TravelMate B3 and TravelMate Spin B3, Acer announces new Windows 11 laptops for education

TravelMate B3 and TravelMate Spin B3, Acer announces new Windows 11 laptops for education

Acer is announcing the TravelMate B3 and TravelMate Spin B3 laptops for education that run Windows 11 SE or 11 Pro Education. The 11.6-inch laptops are able to survive the school day, with military-grade durability and 10-hour battery life. The laptops are to be available in the Middle East and Africa region in quarter 1 of 2022. The Acer TravelMate B3 (TMB311-32) will retail at EUR 359 whilst the TravelMate Spin B3 (TMB311R-32) at EUR 539. Acer says the devices are very customizable and is letting schools choose a model that suits their students’ unique needs.

TravelMate B3 Acer

The laptops are built to support the needs of K-12 schoolchildren featuring the latest Intel Pentium Silver and Celeron processors. They are MIL-STD 810H certified and feature shock-absorbent bumpers. This makes them tough enough to withstand up to 60 kg of downward force and drops from up to 4ft. A unique drainage design helps to protect internal components from moderate spills. A mechanically-anchored key design also provides a double benefit. One, administrators can easily replace the entire keyboard. Two, individual keys are well-secured so that they won’t be dislodged by restless fingers.

Acer TravelMate B3 and Acer TravelMate Spin B3

TravelMate Spin B3 Acer

Durability aside, a number of thoughtful features help the laptops find their place within the classroom. Intel Wi-Fi 6 (Gig+) with 2×2 MU-MIMO technology helps with connectivity in multi-user environments. An optional 4G LTE provides students with a connection when away from a router. A webcam makes the laptops suitable for taking classes from home. While a 10-hour battery life means that they can make it through the full school day, too. The battery indicator on the device’s front cover also lets teachers tell a student’s device needs a recharge.

The Acer TravelMate Spin B3 comes equipped with Acer Antimicrobial Design. It features not only an Antimicrobial Corning Gorilla Glass touchscreen, but also an antimicrobial (silver-ion) coating on commonly-used high-touch surfaces (including the keyboard, touchpad, and palm-rest surface) to protect these surfaces.

Users can further opt to include a dockable Wacom AES pen and 5 MP HDR world-facing camera, allowing schools to customize their laptops in order to suit their students’ specific needs.

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15 startups selected for the first cohort of the Microsoft GrowthX Accelerator program

15 startups selected for the first cohort of the Microsoft GrowthX Accelerator program

15 startups will participate in the first cohort of the Microsoft GrowthX Accelerator program. They will work to co-create technology solutions with partners such as Etihad Airways, Unilever, Flow, IKEA, KPMG and Akbank. The startups will spend 12-weeks of virtual and physical workshops and training in the United Arab Emirates. Thanks to Microsoft for Startups’ partnership with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO).

Startups are now in the driver’s seat to fulfilling their potential says Roberto Croci, Managing Director, Microsoft for Startups, MEA. “Alongside our partners, we look forward to enabling our first cohort of B2B startups to compete at the highest level. And in hopes of transforming the region into a globally leading hub for technology and entrepreneurship.”

The accelerator program is designed to bridge the gap between corporates and B2B startups across the Middle East and Africa. By connecting startups with large corporations with specific problem statements they are looking to solve. The 12-week program will empower the B2B startups with technology, mentoring and market access.

GrowthX Accelerator startups

Here are the 15 startups from across the Middle East and Africa region participating in the Microsoft GrowthX Accelerator program.

  • Spitch – a global provider of B2B and B2C Conversational AI solutions.
  • Gener8 – enables users to control and be rewarded from their own data.
  • Poltio – helps the world’s top brands engage and learn from their users with interactive content.
  • Getbee – an ecommerce platform that engages with customers on a more human and immersive level.
  • OPLOG – a pioneer in e-logistics, simplifying the cost, time and resources for supply chain operations.
  • Fero – shaping the future of digital freight with technology to automate the logistics industry,
  • Urbantz – a SaaS solution to transform last mile delivery and logistics across industries.
  • Barakatech – delivers super-app platforms, blockchain solutions, and next-gen FinTech microservices.
  • Hi55 – a digital payroll scheme to empower individuals and businesses with cashflow.
  • Nym Card – provides dynamic and secure building blocks for building fast and easy card programs.
  • Artiwise – an AI and NLP startup that provides cloud-based analytics solutions to enterprises.
  • B2Brain – delivers tailored analytics to automate research and intelligence to improve conversations.
  • Alpha Sense – an intelligence platform that helps businesses make data-driven decisions.
  • NexDegree –enables brick & mortar retail stores to improve customer experience and sales.
  • Udentify – reduces the need for manmade market research, utilizing body tracking technologies.

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Check out other stories making the news in the technology ecosystem in Africa and the Middle East.

