You've just unwrapped that box containing your new Windows Phone 7 and have never been more excited, but then wonder what else can be done on this device and hurry over to the Marketplace. Browsing the Marketplace, quite honestly is no pleasant experience on any mobile device so you may just want to know what the best apps are to get.
Neowin is here to help you find the must-have applications for your new Windows Phone 7.
The Weather Channel Price: Free
Some WP7 devices will come preloaded with a hub for the latest news, stocks, and weather. This is nice, but what if you wanted more detail for your weather, wanted to look at radars, or display the temperature on a Live Tile? The Weather Channel app does all of this. Anyone coming from an iOS device will notice many similarities in the way this app feels, with the scenic weather backgrounds throughout the application. Using this you can get location-based alerts, hourly to ten-day forecasts, and the ability to display the current temperature and weather condition on your home screen using a Live Tile. It's a must-have for those who want real weather information, or just want a tile to quickly check the weather.
Send to WP7 Price: Free
Send to WP7 works in the same manner as Chrome to Phone for Android, allowing one to send links from their browser to their mobile phone, which comes in handy for the extremely lengthy URLs or if you just want to save it to your phone for later. Send to WP7 connects your Windows Phone 7 handset and Firefox, Internet Explorer 8 or 9, Chrome officially, or any other browser that supports a bookmarklet using a pairing code. Once the two are linked up, one can simply visit a web page then click on the extension icon or bookmarklet to send the URL to their phone. This app uses Push Notifications which allows for quick access to that long link you've come across, a must-have for those needing to have their links quickly sent to them on the go.
WordPress Price: Free
Imagine an integrated, feature-filled, and beautiful way to update your blog on the go. WordPress for Windows Phone 7 offers just that. You can edit and moderate all the content of your blog that can be done through a computer, and all using the Metro UI. Upon first opening up the application, it takes you to a setup screen for adding a self-hosted blog, or one that WordPress hosts. In fact, there is even an option to create a blog at WordPress.com right from the app itself. The designers have nailed this tool, as it is a pleasure to use, simplistic, and yet still offers a powerful tool that can be used on the go. In addition to simply text, WordPress for Windows Phone 7 will also allow a blogger to add in media to their posts as well, making this ideal for a traveler who wants to share a day's findings on their blog, a must-have for anyone who gets that spark-of-ingenious at random times and needs to tell the world immediately.
Netflix Price: Free
The addition of Netflix to the Windows Phone 7 platform truly shows just how much the streaming video giant loves catering to the user. Netflix for Windows Phone 7 joins the family of applications on a wide range of mobile devices, gaming consoles, and web-based applications. When the application is loaded you are presented with a home screen showing the top picks for you, and if a movie was in progress on some other device, there is the choice to continue watching as well. Netflix also takes advantage of the startup screen to allow enough content to be loaded, including DVD covers so that the experience with the large amount of content shown can be easily used. Playback is fast after selecting a title, even on 3G, and the quality of the stream is great as well, a must-have for movie and television lovers.
Rocket Riot Price: $4.99
Rocket Riot is one of those games that you just have to play it once and you will be hooked. This simple, but addicting side-scrolling, 2D/3D, pixel art shooter is great to just pick up and play at any time. Offering a completely destructible environment, power-ups, pirates and jetpacks, this comes as an extremely fun game for the casual gamer. It's also Xbox Live enabled, which means for those ever-trying to boost up their Gamerscore, you can do so since this game includes achievements. The soundtrack has a very upbeat and 8-bit sound with catchy tunes. In addition to simply shooting cartoony characters with rockets, there are mini-games in various levels that you go through such as taking a football from one end of the map to the other, or destroying all of a certain object. The changing gameplay and pick-up-and-play ability will leave this game as a mobile favorite for the device, a must-have for anyone looking for that funny, quirky, addicting game.
Facebook Price: Free
What mobile platform could be complete without an app for the social network giant Facebook? Facebook for Windows Phone 7 comes to offer many of the same features users have come to love about other mobile versions, and expanding on the basic integration to Facebook the people hub has to offer. When first signed on, a home screen is presented giving access to your account controls, features, and friend requests. Swiping over then gives you the status updates, followed buy a Pictures page showing the most recent pictures from everyone, and then Events and Notifications. The application feels extremely well built and just flows as it is easy to find any friend and check out what they have been up to, or post your own status and check to see if there is anything you need to attend to, a must-have for anyone who needs that daily dose of Facebook.
Honorable Mention
- Twitter free - As Facebook is already heavily integrated into the people hub, some may feel that the device is lacking without proper Twitter support. This is a feature-filled Twitter client which will help fill that void on your phone.
- Helicopter free - Simple game where the player is a helicopter in a cave that must avoid crashing. Extremely addictive and easy to pick up and play.
Windows Phone 7 has quite some offerings, and there are even more apps that have gone unmentioned like Game Chest: Solitaire Edition and iheartradio that create a unique toolset for the mobile device.
Leave us names of some of your favorite Windows Phone 7 Apps in the comments!
21 Comments - Add comment