You've got to love a game which is smooth, fast, beautifully presented - and which helps you learn at the same time. As the title suggests, GeoQuiz UWP asks you to locate people, attractions, brands and sights on the Earth's surface. As accurately as possible, by dragging around a marker and zooming in as needed. There are over 300 things to locate here, with algorithms building in how you did in terms of location and time taken to do so - it's harder than it looks!
Blogging has moved on aways since Tumblr started (social networks such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter have taken up much of the slack), but it's still going strong, with quirky and niche content producers pumping out text and visual content. And, although there's no official Tumblr client for Windows 10, there are two UWP clients that work really well. One is 6tum UWP, featured here, but Ouga (also UWP) is bigger and more comprehensive. Get inspired, have a browse!
I'm not entirely clear why I/we weren't aware of Duplex Media Player here at AAWP, but it's been around for a while, is a full Windows 10 UWP, plays all audio and video seamlessly, has Chromecast support, and can stream from OneDrive or media servers directly. Yes, it's a commercial application, but it's only £1.70 if you grab it in the next 12 hours and, with one small caveat, it's really, really slick.
A 'different' (and somewhat pricey) accessory here, but one which should be of interest to almost everyone who drives. It's a dual port power bank for your smartphone and a powerful torch - that's also an emergency car starter. Up to 30 times over. It's well conceived overall, but the power bank side is poorly implemented.
Instagram (as far as I can see) has always been a bit quirky. Sticking to low res VGA images for so long stopped me taking it seriously. And even today, simple features like being able to download photos you like seem to be missing. Probably partly for copyright reasons, but mainly to keep the content 100% under Instagram's control. ProGet Universal (a UWP app for all Windows 10, of course) solves the image acquisition issue - and in some style.
Back in 2012, Ewan reviewed the ebook reader Freda for Windows Phone 7.x, i.e. back in the dark ages(!) But this is 2018 and the UWP version for all Windows 10 devices has been out for a while. Which means that it's time for the formal review treatment here on AAWP. Freda+ is a cracking app that opens up whole new worlds of content, so read on...
The search for a great Bluetooth keyboard - for on the go 'real' typing - has been going on for years. Full size and reduced size keys, one-piece and folding, gapped and continuous key layouts, membrane and full travel keys, I've tried the lot. Have I found my perfect accessory this time? Not quite. But it's still the best darned pocketable Bluetooth keyboard on sale in 2018, I think.
Only ever mentioned in passing here before and with all the SpaceX goings on awakening public interest in all things astronomical, I wanted to feature NASA Picture Galleries UWP in all its glory, for all Windows 10 Mobile handsets, Windows 10 hybrids, and so on. It's not a first party (i.e. NASA) application, but it does a cracking job of 'raiding' the NASA image archives in app form.
Although designed mainly for Windows 10 on laptops, hybrids, even Hololens, Audials Radio UWP also works pretty well under Windows 10 Mobile, as you might think. A direct competitor to TuneIn Radio UWP, this covers similar ground, handling live Internet radio streams and podcasts, but with a few twists of its own.
OK, I say this every time, but... we have a new winner. In the power bank stakes, at least. The combination of input and output flexibility, capacity, ruggedness, coupled with a camping-grade torch, all make the slightly cheesily named EasyAcc MegaCharge D20 the accessory to beat at the moment. Just a fabulous bit of kit.
