A look at Microsoft’s device-agnostic game streaming model; sources say Microsoft prototyped a cloud-focused Xbox handheld, but its cloud gaming work has slowed 台南收購筆電

台南收購筆電
loud Gaming are enough for many. Cloud gaming on a phone isn’t a replacement for a true handheld, though. Phones are pretty terrible for cloud gaming, especially when someone’s trying to call you, there’s no Wi-Fi on a plane, or you get a notification in the middle of your game. Microsoft made its own Surface Duo better at handling cloud gaming, but there’s still room for improvement.A dedicated cloud gaming handheld that can also run mobile games — like the Logitech G Cloud — is a good alternative that at least removes the notification and battery hassles. Microsoft worked closely with Logitech on its handheld, but there’s still no official Xbox cloud gaming handheld in sight.Sources familiar with Microsoft’s Xbox plans tell me the company was prototyping a cloud-focused Xbox handheld previously. Microsoft has developed a lightweight version of the Xbox user interface that can run on handheld devices, dedicated cloud consoles, and TVs. While we’ve seen this interface appear on some Samsung TVs, the dedicated Xbox cloud console that Microsoft first announced in 2021 was canceled as Microsoft pivoted toward the TV streaming app instead.The prototype Xbox cloud gaming console. Image: Phil Spencer (X / Twitter)The Xbox maker had been very close to launching its dedicated Xbox cloud console last year before scrapping its plans just weeks before an announcement. The device, codenamed Project Keystone, was then spotted on Xbox chief Phil Spencer’s shelf in October, confirming that the company had manufactured some units.Work on Xbox Cloud Gaming has slowed over the past year inside Microsoft, sources tell me. Microsoft previously promised that Xbox Cloud Gaming would support your existing game library by the end of 2022, but that never happened. Microsoft also scrapped plans to launch a dedicated version of Xbox Cloud Gaming that players could subscribe to instead of paying for the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription. That’s likely all because regulators around the world have been focused on Microsoft’s cloud gaming efforts as part of a review of its proposed Activision Blizzard deal. The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority even blocked the deal citing cloud concerns, and the European Commission shared similar cloud concerns but approved the deal thanks to cloud-related remedies.It was also a key part of the FTC v. Microsoft hearing. In the weeks leading up to that hearing, a source told me that Microsoft had started temporarily reassigning people working on Xbox Cloud Gaming to other parts of Xbox. During the FTC hearing, Sarah Bond, head of Xbox creator experience, revealed that Microsoft decided against a separate version of Xbox Cloud Gaming after the company got more data on the success and popularity of the service. “We’ve gotten more clear on the costs related to it, and we have signed partnerships with others who provide those services,” said Bond in June.The ROG Ally is the closest thing yet to an Xbox handheld.Windows handhelds need Microsoft’s helpAll of this scrutiny about the future of Xbox Cloud Gaming makes it unlikely that we’ll see a cloud-powered Xbox handheld or console anytime soon. But Microsoft is also well placed to create its own Steam Deck rival that’s powered by Windows and provides access to PC Game Pass, Steam, and other key launchers. After all, cloud devices don’t beat playing PC games on the go where there’s no internet connection required.台南收購筆電asus’ ROG Ally is emerging as the go-to device for PC Game Pass on portables. Spencer is a fan of the ROG Ally, describing the handheld as his “Xbox on the go” in a recent interview with Eurogamer. He also downplayed the idea of Microsoft making its own Xbox handheld in that same interview. “I don’t need people to buy a piece of hardware from us specifically to go play,” said Spencer. “[The ROG Ally is] an amazing Xbox experience, even though we didn’t build the device. And I think that’s totally fine.”If Microsoft wants to stick to OEMs and partners leading the way on Windows handhelds, then it will still need to greatly improve the user experience. Most of the reviews of Steam Deck rivals have one gripe in common: Windows. Microsoft’s desktop-focused operating system doesn’t scale down well to smaller devices, especially when a touchscreen or analog sticks are involved. Both 台南收購筆電asus and Lenovo have tried to create their own layers on top of Windows, but with everyone from OneXPlayer to Aya and GPD trying to solve the Windows problem, it really needs Microsoft to step in.“We are focused on making the Xbox and GP experience great on devices like the Ally … More to do,” admitted Spencer in a tweet in July. That more to do may include bringing features like Quick Resume to Windows gamers. Microsoft’s prototype Windows handheld mode. Image: @_h0x0d_ (X / Twitter)A leaked hackathon project for a concept Windows gaming handheld mode offered some hope earlier this year, but there’s still no sign from Microsoft that the company is willing to provide its own launcher and special Windows 11 UI for handhelds that’s designed for touchscreens and controllers.I truly hope Microsoft is seriously working on improving the experience of Windows-based handhelds. Otherwise, we’re in for years of hacked-together projects from OEMs that never really work that well. Valve put a lot of effort into the underlying SteamOS that powers the Steam Deck so that you don’t have to navigate around a desktop Linux environment to get to your favorite games. Windows deserves something similar.With analyst estimates of the Steam Deck hitting 3 million sales this year, Linux overtaking macOS on Steam, and rumors of a Nintendo Switch 2 on the horizon, PC gaming handhelds look set to grow beyond their initial niche of the past decade. Microsoft is fully aware that these handhelds are growing in popularity and that it has to do something. “I don’t think those are going to be niche devices – those are going to reach scale,” said Spencer in the Eurogamer interview.If

