In the midst of the launch of the new Windows Live services, which included the update to Games for Windows Live yesterday, the Microsoft Store officially opened for US businesses.

Previously, the company opened at UK, Germany, and Korea, and both hardware and software would be sold by Microsoft. Furthermore, it also offers the option to purchase software, either as physical media or as a download.

The store would instantly provide many versions of Vista (both full versions and upgrades) and Office and its related components.

Thursday witnessed the launch of touch-screen smartphone, ‘Xperia X1’, by Sony Ericson, a 50:50 joint venture between Sony and Ericsson. Carrying a price tag of Rs 44,500, the latest smartphone is equipped with lots of multimedia features. It is basically aimed to serve the needs of the users related to converged entertainment and mobile web communication experience.

Anil Sethi, Sony Ericsson India President, said, “Xperia, aimed to offer energizing communication and premium mobile experience, with the promise of quality and functionality.”

The latest reports have informed that soon, the iPhone users would be able to use their voices to browse the web with the help of a new application from Google.

A well known newspaper has revealed that an online voice search application for Apple’s mobile phone is all set to be launched by the company as early as this week.

This entry of search engine giant with a free iPhone application will prove to be the first venture of the company into voice-based search.

The model of Maruti A-Star, the much-awaited latest small car model which was showcased at the Delhi Auto Expo earlier this year, will be launched in India on November 19. The model, expectedly priced at Rs 3.85 lakh, also marks the launch of the new KB series engines in India.

It will be the first car that will be produced exclusively in India, and the engine production commenced in October this year. A-Star shares its platform with Maruti Alto in India, as it has a similar 2360 mm wheelbase.

Leading mobile manufacturer Nokia expanded its E-series by launching E63 smartphone in the market. It would give stiff competition to rival BlackBerry in terms of cost, features and technology. Nokia E63 is equipped with an improved keyboard and comes in two colours. 

For high picture quality the new Nokia E63 comes with 2 mega pixel camera and flash light as compared to E71 which supports 3.2 mega pixels camera.

However, it does not support GPS facility and HSDPA.

Its other specifications are---

36-inch QVGA display with 320 x 240 pixels

Leading computer manufacturer, Dell has launched its quasi-Netbook, the Mini 12 in the US market. Earlier, Dell Mini 12 has been launched in Japan. Mini 12 is available at a starting price of $549.00 in United States.

It supports 1.6GHz Atom chip, 6-cell battery and 60GB hard drive with ultra modern finish and look. One can upgrade its hard disk from to 60GB or 80GB and speed up CPU operations using 1.6GHz version of the Atom.