Our 5 favourite new Windows Phone apps of the week
August! The final few weeks of the school holidays, last-minute trips to the beach, blackberry picking, cider-drinking, weddings and barbeques and chilled white wine in the evenings: we love it!
But more importantly, we love the apps that it brings – right, guys? This week we’ve rounded up our top five releases, both new and updated, from the last seven days of July, so that you can kick off the new month in style. Ready?
Glasgow 2014
What is it: the official Windows Phone guide to this year’s Commonwealth Games
Why we love it: An Olympics for those who can’t wait four years for the next Olympics, the Commonwealth Games is a must for athletics fans, and this app makes for a really handy companion: it’s got a full schedule of events as well as results and tallies of each country’s medals, a break-down of each sport, each country’s team and info on the individual athletes. Get it now – the Games are half-over, so you want to maximize your fun!
Who it’s perfect for: sports fans
Wakie
What is it: an alarm app with a difference…
Why we love it: It’s useful, it’s social and it’s pretty insane: when you sign up with the service, you set an alarm time and you’ll be woken by a phone call from another user, who could be from anywhere around the world! You get cut off after sixty seconds so don’t stress about making good conversation – just enough of a chat to get your brain moving and you’re done. Quirky – and free!
Who it’s perfect for: sleepy people who like a little creativity in the morning!
BBM Beta
What is it: a messaging service
Why we love it: BBM is a cross-platform messaging service from Blackberry; they’ve been running a private beta for a few weeks now, but the public was unveiled on Thursday. It lets you chat (privately or in a group) and share pictures, voice messages, locations and contacts (just BBM contacts, though). Another biggie to join Whatsapp and the rest; we’re intrigued to see if it’ll take off.
Who it’s perfect for: texters
Facetune
What is it: airbrush your mug on the go!
Why we love it: This a pretty niche photo-editor: it’s all about touching up portraits – brightening smiles, smoothing out blemished skin, hiding grey hairs and more – and there’s a handy before/after split-screen feature so you can see if you’ve made it all better or worse. Your profile pics will soon be celebrity-worthy!
Who it’s perfect for: selfie fans
PayPal
What is it: A super simple way to transfer cash
Why we love it: PayPal released its Windows Phone app way back in 2012 and the mobile payments app contains all the functionality you’d expect like sending/receiving payments and managing your account. It also lets you track down local businesses that have integrated the company’s PayPal Here service. This latest update features a snazzy user interface makeover, which makes the design much more streamlined, modern and generally easier to use.
Who it’s perfect for: Anyone who wants a quick and easy way to send and request money
Hey, we told you it was a good haul! If you’ve seen any other new releases that have floated your collective boats this week, drop us a line in the comments as usual.