Business / Technology

Was somebody missing from the opening lineup at Microsoft’s Windows Hardware Engineering Conference today in Seattle? Windows boss Jim Allchin, for instance?

Elsewhere at the show:

The most jarring sight was a FlexGo PC powered by a car battery sitting on the floor in Intel’s booth. Will the next must-have PC accessory be a pair of jumper cables?

Speaking of FlexGo, I wonder if Microsofties found inspiration for the name on their FlexPass bus passes issued by King County Metro.

Cool demos included a Wi-Fi remote control for the Media Center PC that can display photos or a list of music files and serve as a standalone media player.

Also nifty were Skype-killer phones that let you place calls via Microsoft’s Messenger service. Coming to market shortly are Messenger phones from Motorola and Uniden.