Share your Windows 8/8.1 (Store) app recommendations

By Steven P.
in Microsoft (Windows)

 Share

Recommended Posts

Grand Master

Steven P. Administrators

Posted
  • Administrators
Posted

post-2-0-86798800-1344518915.jpg


The Start screen is now where it's at, whether we like it or not. Windows 8 does include a few apps out of the box, and ones that have to be downloaded and installed but what we want to hear are great apps that you have discovered in the store, and why.

Collaborator

Subhadip

Posted
Posted

I am using OneNote MX, Tweetro and Discourse very frequently. I know Metrotwit is popular, but Tweetro is very intuitive and the best Twitter client I have used even at this beta stage. The in-line browser is a great feature. Discourse is a great news reader, and utilizes all the real estate you throw at it. It is very information dense, yet comfortable. I can't wait for Pulse though, the website optimized for Windows 8 / IE10 looks very promising. On Release Preview though, looking forward to some great apps for GA. I find myself using the default apps often as well, e.g. Messenger, IE10, News, Finance, etc. and some other apps like The Big Picture, but usually infrequently. What I do not use is Mail, Video and Music - they are simply not good enough in the App Preview stage, but I fully expect them to evolve into a great WinRT apps by GA time.

Overall, WinRT has great potential, and I look forward to trying out more great apps come RTM time. Even on a 27 inch 2560x1440 monitor, dropping back to Desktop after the WinRT environment and/or visiting websites feels pretty clunky. I accept that for work, but for consumption, if I had my right, everything should be Metrofied.

Grand Master

+pmrd Subscriber²

Posted
  • Subscriber²
Posted

is your windows rtm activated ???

You registered to ask that?

One nice app is Star Chart, people who like astronomy will find it really cool and informational.

  • drazgoosh, Alera and Ezekiel Carsella
  • Like 3
Mentor

nekkidtruth

Posted
Posted

The store has apps? I was horribly disappointed with the current selection. Of course, that's my personal opinion. I found all categories to be heavily lacking in content. Truth be told, there were a few I thought for sure I'd see in there but they were nowhere to be found. Thoroughly disappointing.

That being said, I'm well aware that the store is in it's infancy. I know we'll see a lot more added to it. Doesn't make it any less disappointing.

Grand Master

Chicane-UK Veteran

Posted
  • Veteran
Posted

I actually tried out the eBay app yesterday and thought it was pretty neat. I could see myself using it from the new Start Screen rather than going to the website..

Veteran

sagum

Posted
Posted

The store has apps? I was horribly disappointed with the current selection. Of course, that's my personal opinion. I found all categories to be heavily lacking in content. Truth be told, there were a few I thought for sure I'd see in there but they were nowhere to be found. Thoroughly disappointing.

That being said, I'm well aware that the store is in it's infancy. I know we'll see a lot more added to it. Doesn't make it any less disappointing.

Thats pretty much how the windows phone store is too. Completly erratic in its results.

Even if you goto http://www.windowsphone.com/en-US/marketplace and under Applications, click Top. You'd expect to see the top apps for Windows Phone. Yet... we see more games. Its been like this since forever and I don't hold up hopes for the Windows store either.

Their Market place app on the Windows Phone suffers from the same problem and is, quite a poor design in general. I think we'll see more apps for Windows 8 that are designed much better then the built in Store that'll just provide a better way of finding apps and games much like we've had to have on the Windows Phone, ie AppFlow WPCentral etc.

  • andrewbares
  • Like 1
Grand Master

PGHammer

Posted
Posted

post-2-0-86798800-1344518915.jpg

The Start screen is now where it's at, whether we like it or not. Windows 8 does include a few apps out of the box, and ones that have to be downloaded and installed but what we want to hear are great apps that you have discovered in the store, and why.

The only WinRT app that actually has replaced a Win32 application (for me) is AccuWeather.com (which replaced AWS WeatherBug - which has a new WinRT app itself). It replaced AWS WeatherBug because AccuWeather.com has no ads, while still providing timely alerts (toast-fashion). Utterly free, as well.

Veteran

Nazmus Shakib Khandaker

Posted
Posted

I love the MS solitare and MS minesweeper games. Minesweeper will soon have a free DLC that will add adventure mode; so can't wait.

I also like the star app mentioned earlier. Pinball FX 2 is also awesome.

