Category: #Microsoft

Nimbus – SoundCloud client app for Windows Phone. #Nimbus #Apps

Nimbus is a SoundCloud client app, built with an idea for a better music app for Windows Phone.Nimbus Music gives a unique music experience! More Personal and Modern!,Find new and trending music. Collect tracks and playlists. Follow friends and artists.

Nimbus was created by  Vishesh Mittal. who is a passionate Windows Developer from New Delhi, India.He is also a Microsoft Student Partner. And other interests inlcude: Competitive Programming, Cinema, Music and Cricket!

FEATURES:

• Explore Trending Music and Audio feeds

• Search directly for tracks, artists and other users

• Shuffle feature: Plays new music by learning what you’ve been exploring

• See comments from different users, in a unique fashion, while a track is being played.

• Follow friends and artists to hear what they share

• Repost, like, comment, and share a track

• Create & listen to playlists

• Play, pause and skip tracks from the lockscreen

• Multiple theme support : Light and Dark

• Anonymous listening: download the app and play popular songs or audio without creating an account.

Having used the app for a few days its quite nice and its got a nice simple UI to it and runs buttery smooth as they say and a nice addition to Windows Phone..

Download Nimbus on Windows Phone You can try the app or just purchase it outright for $1.99,the App is a 3MB download.

No Windows Phone app for AIB or Bank of Ireland anytime soon.#Apps #Banks

Ulster Bank out of the blue launched a windows phone app which is of course welcome news for Windows Phone users,the few that are left that is here in Ireland that is.So we decided to continue on once more with the long battle having asked them both many times before and the news is not any better now than it was back then so there is no good news to be blunt…

AIB have replied with the following.

Unfortunately, we have no updates regarding the Mobile Banking App becoming available to Windows phones.
However, you can still access internet banking through your phone’s web browser as it has been optimised for use on mobile devices and is very quick and easy to use.We do appreciate your feedback and will pass this on to our Development Team

Sincere apologies for any inconvenience caused.

Thanks for getting in touch – Clare..

Same thing said back in 2013

Bank of Ireland tell us

We do not have any update on a Windows Phone app. We will forward your feedback here to our Development team and will of course let our customers know here and on our usual channels if we receive an update on this.Please let us know if we can help with any other query. Thanks,Sarah.

So there you have it in a nutshell folks..

 

Can we forget about a Ryanair Windows Phone app ? #Ryanair #Windows

Yesterday we where the first to bring you the good news of the new Windows Phone app for Ulster Bank which was something that had been asked for,for over two years and the same can be said for other banks here in Ireland along with other big companies who have just ignored Windows Phone for the last few years,we have been use to the robotic scripted responses over and over again,and the nudge to use the mobile site (which they all do say) and it looks like the end of the road for Ryanair and Windows Phone users.

Over the last few weeks I decided to reignite the flame with Ryanair and ask them again about the app,this however took two weeks to get a final answer today which was short and blunt as you can see below..’The company also did state once before they where working on an App but was over a year ago and now seems fruitless.

This story goes back a long way like the Ulster Bank app and others,take Bank Of Ireland for instance.. who are said to be working on an app for Windows Phone users .But this goes back further than that 

Ryanair did bring a boarding pass app to its customers and again it was for just Android and iOS users,given that this time was when Windows Phone was starting to see some movement it obviously did not cut it cost wise due to the market share,Today market share has dropped from its peek estimated 12/14% and there is no sign of it improving just yet anyway.Ryanair again said the following back then and the full article on that is HERE the poll back then spoke volumes.

 

 

With the recent Ulster Bank app one has to wonder is there some hope down the road for the banking sector to get their eyes open to Windows Phone users as there is plenty here to warrant an app for its users and the same applies to our Airlines too which are shy in this department and it does not just apply to us Irish,Most Windows Phone users though have moved on to another OS due to the shortage of apps,local apps in particular and unless that changes the uptake of Windows Phone will remain poor and fall,there is much more main stream apps though that before be it from the companies themselves or third party devs who do a good job to fill the void,even at that we run into stumbling blocks snapchat being one of them who go out of their way to ensure it cant be published..

Have your say and tell us what you think..

 

 

Ulster Bank app finally lands on Windows Phone #Apps #Windows #Banking

After much time asking ( The guts of over two years) and people complaining/ campaigning and rightly so especially Windows Phone users,Ulster Bank app has finally arrived on Windows Phone and its free to download right now.This might give a little push for others to follow suit but we shall wait and see as it’s took long enough for this to arrive which still is good news.

Personally I am not an Ulster Bank customer so you guys who are can download and test the app for yourself.

The app has plenty of features which are listed below..

Get Cash from your account at any Ulster Bank Republic of Ireland or EasyCash cash machine without using your debit card.

• Pay bills & Pay Your Contacts

• Transfer money between your Ulster Bank Republic of Ireland accounts • Check your balance and your statement

• Find your nearest cash machine or local branch with Near Me • Check your Ulster Bank mortgage account and credit card balance

• View standing orders that you have set up

• Share the app with your friends and family by recommending it from the more menu

 

Also you can avail of the new Apple Watch app HERE

{ Download on Windows Phone }

Microsoft sets the date for new devices. October 6th. #Microsoft

All eyes will be on Microsoft this October as they have begun sending out press invites,new hardware is what to expect such as the Surface 4 and some new handsets which are long overdue and hopefully the handsets will be available really soon and not follow typical trends being US bound or lottery rollouts.They need to get these devices into the hands quick as its been a long time now since the last flagship and many have shifted to other platforms due to the inconsistency and outdated specs and again apps,this is an argument for another day and the hope now is universal apps will save the day,with market share slipping and not many new OEMs jumping on Windows they face an uphill battle with Android and iOS..

