The first beta released just over an year ago generated a lot of positive reviews from the critics and negative reaction from the competitors. I personally started using Security Essentials when the first beta came out and haven’t bothered with my Norton or Kaspersky subscription since then. Security Essentials is perfect for home and everyday use and you just can’t beat the price – FREE.

Version 2.0 enhances the app by adding new features including:

1. Windows Firewall integration: Microsoft Security Essentials setup allows you to turn on Windows Firewall.
2. Enhanced protection from web-based threats: Microsoft Security Essentials has enhanced integration with Internet Explorer which helps prevent malicious scripts from running and provides improved protection against web based attacks.
3. New and improved protection engine: The updated engine offers enhanced detection and cleanup capabilities and better performance.

Even though this is just a beta, Security Essentials 2010 is a fully featured product – which means is generally safe for everyday use but it MAY crash once a few weeks or so. You also need to be running a Genuine copy of Windows XP (Service Pack 2 or 3), Windows Vista (all versions) or Windows 7.

To download Microsoft Security Essentials 2010, just:

• Follow the download link given below, and log in with your Windows Live ID.
• From the download page, click on build compatible with your OS (32-bit or 64-bit). If you’re not sure what version you are running then open System Properties from the Control Panel. System Type should be mentioned there.
• On the download page, click the download link next to the file. Your download should now start.
• After the download completes, just run the installer. If you already had Security Essentials 2009 installed, the installer would upgrade it.

I’d recommend turning on Windows Firewall in conjunction with Security Essentials because it lacks a firewall of its own. Well actually it is designed to work with Windows Firewall, but you get the idea.

Kinect for Xbox 360 also got confirmed for $149 in the US and would be available on November 4 as previously announced. Kinect Adventures would be in the package for free pretty much like Wii Sprots did with the Wii – but who’s complaining.

What’s more exciting is that you can get a taste of the new Xbox 360 S and Kinect for only $299. The Bundle packs both the Xbox 360 S Arcade and the Kinect motion sensor along with Kinect Adventures in once nice package. Sadly, there was no confirmation of the rumored $399 bundle which would pack the Xbox 360 S Elite with Kinect. I personally was eying that package so I guess now I’ll just have to go with the $299 Xbox 360 S Elite and the $149 Kinect bringing the sum to $450.

That is unless Microsoft don’t announce the elite bundle down the road. Here’s the official press release which also lists a rather large number of Kinect launch titles like Dance Central. Oh and by the way, if you Pre-Order the Kinect or the Kinect console bundle now, you’d get exclusive Kinect Adventures DLC at launch with additional levels and challenges.

REDMOND, Wash. — July 20, 2010 — Microsoft Corp. today announced an all-in-one opportunity to jump into the controller-free fun of Kinect this holiday: the all-new Xbox 360 4GB console, the revolutionary Kinect sensor and “Kinect Adventures” packaged together for $299.99 (U.S. ERP). With “Kinect Adventures,” players will make their way through 20 adventures, navigating roaring rapids and ducking and dodging through mountaintop obstacle courses and other exotic locations — no controller, wand or balance board required. In addition, existing Xbox 360 console owners can purchase the Kinect sensor with “Kinect Adventures” for $149.99 (U.S. ERP). The sensor, which will work with each of the 40 million Xbox 360 consoles currently in households worldwide,(1) is uniquely able to track your full body movements, respond to your voice and deliver a multiplayer experience right out of the box.

In addition, the new Xbox 360 4GB console, which begins shipping on Aug. 3 in the U.S., will be available for $199.99 (U.S. ERP). With a sleek new design, the Xbox 360 4GB console looks great and includes built-in Wi-Fi N, 4GB of internal flash memory, touch-sensitive buttons and a black matte finish. (2)

“Kinect for Xbox 360 offers tremendous entertainment value for the whole family,” said Dennis Durkin, Xbox 360 chief operating officer. “With full body, voice and the ability to play games with your friends right out of the box, Kinect is the most unique, complete and affordable way for everyone to enjoy controller-free fun and entertainment.”

With more than 15 games available at launch, living rooms will become fitness rooms, dance clubs and sports stadiums. Kinect games, including “Kinectimals,” “Kinect Sports,” “Kinect Joy Ride” and MTV Games’ and Harmonix’s “Dance Central” will retail for $49.99 (U.S. ERP). In addition to games, Kinect changes the way you experience entertainment by putting your favorite movies, TV programs, music and live sports from ESPN all in one place. Begin a movie by simply saying, “Xbox, play,” or browse through a music list with the wave of a hand. Kinect also creates new ways for friends and family to have fun together. With Video Kinect,(3) share a smile with friends and family, as you open a window into living rooms around the world.