▲ 華碩公開新款 台南收購筆電asus Zenbook DUO 筆電。（圖／記者樓菀玲攝）

記者樓菀玲／台北報導

華碩在 CES 2024 期間舉行線上發表會，今日最受矚目的是全新 Zenbook Duo 雙 14 吋 OLED 觸控螢幕筆電和ZenScreen Fold OLED 可攜式摺疊螢幕，這兩款產品展現了華碩在雙螢幕技術方面的持續創新。

華碩 Zenbook Duo 雙 14 吋 OLED 觸控螢幕筆電，作為全球首款配備兩個 14 吋 OLED 觸控螢幕的 AI 筆電，重量僅 1.35 公斤，其 180 度轉軸設計和 16:10 的 台南收購筆電asus Lumiana OLED 螢幕，搭配可拆式全尺寸 ErgoSense 鍵盤，支援多種使用模式，如桌機、筆電、分享和雙螢幕模式，以滿足多樣的工作和創作需求。

Zenbook Duo 2024 年式配備 Intel Core Ultra 9 處理器、32 GB LPDDR5X 記憶體、高達 1 TB PCIe 4.0 SSD，並擁有 75 Wh 電池支援快速充電，除了 Zenbook Duo，華碩還推出了一系列其他創新產品，包括 ZenScreen Fold OLED 可攜式摺疊螢幕、台南收購筆電asus Vivobook Pro 15 OLED 等，為 AI 運算和多工處理提供加速。

華碩消費性筆電全球行銷總監傅星翔表示，華碩會因應依各產品線不同需求，分別導入不同應用和技術，像是本文提及的 Zenbook Duo 就是因應 AI 時代而生的筆電。

雙 14 吋 16:10 全尺寸 台南收購筆電asus Lumina OLED 觸控螢幕，可在視訊會議、傳送檔案、網頁瀏覽及AI相關應用程式的多工處理中，能有更高效的生產力。舉例來說，Copilot 的使用，會佔據螢幕大約 1/3 的視窗面積，而 UX8406 的雙 14 吋螢幕，增加了延伸的空間給 Copilot 視窗，讓使用者多視窗運用 AI 協作更有效率。。 

▲ 新款 台南收購筆電asus Zenbook DUO 筆電採用雙螢幕設計。（圖／記者樓菀玲攝）

▲ 台南收購筆電asus Zenbook DUO 筆電側面結構，原本 C 面的鍵盤變成兩件式設計。（圖／記者樓菀玲攝）

▲ 圖左為一般使用情境，圖右則是將兩片螢幕直立敞開使用。（圖／記者樓菀玲攝）

台南收購筆電 台南收購筆電