Microsoft will hold a Professional Developers Conference (PDC) event from September 13th through September 16th, Steven Sinofsky, Microsoft’s Windows Chief, said Tuesday. According to Business Insider, Microsoft may introduce its latest Windows 8 operating system during the event — an OS that will cater better to touchscreen tablets and lower powered processors. A September introduction could mean that Microsoft is gearing up for a launch sometime next year, a time frame that’s in line with earlier rumors. Microsoft may already be shipping the operating system to some of its OEM partners, and some reports have suggested that the Redmond-based company will show off early tablet designs in June. The report remains a rumor, however, as Microsoft has not gone on the record to say when it will lift the curtain on Windows 8. Read

Santa Ballmer? Steve Claus? Neither nickname has a great ring to it, but Microsoft’s CEO definitely deserves something similar this holiday season. Network World confirmed Thursday that Microsoft will be handing out free Windows Phone 7 devices to each and every company employee — that’s about 89,000 phones. Add to that another 1,000 free WP7 handsets that will be passed out to Microsoft’s Professional Developer Conference attendees, and you’ve got quite an expense (likely over $20 million) that the Redmond giant is swallowing. You can’t put a price on publicity, however, and 90,000 free phones translates into a pretty huge amount of chatter. This is all well and good, but let’s hope the sizable stunt also ends up moving some product.

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Steve Ballmer needs to slow his roll! While on tour in the U.K. for the Professional Developers Conference, Ballmer saw it fit to take a little jab at Android and reaffirm Microsoft’s status in the mobile world. One would think that he learned his lesson when he laughed at the iPhone when it was first announced and said he wasn’t worried about it one bit — that it wouldn’t do well because the lack of a physical keyboard was just stupid and it was “most expensive phone ever.” Now he’s taking that wonderful insight to make an analysis of Android, or more specifically why it’s not going to be a threat to Microsoft.

First, Ballmer says that Android is unattractive for handset makers because it’s version one and looks like a version one. Wow, someone promote this guy from Lieutenant to Captain Obvious! Second, he says that Google isn’t going anywhere any time soon stating “they’ve got one handset maker, we’ve got 55. They’re available through one operator, we’ve got 175.” Perhaps he missed the news about Motorola and other handset makers who are wanting bang out Android faster than a fat girl can… we’ll spare you. Or perhaps he’s thinking Google isn’t really known for blowing up and pretty much making a huge presence in nearly everything it touches. Steve Ballmer perspires like no one we’ve seen before, but apparently he ain’t sweatin’ this one.

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