“I think Kinect is a major leap forward in the gaming experience that will appeal to both mainstream and casual gamers,” said Michael Gartenberg, partner, Altimeter Group, and author of the Engadget Entelligence column.

Starting today, select retailers are taking pre-orders for the Xbox 360 Kinect Console Bundle at $299.99 (U.S. ERP) and Kinect for Xbox 360 at $149.99 (U.S. ERP). Pre-order Kinect or the Xbox 360 Kinect Console Bundle today, and at launch receive a token to download three exclusive game levels for “Kinect Adventures,” the game included with Kinect.(4) Those wanting more information or to pre-order now should go to http://www.xbox.com/en-US/hardware/wheretobuy.

This new video does put my doubts regarding LG Panther made out of liquid plastic to rest thanks to a much more stable frame rate. From the YouTube video description translated via Google:

According to numerous requests from colleagues – improved quality and a small restructuring of my previous webcast, filmed not on the webcam and the camera HD.

Right from the start you’d notice that the UI is much more polished and responsive since we are getting close to a final build. Switching in and out of apps and pages is smooth as well and now since Microsoft have disabled application backgrounding in the latest build, phones shouldn’t get bogged down after prolonged usage. The video also shows Calendar and Message applications in action along with notifications, and I also noticed three new apps (Stocks, Translator and Unit Converter) in the Programs list but they just might be 3rd party apps to test on the device.

I still couldn’t help noticing the slight lag in the People’s Hub when data had to be pulled from the network but that can most probably be an issue with the poor reception in the area.

While I don’t think the LG Panther would be one of the hottest Windows Phone 7 devices in development right now – it still is a satisfying experience seeing it running a basic walk-through of a newer build of the upcoming Windows Phone OS.

Since the video is in Ukrainian (or Russian), I can’t really figure out what they are saying but I’m sure its along the lines of “this is still a pre-beta build hence the minor issues”. On the same note, this isn’t exactly the same build as the one released with the Windows Phone Developer Tools Beta earlier this week, though I can’t say if its exactly newer or older.

I did notice a couple of new UI effects while flicking through long lists like in the People’s hub which make the overall UI more appealing. It looks like there were some network issues where they were testing, but hopefully its not a hardware/software issue like the iPhone 4 Death Grip. I’ve embedded the near 9 minute video below so do share anything you find different in this build of Windows Phone 7 or what they are saying if you understand the language via the comments below.

By the way, I couldn’t help wondering whether the video was shot in a very lame frame rate or the LG Panther is actually made of some sort of Liquid Metal?

Update

Sadly, that was just a lame frame rate, since a new demo video shot in HD clears that up.

This release is also compatible with any English language version of Visual Studio 2010 RTM you have installed and would integrate the Windows Phone tools with your existing Visual Studio 2010 installation. Of course the tools are incompatible with any previous versions of themselves so you better uninstall the previous CTP version if you had any.

Other requirements include Windows 7 or Windows Vista Service Pack 2, 3GB of hard drive space, 2GB of RAM and a DirectX 10 compatible GPU if you plan to develop XNA games. This release also includes Expression Blend for Windows Phones within the package though it doesn’t integrate with Expression Studio 4 yet. There’s also a fair share of breaking changes with this release (usually reorganized namespaces and libraries) so make sure you update your apps accordingly.

If you’re interested in trying out Windows Phone 7 on the emulator, then you can find the download link for the tools below.

The leaked build 7601.16562.100603-1800 is the same which was released to testers two days ago (though there is no guarantee that it wasn’t tampered with). here are the build details from Wzor.

MICROSOFT.WIN.7.AND.SRV.2008.R2.SERVICE.PACK-1.BETA-1.WAVE0.DVD-MSFT

BUILD: 7601.16562.100603-1800
FILE:  7601.16562.100603-1800_Update_Sp_Wave0-B1SP1.0_DVD.iso
SIZE: 1,254.15 MB
SHA-1: 79B0DF498F18DFFFE30B3E8B955BF300AB2EBED4
MD5: A69A8ED20FC91AAB4A0D0C16A885B313
CRC: 7249366E
NOTE: Wave0: English, French, German, Japanese, Spanish.

According to Wzor, the Windows 7 SP1 Beta download ISO contains three different packages based on platforms. There is the Windows 7 SP1 Beta for x86, Windows 7 SP1 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 for x64, and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 for iA-64.