Microsoft announces winners of Remote Resilience Online Hackathon

Microsoft announces winners of Remote Resilience Online Hackathon

winners hackathon microsoft Africa middle east

Five solutions have been selected as winners of the Microsoft sponsored Remote Resilience Online Hackathon.

The hackathon organized by BeMyApp sought to unearth new innovations in remote work during this Covid-19 pandemic era. Inviting ideas from individuals and organizations across the Middle East and Africa region.

Easy Gas, an IoT solution emerged winners of the hackathon. Winning the 4000 USD first place price. Their IoT solution monitors gas levels, detects leakages and connects owners to vendors for refills and fixes.

HR SAM Remote Interview Specialist and Wazabi projects tied in second and third place. Projects Speechio and Cubicle came in fourth and fifth place respectively.

Business Group Manager Microsoft Azure Middle East and Africa, Julien Bertin announced the winners of the hackathon virtually. “Congratulations to the winning team and all the hackathon participants,” Julien shares. He notes it was a very difficult selection for the judges.

Remote productivity is a huge challenge and opportunity for the world these days. Developers are essential to build the right solutions to cater to our new reality.
Thank you for contributing your energy and creativity to help a better work environment for developers. We are looking forward to seeing you in our next event.

Find the full announcement and winners below.

To learn more about Microsoft’s developer activities in the region kindly visit https://www.cloudsociety.microsoft.com

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Win $4000 in the Remote Resilience online hackathon

Win $4000 in the Remote Resilience online hackathon

online hackathon

BeMyApp and Microsoft present an online hackathon centered around remote work. Dubbed the Remote Resilience Online Hackathon. The competition let’s you showcase your remote work idea using Microsoft technology.

The competition invites startups, individuals and teams with ideas around and not limited to Remote Collaboration & Productivity, Remote Secure Access Management, Remote Rapid Business Process & Customer Relationship Management and Remote Distributed Team Programming to apply.

Registration and submission of ideas starts from 14th May to 23rd June. On the 29th of June 2020, five winners will then be announced. There is no limit in the number of ideas you can submit. But you can only have one registration per innovation, project or idea.

Additionally, Microsoft will also host a webinar on May 28th. To announce resources and give insights on technologies that can help you build your prototypes.

Find out more about the Resilience Online Hackathon and register to participate. Checkout the FAQ that relate to the competition rules and more as well.

The hackathon event is organized by BeMyApp and sponsored by Microsoft.

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2020 Microsoft Events: Middle East and Africa Calendar

2020 Microsoft Events: Middle East and Africa Calendar

Microsoft events in the Middle East and Africa

Happy new year guys! Let’s start off the year by telling you about events to look forward to in 2020. We are putting together conferences and trade shows Microsoft will host or participate in across the Middle East and Africa. The 2020 Microsoft events in the Middle East and Africa target students, developers, IT pros, partners and customers.

We are sharing details of events we have confirmed. However don’t hesitate to share with us events we haven’t included; info@microsoftcaregh.com so we can add them. We will also have a separate post that will focus mainly on the various Microsoft meetup communities and their events across the MEA region.

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DATEEVENTLOCATION
January 11, 2020 Power Platform Ghana 2020 Accra, Ghana
January
30-31, 2020
Microsoft Ignite The TourJohannesburg,
South Africa
February 3,
2020
CyberGirlz annual Conference Microsoft Reactor –
Tel Aviv, Israel
February
4-6, 2020
Africa Tech Summit Kigali, Rwanda
February
10-11, 2020
Microsoft Ignite The Tour Dubai,
United Arab Emirates
February 29-2
March, 2020
Dynamics 365 Dubai Summit 2020 Dubai,
United Arab Emirates
March 9, 2020 IoT in Action Dubai, UAE
March 18-19, 2020Women in Tech AfricaCape Town, South Africa
March 19, 2020 Microsoft Envision Forum Lagos, Nigeria
March 31 and
April 2, 2020
DevConf Cape Town and Johannesburg,
South Africa
April
22-23, 2020
Microsoft Ignite The Tour Tel Aviv, Israel
May 7, 2020 SQL Saturday Israel Petah Tikva, Israel
May 19-21, 2020 MICROSOFT BUILD Seattle, Washington
July 18,
April 10-11, 2020
Power Platform Africa – 365 Saturday Lagos Lagos, Nigeria
July 20-24, 2020Microsoft Inspire Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
August 15, 2020 Power Platform South Africa 2020 Johannesburg, South Africa
September 27 – 1 October, 2020 GITEX GLOBAL Dubai, UAE

Learn about how you can win a Microsoft sponsored trip to DevConf 2019 in South Africa.

This Microsoft events in the Middle East and Africa list will be updated from time to time. As new events come up. Bookmark this page and check it often. Share your thoughts with us.