I have to say, the RTM version of the Mudic app is very good. Up until and including the Release Preview, I hated the music app and used Windows Media Player. Now, I use the Music app.

Experienced

Wyn6

Posted
Posted

I have to say, the RTM version of the Mudic app is very good. Up until and including the Release Preview, I hated the music app and used Windows Media Player. Now, I use the Music app.

I'd be curious to know what improvements the RTM music app has over the RP version (which I'm using as I type this). Not to mention, since the app can be updated separately, it may be updated prior to GA.

But, like Subhadip above, I'm using the OneNote MX app (Currently plotting my Fantasy Football strategy), DIscourse (which has been pulled for an update), and Tweetro (snapped right now).

USA Today and News360 are excellent as well. The NBC News app (formerly MSNBC) is well laid out and excellently designed.

Digital Folio is a great product comparison app for us electronic and tech geeks. XE Currency (Conversion app), especially when used with the Search feature while shopping on the web for example.

And, if we're talking games, Armed! and Wordament are stellar. Although, Wordament is rather difficult to play with a track pad. With a mouse and touch, it's just fine.

Veteran

Nazmus Shakib Khandaker

Posted
Posted

The music store in the RTM is at least twice as fast. Whereas it took a while to load up stuff in the RP version, the music store loads up content almost instantly. Plus, it is more responsive.

Oh, and here's Minesweeper DLC download prompt! Enjoy! :D

Minesweeper%20DLC.png

Apprentice

rorrr

Posted
Posted

The Big Picture, amazing photo journalism

WeatherBug--it's kind of ugly, but the info is updated frequently and the radar map is nice

Free Books. classics for free

Metrovexed, Flow, TargetWord, Tap N Pop, Treasures of Montezuma, Woolyball, PinballFX, Hydrothunder Hurricane (games)

Wappwolf has potential. it extends the functionality fo the Share charm. needs more development though.

Newegg app is nice, but you'd probably only use it on a tablet

Grand Master

FloatingFatMan

Posted
Posted

I actually tried out the eBay app yesterday and thought it was pretty neat. I could see myself using it from the new Start Screen rather than going to the website..

Really? Every time I tried to do something useful in it, it sent me to the browser...

Veteran

Nazmus Shakib Khandaker

Posted
Posted

Guys, cut the rope is finally released. You will need Windows 8 RTM to play it. It has all the levels as in the iOS version. You can play one box of 25 levels for free, after which you will need to pay $5 plus tax to unlock the full game. The price is the same as that in the Mac App Store.

Veteran

Nazmus Shakib Khandaker

Posted
Posted

Has app count went up at all since RTM yet? Last I heard it was 400-450 or so?

Yes, there are a bunch of new apps in the RTM store. Note: Apps are no longer being added to the Release Preview store. If you want to download new apps, including the final version of Cut the Rope, YOU NEED THE RTM OF WINDOWS 8.

Mentor

LightShadow

Posted
Posted

Yes, there are a bunch of new apps in the RTM store. Note: Apps are no longer being added to the Release Preview store. If you want to download new apps, including the final version of Cut the Rope, YOU NEED THE RTM OF WINDOWS 8.

So how come I still see only >300 apps and the preview version of Cut the Rope?

Veteran

Nazmus Shakib Khandaker

Posted
Posted

So how come I still see only >300 apps and the preview version of Cut the Rope?

Cut the rope is no longer in preview, even though it might say so in the screenshot. If you download it, you will see there are hundreds of levels with the complete set of boxes as found in iOS and Android version. Furthermore, cut the rope is not free but a trial. You can only play 25 levels in cut the rope before it asks you to purchase the full version to unlock all the levels.

About the number of apps, you are not seeing them all because not all apps are not in your language. You can turn off this option so you see al the apps by going to the Windows Store settings page (hint use the settings charm).

