Microsoft plans to do more marketing and advertising for its Windows 8, Surface tablet and Windows Phone 8 group of products, than any other product in the company's history, said Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.

Speaking at a company event in Israel, Ballmer admitted that Windows Phone 8 is still far from where Microsoft wants it to be. "We're still relatively small ... I expect the volumes on Windows Phone to really ramp quickly," he said.

Ballmer also said Microsoft plans to be the third force in the smartphone market, behind Apple and Google. "With the work we have done with Nokia, HTC, Samsung and others ... there is now an opportunity to create really a strong third partici…
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More About: Steve Ballmer, Windows 8, Windows Phone 8, microsoft, surface

After grudgingly posting a notice stating that Samsung did not copy the iPad on its UK website, Apple was reprimanded by the UK court, which claimed the notice was "untrue" and "incorrect". Now, Apple has replaced it with a new notice, which follows the court's order to the letter.

The new notice is considerably shorter than the original one, merely stating that the "High Court of Justice of England and Wales ruled that Samsung Electronic (UK) Limited's Galaxy Tablet Computers, namely the Galaxy Tab 10.1, Tab 8.9 and Tab 7.7 do not infringe Apple's Community registered design No. 0000181607-0001."

Originally, Apple added a number of snarky remarks and elaborated that the c…
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More About: apple, notice, samsung

Apple's tablet market share has dropped to 50.4% in Q3 2012, down from 59.7% in the same period last year, IDC's latest report reveals.

Samsung, on the other hand, has experienced huge growth, jumping from 6.5% to 18.4% in that same period. Amazon holds the third place with 9%, followed by Asus with 8.6% and Lenovo with 1.4%.

The old Silicon Valley joke, which claimed that "there is no tablet market, only an iPad market," is obviously no longer true. According to IDC's numbers, Samsung shipped 5.1 million tablets worldwide in 3Q12, up 115% from 2Q12 and 325% from 3Q11.

Things are looking very good for Amazon, also, whose rapidly expanding Kindle Fire lineup has helped it d…
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More About: Tablet, apple, ipad, trending

More than 100,000 Android applications in Google Play are considered "suspicious" or "questionable," according to new research.

Out of 412,000 apps in the store, this 25% pose a security risk to mobile users, according to Bit9, the security software firm that analyzed the apps' security permissions.

Among its findings: 72% of apps use at least one high-risk permission; 42% access GPS location data (including wallpapers, games and utilities); 31% access phone numbers or calls; 26% access personal data such as contacts and email; and 9% use permissions that can cost users money. For more details, check out the infographic, below.

"A significant percentage of Google Play apps have acc…
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More About: Google Play, android, apps

For aspiring Hemingways, right now is a particularly appropriate time to shake off the writer's block and glue yourself to a keyboard, because November is National Novel Writing Month or NaNoWriMo. (No, I didn't just make that up; it's the official abbreviation.)

Signing up is simple and free at NaNoWriMo's website. Then, the race is on. The goal is for participants to write a 50,000-word novel before the clock hits midnight on Nov. 30.

For point of reference, 50,000 words is just over one word per minute for the entire month. But since we're already a few days into November, you might have some catching up to do.

The event is run by a non-profit organization in Berkel…
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More About: Literature, authors, nonprofit, writers

1. Eternal Eden

Author: Nicole Williams Genre: Young Adult/Fantasy Price: Free Availablility: NOOK, Kindle Description: The first book in a four-part series begins with Bryn living a normal life — until she meets William Hayward, and she slowly discovers more about herself and the world she lives in.

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"Cheap" and "good" are sometimes incompatible terms — especially when it comes to the bargain-priced e-book shops for NOOK and Kindle.

The average prices for Kindle and NOOK e-books are $6.48 and $8.94, respectively, but there's no need to shell out the full cost.

SEE ALSO: Mashable Debuts First E-Book: Politics Transformed

Instead of sorting through the misplaced free and low-priced books on your own, we've compiled some of the best low-cost options to download on your e-reader.

Whether you're into vampires, historical fiction or memoirs, the gallery above features a range of reads that won't empty your bank account. Let us know some of your favorite finds in the comments belo…
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More About: Kindle, e-books, e-reader, education, features, nook

1. LEGO Colosseum by Ryan McNaught, aka "The Brickman"

Ryan McNaught created the Colosseum. Half of it is in ruin, while the other half depicts the structure as it was in 80AD. Image courtesy of Ryan McNaught

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Here at Mashable, we love LEGO. In celebration of those brilliant Danish building bricks, we have searched the Internet for some amazing LEGO creations.

From a stegosaurus to an Olympic stadium to Star Wars characters, we think you'll be impressed with the skill and creativity in our selection.

SEE ALSO: Top 10 LEGO Movie Tributes on YouTube

Take a look through our image gallery of incredible LEGO creations. We know there are plenty more out there, so tell us about any other amazing creations you've seen.

Thumbnail image courtesy of Sean Kenney

More About: Entertainment, Lego, Photos, Watercooler, features, toys

During this year's U.S. election, candidates channeled the power of apps and text messaging to appeal to voters, promote their party platform and fundraise.