The official Windows 7 SP1 beta would be released for public download towards the end of July, until then if you want to trust a potentially modified build, then that’s your call. And remember, Google is your best friend.

Windows Live Essentials 2011 suite consists of all the applications from the previous release (Windows Live Essentials 2009) and adds new members to the family like Windows Live Sync. Microsoft is pitching Windows Live Essentials as Windows 7′s connection to the cloud, because the applications basically consist of tools that should have been included in Windows but Microsoft isn’t allowed to bundle them because of anti-trust issues.

I’ve used an internal beta version of Windows Live Essentials wave 4 for some time now and I was really impressed with most of the changes made. For instance, the Ribbon UI in Windows Live Writer and the new tabbed conversation windows in Windows Live Messenger along with an Iris like interface are a big plus. Of course I also had issues with some features like the new Social timeline in messenger which I think is too distracting and poorly implemented.

I wasn’t able to test Windows Live Photo Gallery, Windows Live Movie Maker and Windows Live Sync back then but I’m really looking forward to get my hands dirty with them this time around. Until then the video embedded below would just have to do I guess.

Download links for Windows Live Essentials 2001 / Wave 4 are provided in the download box below though they aren’t live yet. I’ll update as soon as they become available, so keep a close watch.

This preview release seems to be the most significant of all with a lot of interesting demos showing the improved HTML5 capabilities as well as improvements to the rendering speeds and compliance with the web standards. This build also supports the Web Open Fonts Format (WOFF), and boasts an Acid3 score of 83/100.

Among the HTML5 features demonstrated, <video>, <audio> and <canvas> take the prime spots thanks to excellent demos ranging from concept web applications like a book store and cover-flow like video player to fun and interactive and highly addictive games like Tile Switch.

Improvements to the JavaScript engine boost the performance of the browser putting it head to head with Safari 5.0 and Google Chrome 5.0, while Firefox is left smoking the dust. After running the latest platform preview, I don’t really see a reason why Internet Explorer 9 wont be among my preferred browsers when it is released (I haven’t really used Internet Explorer since 2004 when I switched to Firefox).

In the chart on the top, the orange highlighted bars indicate the latest preview builds of the five major browsers while the blue bars show the previous and currently stable builds. The second chart shows how Internet Explorer 9 is catching up to the performance of Google Chrome and Safari.

If you are interested in trying out the latest build of Internet Explorer 9 Platform Preview then you can find the download link in the box below. I’ll also post a few videos showing the new demos later with a more in depth analysis.

According to Neowin, the 1.22GB build was compiled on June 3, and is available in English, German, Spanish, French and Japanese editions. The official build number is 7601.16562.100603-1800 but don’t go searching for download links just yet because there isn’t any news of a new leaked version – though I’m willing to bet that would change pretty soon.

SP1 for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 brings all the incremental updates and hotfixes released via Windows Update as well as a couple of new virtualization features for Windows Server 2008 R2, as well as RemoteFX. While there aren’t any major new features announced for Windows 7 yet, there are rumors going around suggesting Windows 7 may natively add USB 3.0 support to the mix.

RemoteFX, which is the main highlight for SP1 is basically an enhancement to the Remote Desktop Protocol allowing rich multimedia and 3D experiences to remote users. This basically means that you can now have thin clients with very basic hardware to access remote servers which do most of the computing tasks (including graphics and media processing). Think of it as a cooler version of the mainframe computer architectures of the past.

If you are tempted to try Windows 7 SP1 for yourself then you better keep a close watch here, because Microsoft had previously announced the public beta of Windows 7 SP1 would be around the end of July.

P.S. The image above is just photoshoped.

Well this is a lot sooner than expected, but I just found out that Microsoft Kinect is now up for Pre-Order online at the Microsoft Store site. The $149 cost is pretty much inline with rumors and pretty reasonable in my opinion.

Although I must say that I am a bit disappointed that it wouldn’t come bundled with a game or two like Wii came with Wii Sports but I guess Microsoft might offer a slightly more expensive game bundle around the release date, which happens to be November 4.

There were also rumors of a Kinect bundle with the new Xbox 360 S but so far none of them have been confirmed officially. The said bundles would feature Kinect along with an Xbox 360 S Arcade or Xbox 360 S Elite for $299 and $399 respectively. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see if they do pop up.

As for myself, I’d definitely be getting Kinect but I’m waiting for a bundle with Xbox 360 S Elite before I jump in. I’m guessing that would only happen around October. But you can pre-order for yourself right now if you want by hitting the source link below.