This topic is now closed to further replies.
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Posts

    • This Dell 27 inch 4K 120Hz IPS monitor is really cheap after a very long time

      By hellowalkman · Posted

      This Dell 27 inch 4K 120Hz IPS monitor is really cheap after a very long time by Sayan Sen Recently we covered a really good deal on an AMD RX 9070 three-fan model that's available at slightly above its MSRP. If you are looking for a GPU for 1440p gaming that's around the performance of the Nvidia RTX 5070 you should most definitely check it out. Let's say that you are looking for a monitor to pair that up with too. The Samsung 49" G9 curved QD-OLED superultrawide is a good option that can provide an immersive experience. However despite being a very good deal currently (at $855), it may seem unaffordable to you, or you may simply not want to spend as much on a monitor. In that case Dell's S2725QS can be a very good option as it's on sale at the moment for its lowest price in over six months (purchase link under the specs table down below). The big highlight of the Dell S2725QS is its 27-inch IPS panel with a 3840 x 2160 (4K UHD) resolution, offering a high pixel density that can make text appear sharper while also providing plenty of screen space for productivity and media consumption. The display supports a refresh rate of up to 120Hz through both HDMI and DisplayPort, making it suitable not only for everyday desktop use but also for smoother gaming and scrolling. AMD FreeSync Premium support is included as well, helping reduce screen tearing during gaming sessions. The screen has fairly good brightness and color accuracy so you can use it for general work purpose, though photo/video editing is probably not going to be the best match for this. The technical specs of the Dell S2725QS are given in the table below: Specification Value Viewable Screen Size 27 in (68.58 cm) Screen Mode 4K UHD Maximum Resolution 3840 × 2160 Maximum Preset Resolution 3840 × 2160 @ 120 Hz Standard Refresh Rate 120 Hz Panel Technology In-plane Switching (IPS) Backlight Technology LED Edgelight System Pixel Density 163 PPI Response Time 8 ms GTG, 5 ms GTG, 4 ms GTG Horizontal Viewing Angle 178° Vertical Viewing Angle 178° Brightness 350 cd/m² (nits) Native Contrast Ratio 1500:1 Color Support 1.07 Billion Colors Color Gamut 99% sRGB (CIE 1931) Adaptive Sync AMD FreeSync Premium HDCP Support Yes Mount Type Panel Mount VESA Mount 100 × 100 mm Maximum Height Adjustment 13 cm Tilt -5° to 21° Swivel -30° to 30° Pivot ±90° Stand Adjustments Tilt, Swivel, Height, Pivot Glass Hardness 3H Horizontal Frequency 27–270 kHz (DisplayPort 1.4 / HDMI 2.1) Vertical Frequency 48–120 Hz (DisplayPort 1.4 / HDMI 2.1) Video Inputs 2 × HDMI 2.1 (HDCP 1.4 & 2.3), 1 × DisplayPort 1.4 (HDCP 1.4 & 2.3) Operating Temperature 0°C to 40°C Storage Temperature -20°C to 60°C Operating Humidity 10%–80% (Non-condensing) Storage Humidity 5%–95% (Non-condensing) Get it at the link below: Dell S2725QS 27-inch 4K 120Hz IPS monitor: $218.49 (Sold and Shipped by Amazon US) (Was: $280) Good to know This Amazon deal is U.S. specific, and not available in other regions unless specified. We only use first-party seller links (at the time of article publishing); ensure that you purchase from a first-party seller link only. Check out Today's Deals on Amazon | or our recent tech deals. Become a Prime member (for Students or SNAP) via Neowin Get Prime Access - Prime for half price (for qualifying Medicaid, EBT, SNAP) Subscribe to Prime Video, Audible Plus, Music Unlimited or Kindle Unlimited via Neowin As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases
    • The official Funny Pictures thread

      By +primortal · Posted

    • Sihoo Doro C300 Pro V2 Ergonomic Office Chair review: The Ikea of chairs

      By MrElectrifyer · Posted

      Looks almost like what our office provides us, excluding the leg rest for obvious reasons 😴
    • Why it's almost impossible to produce a smartphone in the United States

      By Davin Peterson · Posted

      Forget the iPhone. What about Android? Most Samsung Galaxy phones sold in the USA are manufactured in Vietnam. Asian countries have the infrastructure that the USA doesn't have. This is why most electronics are not made in the USA
    • Apple reportedly looks to blacklisted Chinese memory chips as RAM prices climb

      By +Good Bot, Bad Bot · Posted

      The RAM would still probably be more expensive than what they were paying last year.

  • Recent Achievements

    • Conversation Starter
      jessse3334 earned a badge
      Conversation Starter
    • Reacting Well
      JuvenileDelinquent earned a badge
      Reacting Well
    • One Month Later
      Excellence2025 earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • Week One Done
      Excellence2025 earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Week One Done
      flexorcist earned a badge
      Week One Done

  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      498
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      231
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      152
    4. 4
      Steven P.
      82
    5. 5
      macoman
      64
    Show More

  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!