The next generation of Windows: Windows 10  —  Today I had the honor of sharing new information about Windows 10, the new generation of Windows.  —  Our team shared more Windows 10 experiences and how Windows 10 will inspire new scenarios across the broadest range of devices, from big screens to small screens to no screens at all.

Hands on with Microsoft's holographic goggles Project HoloLens  —  Our Exclusive Hands-On With Microsoft's Unbelievable New Holographic Goggles  —  It's the end of October, when the days have already grown short in Redmond, Washington, and gray sheets of rain are just beginning to let up.

Apple acquires UK startup Semetric, which runs music analytics service Musicmetric  —  Apple buys the British startup behind music analytics service Musicmetric  —  Company helps record labels track digital sales, streams and social stats, and could become part of Beats Music relaunch

Sources: Samsung to drop Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 and use its own chip in next Galaxy smartphone  —  Samsung Said to Drop Qualcomm Chip From Next Galaxy Smartphone  —  Samsung Electronics Co. (005930) will use its own microprocessors in the next version of the Galaxy S smartphone …

WhatsApp launches a desktop web app to serve Android, Blackberry, and Windows Phone users  —  WhatsApp Web  —  Today, for the first time, millions of you will have the ability to use WhatsApp on your web browser.  Our web client is simply an extension of your phone: the web browser mirrors conversations …

FreedomPop launches unlimited WiFi with 10M hotspots across US for $5/month  —  FreedomPop Turns On Unlimited Wi-Fi Across The US For $5/Month  —  FreedomPop, the startup that is trying to steal users away from mobile carriers by offering free, basic cellular voice and data plans …

Amazon ends its mobile-wallet beta six months after launch  —  Amazon to fold its mobile-wallet app beta on Wednesday  —  The closure comes amid rocky efforts by tech companies to expand into the financial industry.  —  Amazon will pull the plug on its Amazon Wallet beta on Wednesday …

Dropbox acquires Israel-based CloudOn, a developer of mobile productivity tools  —  Dropbox Dips Into Israel With CloudOn Buy  —  Acquisitive tech startup Dropbox just gobbled up another young app maker to bolster its European expansion.  —  The cloud-storage provider on Tuesday closed …

Windows 10's Mobile Debut Reveals Cross-Platform Features And Skype Integration  —  Windows 10 was hailed at Microsoft's special event today as a cross-platform OS that makes it easy to build once and ship to almost anything.  Microsoft EVP of Operating Systems Terry Myserson said it was the …

Sources: Uber raises $1.6B in convertible debt from Goldman Sachs' clients  —  Uber Said to Raise $1.6 Billion in Convertible Debt to Expand  —  Uber Technologies Inc. raised $1.6 billion in convertible debt from Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS)'s wealth management clients …

Microsoft announces Surface Hub, an 84-inch 4k display with pen input, dual cameras, and microphone array  —  At its Windows 10 event in Redmond today, Microsoft today unveiled the Microsoft Surface Hub.  Microsoft describes this Windows 10 device as an 84-inch 4K display with “integrated compute.”

Christopher Poole announces retirement from 4chan, says “senior volunteers” will run site  —  The Next Chapter  —  I founded 4chan eleven and a half years ago at the age of 15, and after more than a decade of service, I've decided it's time for me to move on. 4chan …

Users of 3rd-party WhatsApp clients reportedly being banned from the service for 24 hours  —  WhatsApp is one of the most-used messaging apps in existence, and today countless users of the service have taken to Google+ and Twitter to report that they're being banned from the service for 24 hours.

Alleged “right hand man” to Silk Road 2.0 leader arrested in Seattle  —  On Tuesday a Washington state man was arrested by federal authorities in Seattle's Bellevue suburb for allegedly helping to run Silk Road 2., the anonymous online marketplace for illicit goods that sprang …

Pinterest Acquires Machine Learning Commerce Recommendation Engine Kosei  —  Facebook knows who you were.  Google knows what you want now.  But Pinterest yearns to know what you want next, which is “exactly” why it acquired recommendation engine startup Kosei, Pinterest's head of engineering Michael Lopp tells me.

Apple Steps Up Lobbying in Washington to Counter Government Scrutiny  —  Tim Cook recently traveled to an unfamiliar destination for an Apple Inc. (AAPL) chief executive officer: The U.S. Capitol.  —  During the trip last month, Cook posed for a photo with Senator Orrin Hatch …

Vessel Signs More YouTube Stars to Subscription Service, Launches Limited Beta Test  —  Vessel, the digital subscription-video startup founded by ex-Hulu CEO Jason Kilar, has signed more than a dozen YouTube stars and other partners to its service as it opens up the service in an invitation-only beta test.

White House breaks own State of the Union embargo for online audience  —  Obama administration posts full text of president's speech before its own media embargo in unprecedented decision targeting internet-savvy readers  —  The White House posted the entire text of President Obama's 2015 State …