. In this guide, we’ll show you our top 5 favorite ways to customize the Outlook experience.

1: Use the Dark Mode

Dark mode is a common feature on most apps and operating systems, and Outlook supports one too. The Dark Mode option can be enabled in Outlook by heading into the File tab along the top of an open window, choosing the Office Account option, and picking Black from where it says Office Themes. This makes emails a lot easier to read, as it gets rid of all the white space and turns almost all of the user interface inside Outlook into a darker color.

2: Add a Signature

Just like when you sign for a UPS or FedEx package in real life, your signature is your identity. It helps distinguish who you are and is truly personal. Well, you also can also add a signature to your emails to give them a little extra personal touch. You can do this by opening an email as if you were replying to it, going to the Message menu, selecting Signature and choose the Signature option. You can then look for a signature to edit, and choose one, and then press save.  Now, your emails will have a different look to it.

3: Customize your Calendars

Third on our list are some ways to customize your Outlook Calendar. The Outlook Calendar can help keep you organized and manage appointments, but you also can tweak calendars to make Outlook more personal. You can see multiple timezones by clicking the File tab inside the Outlook desktop app, and head to the third option in the window for Calendar. You also can create a secondary calendar to separate out work from personal life. You can do this by opening the Outlook Calendar, clicking the Home button in the ribbon, and then clicking Open Calendar in the ribbon. After you do that, you can select Create a new Blank Calendar and name it in the option that says Create new Folder.

4: Create Contact Lists

Emailing in Outlook involves reaching out to people you’re frequently in touch with, and so you might want to customize your experience with a Contact List in the Outlook desktop application. Thanks to Contact Lists, you’ll be able to logically organize your contacts and find them more easily. You can do this by clicking the People icon in the navigation bar on the bottom left side of the screen. Next, you’ll want to click on Folder, and then the New Folder option on the top right corner of the screen. You can then Fill out the fields, and enter a name for your contact list. You’ll also want to select contact items from the menu that says folder contains.

After you set up a list, you also can send out an email to that list. This will make it easier to send out a bulk email, without having to manually enter in the emails one by one. You can do this by selecting the To box, and then typing in the name of the List. You also can click Address Book from the menu and choose your List from where it says Address Book and then click the To button, to select the names in the List. And when finished, click OK. 

5: Add multiple accounts

Unlike the web-based version of Outlook, the Outlook desktop application lets you deal with multiple accounts. This means you can add a personal account right alongside your work account, and have one hub for all your emails. You can do this by heading to the File menu in Outlook and clicking on the Add Account button. You can then type in your email address in the pop-up Outlook box. You can end by pressing on the blue Connect button and putting in your password. Once done, you’ll see your secondary account in the Outlook sidebar.

Check out our other guides for more!

This guide just touches on our top 5 tips for customizing the desktop version of Outlook. There’s a lot more than you can do. We’ve covered the topic extensively and have looked at how you can translate emails, solve problems with attachments, dismiss past reminders, and even recall emails. Keep it tuned to OnMSFT, and feel free to share your Outlook tips in the comments below.

Welcome back to our Windows 10 news recap, where we go over the top stories of the past week in the world of Microsoft’s flagship operating system.

Microsoft is investigating display issues affecting some HoloLens 2 units

Reports about display issues on the HoloLens 2 have been increasing recently. Microsoft has now responded saying that it’s working with customers affected by the issue so that it can understand the underlying cause.

Microsoft quietly removes pledge to share 95% of app revenue on the Microsoft Store

Microsoft’s revenue model of giving 95% of app revenue to developers has been silently removed from its developer agreement.

Microsoft goes all-in on education with new Windows 10 devices, Always Connected PCs, and new features for OneNote, PowerPoint

As part of Microsoft’s renewed push into education, the company is bringing new Windows 10 devices for education, as well as adding new features to both OneNote and PowerPoint that are focused on education. Find out more here.

That’s it for this week. We’ll be back next week with more Windows 10 news.

Microsoft news recap is a weekly feature highlighting the top Microsoft news stories of the past week. Sit back, grab some coffee, and enjoy the read!

Microsoft’s Mixer video game streaming service now has almost as many active channels as Twitch

Mixer, Microsoft’s own video game streaming service, is catching up to its largest rival, Twitch, as it now has nearly as many active channels as Twitch itself. Not to mention the number of Twitch streamers that have moved over to Mixer in recent times.

Microsoft expands Xbox Console Streaming Preview to more markets

Xbox Console Streaming, in preview, is now available in more markets. Xbox Console Streaming allows you to use your Xbox One console as the hardware to run the game, but then play the game on another device, such as an Android phone.

Microsoft announces $1 billion climate fund, plans to remove more carbon than it emits by 2030

In a more environment-focused world, Microsoft has announced that it plans to remove more carbon than it emits by 2030. It feeds into Microsoft’s overall environmental policy and the company is setting aside a $1 billion climate fund to help it achieve its goal.

Xbox team is “hard at work on E3” while PlayStation skips it again

Whilst Sony has announced that PlayStation is yet again skipping out on E3, Xbox is working hard on its own E3 event, confirming Xbox’s presence at the event this year.

That’s it for this week. We’ll be back next week with more Microsoft news.