Hasta La Gadget!

According to WinAppUpdate, Microsoft’s Windows Store for Windows 8 now has a total of 12,895 applications since yesterday. Albeit the number of apps are still relatively small when compared to the Mac App Store’s more than 10,000 apps, it ‘s worth noting that Windows 8 was just launch last month. The opposite could be true. The nearly 13,000 tally yesterday follows after WinAppUpdate revealed on Wednesday last week that the Windows Store was approving around 500 apps per day and that the total number of apps then in the store is around 10,375 applications. If you’ll do the math, that would mean 2,895 applications were added in a span of 8 days since October 31, an average of 362 per day. At this rate, the number of apps should be around 13,257 today, and will probably reach 20,000 before this month ends. Windows Store has a long way to go, but it is definitely showing progress.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: SkyDrive app version 3.0 for Windows Phone 8 released, Yandex discreetly launches new maps service in the U.S. and Europe,

It happens all the time — someone misspoke. During an address at Build yesterday, a Microsoft employee told a crowd that the company has taken to calling its apps “Windows 8 Store Applications.” Turns out that’s not quite right — the proper terminology is the slightly more elegant “Windows Store apps,” as per a note from a Redmond spokesperson. So there you go. No more Metro, no more “Windows 8 Store applications” — just plain, old “Windows Store apps.”

Filed under: Software, Microsoft

Microsoft: we misspoke, actually, they’re ‘Windows Store apps’ originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 31 Oct 2012 12:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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So you’re finally getting that Surface tablet (or a Windows 8 PC of choice) and have decided that a basic weather app just won’t do it justice. AccuWeather agrees with you — after months of supporting the Windows 8 preview editions, it’s formally launching a weather app that takes advantage of Microsoft’s completed Metro Windows 8 interface in all its widescreen glory. The title both provides near-obsessive detail about the climate as well as the requisite live tile for an at-a-glance check. You also won’t have to resort to the web to find out if it’s raining in your neighborhood: a Bing Maps radar overlay shows if it’s safe to leave the umbrella at home. The app is free to download, which makes it entirely too easy to check the weather through Windows instead of the window.

Continue reading AccuWeather launches for Windows 8, lets you know if it’s dry outside the Metro

Filed under: Software

AccuWeather launches for Windows 8, lets you know if it’s dry outside the Metro originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 26 Oct 2012 07:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows 8 users, what with their “Modern” UI and pinned applications, won’t have to stoop to using Hulu Plus in an antiquated internet browser any longer. Hulu today announced its brand new Windows 8 and Windows 8 tablet application, which is designed specifically for use with the tiled UI that Micrsoft’s new multiplatform OS is based around. The new app aims to take advantage of that UI in a variety of ways — pinning an episode or show to your start screen, for instance, or multitasking with other apps while Hulu continues playing in a smaller window, cropped to the left. We’ve dropped a video walkthrough of the app just below the break.

Those with early access to Windows 8 can grab the app right now in the Windows Store through this link (at least, when it goes live again — it seems to be down right now); the app will be available to the rest of us at launch on October 26th, and on Windows 8 tablets the same day.

Continue reading Hulu Plus app heads to Windows 8 PCs and tablets, tailored for new UI (video)

Filed under: Desktops, Handhelds, Home Entertainment, Laptops, Tablets, Software, Microsoft

Hulu Plus app heads to Windows 8 PCs and tablets, tailored for new UI (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Oct 2012 14:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Naturally, there’s a good amount of anticipation surrounding the release of Windows Phone 8 handsets, but before that day arrives, developers will need proper software to code apps. Microsoft stopped short of releasing the requisite tools, but today, the company announced the Windows Phone 8 SDK preview program — essentially a way for developers to get in line for when the software becomes available. As is, all developers must submit an application to the Microsoft Connect website by Monday, September 17th, at which point, they’ll be provided instructions “the following week” of how and where to download the SDK. As for why the company has stopped short of an immediate release, Microsoft blames it on the fact that not all Windows Phone 8 features have been announced — which gives us reason to hope we’ll see a full disclosure in the near term.

In related news, the Redmond giant has also revealed that the Marketplace will be renamed the Windows Phone Store, which is intended to harmonize the naming scheme with the Windows Store. It’ll first rear its head in both Australia and New Zealand, but the company promises to roll out the new storefront to other countries in the weeks ahead. As for what you can expect, a cleaner design and new menu options are said to be in the mix, along with news and reviews from various technology blogs and journalists. Other improvements will include new search functionality to account for typos, along with suggestions for similar apps, regardless of what’s in the title. Finally, Microsoft will also introduce new categories such as Best Rated, Top Free and Top Paid. We’ll initially see these designations in the online store only, but the company promises to mirror the functionality on its phones later this year.

Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile

Microsoft announces Windows Phone 8 SDK preview program, Windows Phone Store replaces Marketplace originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 Sep 2012 15:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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