The big companies led the tech news this year with new releases and acquisitions that will help them challenge one another in the year to come. It wasn’t all successful, however. Here are the highlights.
Apple Releases the iPad2
This was possibly the biggest product release of 2011. On March 11, 2011, Apple released the iPad2, a tablet PC and successor to the original iPad. It featured a 10 hour battery life, a dual core A5 processor, a multi-touch screen, two cameras, and weighed only 1.33 lbs. It also came with the iOS5 operating system and iCloud to link users data. The product was so important that it was announced in person by CEO Steve Jobs, who was taking a leave at the time due to his poor health. This release easily overshadowed the underwhelming October release of the iPhone 4s.
Microsoft Debuts Office 365
On June 28, 2011, Microsoft released Office 365, which allows users to access Microsoft programs online and linking them together in one cloud service, which would also allow users to consolidate contacts. The release has drawn some criticism from it’s early users, but still appears to be going strong.
Google Releases Chrome OS
Google continued to compete with Microsoft and Apple by releasing the Chrome Operating System, which is supposed to be faster, simpler, and more secure than the competition. New laptops with the Chrome OS installed, called Chromebooks, were on the market soon after.
Microsoft Buys Skype
Tech giant Microsoft made a bold move in May and bought out Skype, a video and voice web company, for 8.5 million dollars. This was seen as a defensive move to keep Microsoft’s competition, Facebook namely, from getting it first and further dominating the social networking market.
Netflix Loses Hundreds of Thousands of Subscribers
Internet video rental and subscription service Netflix lost upwards of 800,000 subscribers between June and September. This was mostly due to a price hike the company had made earlier in the year. The company had expected to lose customers, just not quite as many.
AT&T Proposes Buyout of T-Mobile
Though it has not been fully approved, in March AT&T announced plans to buy T-Mobile for $39 billion dollars. The proposed purchase would give the company a combined 129 million subscribers and would lead to lots of issues with subscriptions and customer service.