The event will take place in New York and expected devices such as the 950/950 XL  and the new Microsoft Band will be unveiled at the bash,recently we have seen leaked renders of the handsets which will be interesting to see how close they par up but something tells me they won’t. They will be different sizes to begin with.

Microsoft will also be live streaming the event too which is good news,So the date has been set and the world will be watching….

Watch it live

#Google #Microsoft #Mozilla & #Netflix are just some members of “AllianceForOpenMedia” By @VicenteA_George #Media #Codecs

We live in an age when almost everything is located on Internet and every day more and more of our Media are at some point, unplayable due to some “Format Restriction” of any kind.

Well, soon that’s about to end thanks to the recently announced Alliance for Open Media.

Starting on September 1st Seven of the most greatest Media creator have created this “Justice League” of Formats and Codecs for video and media in general.

“The Open and royalty-free format for next-generation
ultra high definition media”

Amazon, Cisco, Google, Intel, Microsoft, Mozilla and Netflix have made partnership into this Open-Source Project to reach to ultimate goal of “develop next-generation media formats, codecs and technologies in the public interest.”

Something that really complicate media consumption in the format of the video we’re trying to see.

For example:

For using MPEG-2 or MPEG-4 formats, a royalty must be paid to MPEG LA.

Mozilla has Daala

Google is has on VP9 and 10

Etc.

That’s why should not come as surprise that this guys wanna save some money and as result we have a more persistent and pleasant usability of video formats.

What they want to do as main task is to create media:

Interoperable and open.

Optimized for the web.

Scalable to any modern device at any bandwidth.

Designed with a low computational footprint and optimized for hardware.

Capable of consistent, highest-quality, real-time video delivery.

Flexible for both commercial and non-commercial content, including user-generated content.

(Something worth the mention is Apple absence in the group, which is easily explainable.

Apple owns QuickTime and they need to pay anyone to implement videos on  iTunes or Apple TV.)

The license name will be Apache 2.0 and will work under the W3C patent rules.

If you want to know more about the project you can go HERE or follow them at @a4omedia

What do you think of this? Let us know in the comments or Tweet us using #techbuzzireland

Stay tuned for more Buzz and everything TECH

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Twitter for Windows Phone gets an update,its minor. #Twitter #WindowsPhone

One of the most neglected apps on Windows Phone which is Twitter has today got a minor update users will be pleased to hear,not much has been added to the update but every little helps.The update gap between this and other official apps is still huge and not encouraging to say the least.

The update is now at V.3.2.2.0 and is a 4MB download..

 

The update cites minor changes and does not specify in detail what’s new so we are left to find out for ourself again,but we know what the new changes are so here we go..

1 – DM character limit removed.

2 – Icons seemed to be slightly different.New DM icon on front.

3 – Trending hashtag removed.

4 – Bug fixes.

Overall the app still lacks compared to its official rivals on Android and iOS which leaves lots to be said and god knows when we will see another refreshment..

Thanks for the Tip Milorad.

https://twitter.com/misangenius/status/639833337905946624

Windows 10 Insider Preview – Cortana to more countries but not Ireland. #Cortana

Today  has posted a brief post regarding Cortana been made available to more countries,yet again Ireland is off the list and since November 14 and earlier people have been asking when will it officially land for Irish Windows Phone users,today does not bring any hope at all for that so sadly you will have to stick to the current way of using Cortana if you do.There has been no concrete answer as to WHEN…Apart from the “coming soon” or “near future” response…

At this stage now I think most have given up and the forums and boards here have said same and will just take it on the chin,this would not be a main selling point of Windows Phone anyway but some do like the idea which I think is a novelty and would wear thin after a while anyway…

Today, we will begin rolling out Cortana to Insiders on Windows 10 Insider Preview builds 10532+ as an optional download to Insiders in Japan and in English for Insiders in Australia and Canada. We also have an early version in English for Insiders in India, which will be updated with an improved voice later this month. With these rollouts, we hope to learn a lot from your feedback as we continue to improve the experience and refine it for each market.

Later this year Cortana will also be available first to Windows Insiders in Brazil and Mexico, and in French in Canada.With windows phone market share here in Ireland in decline we already have Cortana in A Public Beta on Android and plenty of Microsoft services on Android and people have moved on..It may note bode well with some but this is how it is today..have your say below if you like..

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InstaBlurrr – A non BETA photo editing app ad-free – #Photography #WindowsPhone

Ok so we have lots of apps for editing photos and in 2015 we have one big problem for windows phone users and that is that Instagram is still labelled a BETA, It is a very popular app no less but to be coined with that familiar term BETA in 2015 is just not on its that simple. This does not only apply to Instagram mind you..

Now we have a new app called InstaBlurr which is not BETA at the end of it and is free of ads,it will be a niche app and not for everyone but it does what it says on the tin its simple to use and its also FREE.. The app allows you to edit portions of the photo and give it a blurry effect,I cant see the attraction myself only for obvious reasons but yes I have seen images on Instagram with this effect applied so it matters to Windows Phone users as they are also huge Instagram fans..

One drawback is you can only use photos in storage and not take a photo and use it as you would with Instagram for example so if you can live with that well its the app for you…Maybe over time it will allow users to take snaps and edit from there…..

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