CallerSmart analyzed how much telephones -- smartphones, texts and anonymous phone banks -- are bringing democracy to a digital environment. As it turns out, President Barack Obama or Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney could thank cellphones for being elected on Nov. 6.

SEE ALSO: How Are Apps Shaping the 2012 Election? [INFOGRAPHIC]

Obama and Romney developed personalized mobile apps to tap into a more connected constituency. The president's app was more popular on Androids, while Romney's was downloaded more on iPh…
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More About: U.S. presidential election, election 2012, infographic, president obama

There's something a little unusual about the Nov. 12 cover of Time magazine: It was shot using iPhone photography app Hipstamatic. The cover, "Lessons from the Storm," was shot by photojournalist Ben Lowy, and is one of three in rotation for the issue.

Hipstamatic offers an array of cheaply priced films, lenses and other photo effects. Unlike Instagram, which invites users to apply filters to photos they've already taken, Hipstamatic users must pre-select the films and lens they intend to shoot with. The final result is therefore less predictable, and more like traditional print photography.

The app has already made its way into the interior pages of magazines like Everyday Foo…
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More About: hipstamatic, time, time magazine

Name: Bow & Drape

Quick Pitch: Customizable women's clothing manufactured in classic silhouettes in the U.S.

Genius Idea: A "fit kit" helps shoppers overcome sizing concerns.

Over the past few years, startups as well as existing brands, have begun to invite consumers into the design process. Companies such as Blank Label and Gemvara allow shoppers to design their own shirts and jewelry, respectively, from a range of different forms and materials. On its website, Burberry lets users choose the style, color and details of their own "Bespoke" trenches, which come in more than 12 million combinations.

The latest to enter this arena is Bow & Drape, which opened…
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More About: The Launchpad, bow and drape, fashion, kickstarter, retail

With technology advancing at a break-neck speed, many gadgets once considered the latest and greatest are now outdated and obsolete.

More About: Canon, Macs, Nokia, adtech, ipod, old technology, technology

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie harnessed the power of Twitter -- and the Biebs -- to promote Sandy relief efforts.

Christie tweeted at super-celeb Justin Bieber to help spread the word about the Hurricane Sandy New Jersey Relief Fund.

.@justinbieber my girls are big fans. Will u help us spread the word about NJReliefFund? For more info: tinyurl.com/anufbos #WeWillRebuild— Governor Christie (@GovChristie) November 4, 2012

In response, Bieber retweeted the governor, resulting in more than 1,300 retweets and nearly 700 favorites by Sunday night. The singer previously expressed support for the Red Cross in its push to help Sandy victims.

Gonna try to work with Red Cross…
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More About: Chris Christie, Hurricane Sandy, New Jersey, justin bieber

Double Rainbow Shines in NYC After Superstorm Sandy

After Sandy brought rain, wind, toppled trees and flooded subways, this beautiful rainbow over New York City was a sight for sore eyes. As inspirational as nature's prismatic display, however, were the responses of our readers and the support they offered to those affected by Sandy.

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In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, people up and down the East Coast were left devastated, whether displaced from their homes, faced with property destruction or, in the most tragic cases, having lost their loved ones. At Mashable, we've been inspired by watching how members of our community -- both online and here with us in New York City -- have reached out to neighbors to lend a hand in whatever way possible. Their support and altruism made the top comments this week on Mashable truly memorable.

In many ways, tragedies like Superstorm Sandy bring out the very best in people. We saw that in many acts of kindness performed by residents of New York and New Jersey, and in those who are donat…
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More About: Halloween, Hurricane Sandy, Star Wars, gmail, top comments

Now that Lucasfilm is in the hands of Disney, George Lucas must be figuring out ways to help Disney enjoy the kind of spectacular success he's had, right?

More About: George Lucas, Star Wars, Sunday Comics, comics

Hurricane Sandy ravaged the northeastern U.S. this week, and whether or not you were in the area, odds are it captured a great deal of your time and attention. Understandably, you might not have been able to keep tabs on what has been happening in the tech world and around the Internet.

Although the majority of Mashable's staff works from lower Manhattan, where there is still no power, we've done our best to continue to provide coverage of the best digital media resources. Here is a recap of our feature stories from the past week. In addition the regular topics -- social media, business, tech and lifestyles -- this week's roundup includes stories from our Gift of the Day series, which wi…
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More About: Business, Features Week In Review, Lifestyles, Social Media, Tech

It's been a tough, busy week. East coasters were getting their power knocked out by Hurricane Sandy. Most of the world was getting dressed up to go trick-or-treating. And then there were those waiting in line to snatch up an iPad mini.

So, if you didn't have time to keep posted on this week's hysterical viral videos, we've got you covered.

