Adobe Systems has released a version of its official PDF document reader app, Adobe Reader, for Windows Phone 8. The app was previously available for Windows Phone 7, but until now had not made the jump to the latest version of Microsoft's mobile platform. Microsoft has provided its own PDF Reader app, and there are a number of third party solutions, but an app from the company that invented the file format will be welcomed by most users.

The app allows you to quickly open PDF documents (including password-protected documents), view them in a single page or continuous view, search for specific text strings, select and copy text from a PDF file to the clipboard (where permitted by the documents licensing rights), and zoom-in on text or images. Navigating through long documents is also relatively fast thanks to support for bookmarks and a thumbnail page view. 

Feature wise the app is similar to the Windows Phone 7 version, reflecting the similar version number (10.1) of the two apps. Performance wise the Windows Phone 8 version is superior to both the Windows Phone 7 version, with faster opening of files and smoother navigation and scrolling, reflecting the extra power under-the-hood available in Windows Phone 8 devices.

Adobe's app is also superior to Microsoft's own PDF Reader app in terms of both performance and stability. This is most noticeable when dealing with long or complex documents. However, both apps can live side by side on a device, with the user given the choice of which app to use when opening a PDF file from another app (email, web, SkyDrive etc.).

Windows Phone Store description:

Adobe® Reader® is the free, trusted leader for reliably viewing and interacting with PDF documents across platforms and devices. Install the free Adobe Reader mobile app to work with PDF documents on your Windows Phone devices. Easily access a wide variety of PDF types, including password-protected documents. 

Adobe Reader is a free download for Windows Phone 8 from the Windows Phone Store. The Windows Phone 7.5 version remains available for older devices.