Since his trial began on January 13, supports of Silk Road mastermind Ross Ulbricht have protested outside the Manhattan courthouse. Getty Images Ross Ulbricht, a soft-spoken former Eagle Scout with a master’s degree in materials science, has been convicted of creating and operating the Silk Road, one of the Web’s largest marketplaces where criminals could …

Nate Ralph/CNET Microsoft’s consumer devices are starting to show signs of life. The company’s fiscal second-quarter earnings posted Monday indicate that its consumer businesses are consistently growing. Its Lumia phones are selling better than ever and Surface, its tablet line, is officially a billion-dollar business. Though these divisions are still nowhere near as large as Microsoft’s software, servers and Internet …

Microsoft’s HoloLens prototype has all the innards of a computer built directly into the headset. That means no cords or even a smartphone required. Microsoft Microsoft has a vision for the future, and it involves terms and technology straight out of science fiction. But are we actually glimpsing that future? Yes and no. Microsoft’s HoloLens, which the company unveiled at …

The evolution of Microsoft’s Perceptive Pixel acquisition, the Surface Hub is an 84-inch 4K touchscreen for the workplace. Microsoft LAS VEGAS — Nestled between two false walls in a lavish suite at the Venetian hotel and casino is what I think is an enormous television. Here, during the chaos of the annual Consumer Electronics Show in early January, too-large TVs …

On January 21, Microsoft is expected to reveal more information about Windows 10 for phones and tablets and detail how the universal operating system will change across devices. Nick Statt/CNET The next chapter in Microsoft’s corporate history may be called Windows 10, but the name of the book should be “Once More, With Feeling.” The company on Wednesday will host …

Fitbit’s Surge smartwatch, which costs $250 in the US, acts like fitness tracker. Sarah Tew LAS VEGAS — Have you been holding out for a wearable that tracks your heart rate on top of your activities? Fitbit has begun shipping two wrist wearables that could fit your needs. The two devices, called the Fitbit Charge HR and Fitbit Surge, provide …

Samsung’s new mammoth 105-inch 4K TV can flex its display at the push of a button. Sarah Tew / CNET LAS VEGAS — Samsung has been No. 1 seller of televisions around the world for the last nine years — and it’s keeping that lead even as the industry moves into ultra-high definition sets. The company announced onstage at its …

Make room for Belty, a smart pant-holding device that slims or expands to adjust to granular changes to your waistline. It is not a joke. Nick Statt/CNET LAS VEGAS — Rarely does does a new technology product break the mold and truly stand out amid a chaotic contest like the annual Consumer Electronics Show. Here at CES 2015’s first big …

Panasonic’s Lumix DMC-LX100 is one of the companies newer cameras capable of shooting 4K video. Sarah Tew/CNET If 2014 was the year that “ultra HD” 4K gained ground, then this is the year that will test whether it truly takes over— and Panasonic is banking on having something to show for when 1080p finally gets bumped. At the annual Consumer …

Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang holds out the Tegra X1, which he claims is the world’s first mobile “superchip.” Nvidia LAS VEGAS — Nvidia wants to bring its high-end PC graphics card business to mobile — and it thinks it has a chip that can deliver the image quality of an Xbox One to the dashboard of your car. At the …