SEE ALSO: Past Viral Video Recaps

Jimmy Kimmel couldn't resist taking a jab at Apple's latest product release with his very own "suckers commercial;" Darth Vader and his band of stormtroopers hung out at Disneyland to celebrate becoming the newest addition to Mickey Mouse's family; and while the upcoming U.…
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More About: Halloween, Viral Video Recap, cats, ipad mini, trending, viral videos

The Nexus 10

The Nexus 10 has a gorgeous 10-inch display with a resolution of 2560x1600.

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After finding success with the Nexus 7, can Google strike gold again with the Nexus 10? To find out, we spent five days with the tablet.

More About: Google, Nexus 10, android, android tablets, features, ipad, reviews, tablets

A new study shows the percentage of iPhone users who say they will buy another Apple smartphone has decreased.

More About: apple, iPhone 5, iphone, trending

Singer Nicole Scherzinger found a show-stopping way to blend high-tech with high fashion: a dress that lit up with tweets in real time.

More About: Twitter, celebrities, fashion, trending

We know, it's a little meta, a viral video about viral videos. But how could we resist, when this parody encapsulates all we've ever wanted to know about making a video an online sensation.

"Buyral" seems to have tapped into the future of viral and is working to make viewers themselves obsolete -- as long as it gets the clicks.

And Buyral looks like it has the edge in viral innovation, not only enlisting the elderly, but even the youngest of tots to be click engineers. And don't forget those "clickterns," making it possible for videos to explode, all without the messy job of getting real people to watch them.

SEE ALSO: Gangnam Style! The Anatomy of a Viral Sensation [INFOGRAP…
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More About: trending, viral videos

Browsing the web in portrait mode allows you to see more of the website at one time. Writing and reading seem more natural in that mode, too.

How widespread is the shift from free to pay on today's Internet? Can newspaper sites survive behind paywalls? Take a look at the trends in this fact-filled infographic.

More About: infographics, internet, newspapers, paywalls, trending

1. Zesty Mower

"It was so like Patty. Right idea. Wrong execution." Image used with permission by Christopher Boffoli

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Children let their imaginations run wild, turning everyday scenarios like breakfast at the kitchen table into a fantasy world.

As we grow more familiar with our surroundings, things become "normal" and lose that sense of wild curiosity.

Photographer Christopher Boffoli created the series Big Appetites with that same imaginative, childlike mindset. The photos, shown above, play on object scale and words, adding tiny, detailed figurines of people to real food environments. A cup of tea turns into a scuba diving adventure, and cylindrical pasta becomes a pipeline factory.

"As a child you live in an adult world that is out of scale with your body and proportions. And you constantly exe…
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More About: Food, Watercooler, nostalgia, photography

Anonymous hacker "pyknic" has hacked into several NBC websites, with the message "Remember, remember the fifth of November."

More About: NBCUniversal, cyber security, hacking, nbc, trending

Soon after Apple parted ways with Scott Forstall, word spread quickly of his departure. One important component of iOS who didn't get the memo: Siri.

More About: Sunday Comics, The Joy of Tech, apple, siri, trending

We've got quite the variety for you this week: Apps to help settle your kids down for bed and introduce them to the basic steps of cartoon animation. Plus, one particularly fun app that lets them (digitally) smash their food.

SEE ALSO: 7 Essential Apps for Grade School Students

The folks at Children's Technology Review provided us with these apps from its comprehensive monthly database of kid-tested reviews. The site covers everything from math and counting to reading and phonics.

Check back next week for more Top Kids Apps from Children's Technology Review.

More About: Top Kids Apps, contributors, features, kids apps, trending

This evening while I was casually browsing my Facebook news feed, the site asked me if I'd like to take a survey, giving some feedback about my Facebook experience. I'd seen plenty of surveys on Facebook before, but never one from Facebook. I excitedly clicked my approval and began my quest to help improve the service.

It soon became clear the survey was more about making Facebook feel good about itself than actually improving its service (Sample question: "How much fun is Facebook overall?"). The questions were extremely general, and made no reference to any specific features, recent news or the wicked-cool Instagrams I've been sharing. Are they even paying attention?

When I asked…
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More About: Facebook, humor, survey, trending

This SNL clip highlights Mayor Bloomberg's many speeches during Hurricane Sandy, and mostly his ASL interpreter and her "pizzazz."

More About: Bloomberg, Hurricane Sandy, Michael Bloomberg, viral videos

Saturday Night Live's Seth Meyers pokes fun at the serious attention paid to social media experts in this year's U.S. presidential race.

More About: election 2012, trending, viral videos

Long ago, in an Internet era far, far away, files were saved and shared with an archaic piece of technology called "floppy disks."

The plastic squares held about 1 to 2MB of data -- hardly enough to share an entire Facebook album's worth of family holiday photos.

Looking to impress your favorite techie nerd over the holidays? Those are not the disks you're looking for. However, the Star Wars-themed flash drives by Mimoco are a perfect gift.

Each of the designer USB flash drives are disguised as a Star Wars character. Mimoco offers a variety of them, including include Darth Vader, Yoda, Luke Skywalker, R2-D2, Boba Fett and Jabba the Hutt, among others. (In case you wer…
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More About: Gift of the Day, Star Wars, features, holidays 2012, online shopping