Thurrott Daily: October 19, 2015

Here’s what’s happening today.

10/19/2015 9:38:11 AM

Good morning.

I installed Windows 10 build 10568 and I think I liked it

Because it’s what I do, I installed the recently-leaked Windows 10 build 10568 on my PC over the weekend. As reported, there are no major changes, at least that I can find. But Tom Warren shows a little prompt I’m not seeing. And it is sure to be controversial in some circles.

Here’s the thing. Such as it behooves Microsoft to ensure that as many users as possible are on its latest OS version, it likewise behooves them to keep you in their ecosystem. And while this kind of behavior was illegal when Windows was a monopoly, it’s not anymore. And I have zero issue with Microsoft trying to push their products on users. Since, after all, you can still change defaults as you see fit.

Anyway. Nothing to see here, basically.

“Microsoft Admits Forcing Windows 10 Upgrade Was A ‘Mistake'”

Nope. What they admitted was that Windows 10 upgrades were provided to users who had not requested them … by mistake. It didn’t purposefully force those upgrades on purpose and then later realize it was a bad decision.

Thinking about the new Nexus handsets

I was hugely disappointed by Google’s Nexus entries last year—which, come to think about it, I wrote about previously in Google Needs to Get the 2015 Nexus Devices Right—leading to a bit more ambivalence about this year’s devices, the Nexus 5X and 6P. Plus, I already have a Moto X, which is amazing.

Maybe I should rethink things. With the Nexus 5X and 6P starting to ship to the first customers, the reviews are coming in. And they seem quite positive. Consider the following, from TechCrunch:

For me, the Nexus 6P is the crown jewel of all Android devices, regardless of who’s designed them … It’s gorgeous, fast and sturdy … The battery is outstanding thus far and I’ve gotten through an entire day of regular use without having to charge. When it is time to charge, you can do so quicker than ever with the USB Type-C system … I never thought I’d care about a fingerprint sensor, but hot damn did Google get this design right … The Nexus 6P takes comparable photos [to a Nikon DSLR]. Super crisp. With zoom, without zoom, doesn’t seem to matter.”

This Wired overview is worth reading as well.

Hm. I need another smart phone like I need another hole in my head. Still …