Isaiah's Tech

At D9 today, Microsoft's Steven Sinofsky talked a bit about Windows 8 which was expected if you were listening to the rumours as of late. The next version of Windows, which is being codenamed 8, will have a bunch of "widget-like apps" which looks a whole lot like Windows Phone 7 - and Omnimo if you're familiar with Rainmeter. The company also demoed the OS on a touchscreen display - unknown whether it's a tablet or if a desktop was hiding somewhere. They showed off the new Start screen along with several gestures to navigate through the OS.

Microsoft mentioned that the new OS will support two kinds of apps - "the first being classic Windows programs and the second being new HTML and Javascript apps." We're sure we'll definitely be seeing more of this OS but it actually looks like Windows 8 will be able to run on a tablet - unlike previous versions.

Update: Steven also demoed the skinned part of the OS on a Lenovo laptop with a touchscreen display. There's also a new Microsoft video on their YouTube channel so check it out here. Embedding is disabled. After Walt and Julie said that it's the biggest change since Windows 95, This Is My Next mentioned that it's not as big as they think. That's because it's "not a fundamental change in what Windows is anymore than TouchSmart, or a webOS skin that runs atop the platform."

[All Things D, Engadget, This Is My Next]

Wireless Goodness has spotted another Android handset at the FCC. It's the T-Mobile bound myTouch 4G Slide aka the HTC Doubleshot. This handset sports a dual-core 1.2GHz CPU, an 8MP camera, a 3.7-inch display, a front-facing camera, a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, and Android with the Sense UI. This one should be available soon but it's unknown exactly when. Check it out on FCC.

[Phandroid]

N4BB has mentioned a few things that may be in RIM's next tablet, which is being called the Playbook 2 for now. Apparently, one of their sources have mentioned that it'll have a smaller bezel, a SIM card slot, and 4G / WiFi support. If you love white devices then you'll be glad to hear that the successor may also have a white model as well. Rumour also has it that the next Playbook will sport a 10-inch display which, I think, would be better than a 7-inch one if they can take advantage of the extra space and keep the battery life up. The rumoured launch for this one is the holiday season, so possibly November / December of this year.

[Engadget]

Bell has released a mid-end Android handset today and it's the HTC Wildfire S. This handset features a 3.2-inch touchscreen display, a 5MP camera with an LED flash, WiFi / Bluetooth support, a 600MHz CPU, a microSD card slot, and Android 2.3 with the Sense UI. The phone is available right now in black and white colours. If you're interested then check it out on Bell where it's available right now for as little as $29.95 on a 3-year contract and $249.95 contract-free.

[Mobile Syrup]