Share your Windows 8/8.1 (Store) app recommendations

By Steven P.
in Microsoft (Windows)

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Grand Master

Steven P. Administrators

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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.

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Subhadip

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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.

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pmrd

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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.

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nekkidtruth

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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

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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..

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sagum

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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.

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PGHammer

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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.

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Nazmus Shakib Khandaker

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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.

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Wyn6

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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.

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Nazmus Shakib Khandaker

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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

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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

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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...

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Nazmus Shakib Khandaker

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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.

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Nazmus Shakib Khandaker

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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.

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LightShadow

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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?

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Nazmus Shakib Khandaker

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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).

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