Microsoft has four key 'visions' for Pocket PC 2003 (PPC 2003): make it easier for manufacturers to innovate, improve the 'wireless experience', bring easy instant messaging to the PDA, and expand the 'media experience'.

A Vista-only release that's merely a port of an Xbox game. The charm's in the gameplay, not its Vista-centric nature.

A much-hyped console epic comes to the PC, but unlike others that have made the move this deserves its press.

A worthy update to the most underrated of the Office applications — OneNote is now a must-have.

A Media Center Extender, upscaling DVD player and great games console

It has been over two years since we previewed Office XP, but Microsoft has finally given us a glimpse of Office 2003. The finished version should be on the shelves by the end of July, but will it be worth the upgrade? The answer could be an emphatic 'yes' if you're a Tablet PC user, as Microsoft has just launched OneNote (see page 59), making full use of electronic ink. The company is also introducing InfoPath (see page 59) for designing electronic forms, with the flexibility of XML. The classic apps have also had their seen refurbishment, with Outlook (page 56) getting the most attention, and FrontPage and Publisher (page 58) a bit of a revamp.

A marvel of programming, art and science.

This is a pretty decent little webcam – it's just that, without games to fool around with, it feels like a low-end PC webcam plugged into your Xbox. EyeToy this ain't

It might seem like there's not that much to a keyboard or mouse. On the contrary, given that just about every interaction you have with your PC is through one of these devices, it's critically important to choose something that is comfortable and efficient.

OneNote is one of those rare apps you'll wonder how you ever managed without it. It's basically a note-taking application where you work on sheets of electronic paper, putting down your ideas and rearranging them.

PreviewA good attempt at all-in-one system security, fully integrated into the OS.

Microsoft's hardware division pumps out some excellent keyboards and mice, and from the latest refresh of their range comes the evocatively named top-model Optical Desktop Elite for Bluetooth.

Stacks of potential, but current hardware is underwhelming and the client software a mess.

Useful new features and a total interface overhaul make this the best Office ever.

A big improvement from Microsoft, but there’s still some way to go. OneCare can now call itself a serious security contender.

There is little doubt that digital photography will take over from film, and it will happen sooner rather than later. As more people buy and start to use digital cameras there is an ever increasing demand for simple-to-use photo editing software that will allow them to get the best out of their photographs.

Improvements all round keep PowerPoint well ahead of the competition.

A disappointingly modest number of improvements, although they’re well integrated into the complete suite.

The arrival of Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 (ES2K3) is a significant event in the history of this product. First, it brings to a close the second era of the codebase. Released back in 1996 on the NT 4 wave, ES4 (there was no 1, 2 or 3) brought enterprise-level email, contact management, diary management and so forth to the Windows Server platform in a new and comprehensive BackOffice application.