On CE - For Dealers, Distributors and OEMs of Consumer Electronics throughout EMEA

Microsoft announces plans to open a first flagship store in Europe-- specifically in Oxford Circus, London just up the road from the recently redesigned Apple flagship store.

The Windows maker reportedly started scouting for a brick-and-mortar store location in the British capital back in 2015. The location it managed to find is currently occupied by United Colours of Benetton and, as one surely knows, sits in an extremely popular shopping area hosting flagship stores for the big likes of Nike and H&M, among others.

Road to VR reports Intel has given up on Project Alloy-- the reference design for an all-in-one self-contained VR solution promising to "cut the VR cord."

Described as "the future of merged reality" back at its 2016 Intel Developer Forum reveal, the Project Alloy headset carried all components to power VR experience. As such, it allowed a full range of motion with 6 degrees of freedom (6DoF), as well as Augmented Reality (AR) via RealSense technology.

However a statement provided to Road to VR reads Intel is winding down the reference design because of lack of partner interest. The reason why partners are not interested is unclear, but it could be due to costs associated with essentially cramming a full Windows PC in a headset.

How masculine can a smartphone be? According to China's Doogee the answer is very, as the rugged S60 handset promises to be "manly, strong and special in [the] market."

Apparently designed to "work in fields, underwater and other outdoor environments," the S60 features IP68 protection, with an aluminium alloy complete plastic cushioning around the corners able to "take care of itself." The 5.2-inch FHD display is clad in Corning Gorilla Glass 5, and the whole device is covered with a gold finish.

Customers asking for a wearable audio device that does not cover the ears? Bose might have a solution with the SoundWear Companion, a speaker one wears on on their neck.

The SoundWear Companion pairs with smartphones via Bluetooth, meaning it streams music and takes calls just like any other similar device. It is controlled via companion iOS/Android app, and promises to provide music while not shutting out the noise of the outside world.

Producing what "deep, rich sound" is a pair of 11-inch waveguides, while the battery promises up to 12 hours of use on a single charge with a quick 15-minute charge giving up to 3 hours of use). Construction is sweat and weather resistant, and a combination of bend-and-stay steel wire and medical-grade silicon ensures the wearable stays form-fitted on the shoulders.