Top 10 Windows Mobile apps

Windows Mobile might be on its last legs, but there are still some great apps available for the platform. Here’s our pick of the best.

Evernote
Free
Evernote is one of those apps that completely changes the way you use your smartphone. A partly cloud-based notetaking program, Evernote is flexible enough to be used in a variety of ways, big or small. You can record voice memos, jot down notes (handwritten or otherwise), take photos, or even scan in basic documents like business cards and have them converted into editable text, and it’s location-aware as well. And all the while the app is connected to your online Evernote account, uploading your notes partly as a backup and partly so they can be accessed from just about any internet-enabled device anywhere in the world, where they can even be shared with other users. Evernote is a powerful and addictive app – it has over a million users – and for the most demanding there’s a premium version too.

SBSH PhoneWeaver 2
$14.95
Your Windows Mobile smartphone can do many things, but at heart it is still a communications device. SBSH PhoneWeaver puts all of the key communications functions literally at your fingertips, with its finger-friendly UI making this an essential tool for power users. With PhoneWeaver you can create and manage multiple phone profiles – including a very advanced auto profile function that will activate certain profiles based on events in your calendar (for example, switching to Silent mode when you’re in a meeting) or even your location, determined by your phone’s GPS receiver. In addition you can manage your other data connections, and access emails and text messages quickly and easily. The sleekly designed look of the app integrates perfectly with the rest of WinMo, making PhoneWeaver feel like a natural extension of the OS.

CorePlayer Mobile
$29.95
Although pricey CorePlayer Mobile is the undisputed king of media apps for Windows Mobile. It supports virtually every video and audio format you are likely to encounter, most notably including DivX, XviD, H.264 and WMV. You might find the performance of some varies depending on your device’s hardware, although the latest Snapdragon-enabled handsets should devour anything you can throw at it. On top of this you get audio, image and streaming support, as well as a YouTube client that comes in handy if your phone hasn’t got one installed already.

Scrub
Free
It’s the bane of the smartphone user’s life – you need to contact someone while on the road, only to find that you can’t because you haven’t filled in their email address or mobile number into your address book. Scrub fixes the problem of incomplete fields in your contact app by scanning all your entries and highlighting the issues. While you can freely ignore those missing birthdays, running the app every couple of months will ensure the key info for your contacts is always available.

FingerSuite
Free
Although seemingly no longer in development FingerSuite could still completely overhaul how you use your Windows Mobile device. Its purpose is simple: it replaces the standard WinMo menus with larger, touch-optimised ones, meaning that you can leave the stylus behind when using the most common functions of your phone.

Spb Backup
£22.61
If you’re storing your whole life on your smartphone, then you need to make sure you keep it backed up properly. Spb represents that backing up is an essentially dull task that no-one can be bothered with, so they have made it as seamless as possible. Little more than a couple of clicks are needed to create recurring, automatic backup; and it is equally easy to restore files should you ever need to.

Total Commander
Free
It appears to come from another age (if the UI is not pre-historic, then it is at least pre-iPhone) yet Total Commander is the number one app for anyone looking to use their Windows Mobile device as a pocket computer. This fully featured file manager is as powerful as a desktop app, giving you full control over every corner of your device.

CellSpin
£1.50
Keeping up with all your social media services can be tough. With CellSpin you can do it from within a single application. The usual suspects like Facebook and Twitter are included as well more niche services like Linkedin, or even Blogger or WordPress, and you can post photos and videos as well as text.

TouchTwit
£1.69
A relative newcomer in the crowd of mobile Twitter clients, TouchTwit immediately ranks among the best on the Windows Mobile platform. Stylishly designed, full finger-friendly UI and jus about every feature you need on Twitter – including photos, searches and location sharing – this is a great option for power users.

WMWifiRouter
£17.49
WMWiFiRouter turns your Windows Mobile smartphone into a fully functioning wireless router, wherever you are. Simply connect your laptop to it as you would to your home Wi-Fi network, and you can securely access the internet using the phone’s 3G connection. An app like this would become the perfect companion to a non-3G iPad.

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