Stay Entertained with Windows 8

It’s been a fact that previous Windows versions were quite good when it comes to music, movies, games and other stuff which are mostly offered for free however, downloading these multimedia contents or getting the software that will help you get the music that you want takes very long to complete and looking them over in the Internet is really a hassle especially when you’re looking for the classic ones. In other cases, the software would be offered for free and allow you to make a limited number of downloads and then ask you to upgrade to the full version once you reach the limit. Not just that, you also run the risk of getting infected with a virus or having a malware enter into your system when you get some downloads from the wrong, unverified sites.

All of these problems are easily solved in Windows 8! With the Windows Store and all the free applications that it offers, the whole searching and downloading experience will surely be cut short significantly. Just imagine having all the stuff that you want in one location and being able to download them quickly anytime. Wouldn’t that be great? To learn more of what’s offered in the Windows Store, we have prepared some descriptions of categorized contents that will give you a view of the wonderful world within Microsoft’s newest operating system platform.

What is Windows Store?

Users have seen the merging of the PC and the tablet world into one operating system after Windows 8 was released and of course, just like any other good thing, it has got some criticisms in a few weeks or so after it’s launch. One of the problems that users encountered was the Start Screen and the tiles that are pinned on it which includes the Windows Store. If you have tried using an Android device before then you should be familiar with the Play Store. The Windows Store works the same way. When you click the Windows Store tile on the Start Screen, it will open in full screen and bring you to the marketplace of apps that works for your Windows 8 device.

You will also notice that everything in it are categorized into certain categories such as Music, Video, Games and many more but for now, we will just be focusing on the stuff that can help you get entertained while you are using your Windows 8 machine.

Music

Most of us love listening to music and want them saved into our devices so we can listen to them wherever and whenever we want. This is possible even in the previous Windows versions and in fact, we even use our computers in transferring music from one device to another however, Windows 8 has revolutionized all of these and made it even better. Of course, you can still use the traditional way of transferring music files on to your other devices through the desktop mode but there are some things that has become even better because of the presence of the Metro environment.

Buy the Music You Want

When you use the “Music” app, you’ll get instant access to a marketplace where you can find all the latest songs and download them for free or buy the newest ones then have them downloaded straight to your library.

Stream It

If you are connected to a relatively fast network and you don’t want to use up your device’s memory by downloading some music then you can choose to just stream it through the Xbox Music Service. This enables you to listen and stream through your favorite music on your Windows 8 PC, on an Xbox console, on your Tablet or even on your Windows Phone. With this service, you can get access to all the latest music in a few simple steps without the need of waiting or paying for them.

Import Your Music

You might have saved some good music in your old Windows installation or in your old computer. If this is the case, you can still listen to them by importing them to your Windows 8 machine. You are not left with just the music on your library. You always have the choice of getting all those good old music files from your old machine to the new one and add them to your library so you can start listening to them again.

Other Apps

The Music app is not the only tool that you can use in downloading or streaming through your favorite music. You can also download other apps such as Spotify so you can have access to more music in a variety of ways.

Video

When you’re bored, music might not be enough to erase such boredom. In such cases, you can watch videos that will interest them. In Windows 8, you can have access to videos using the Videos app and start watching anytime you want. Below are some things that you can do in Windows 8’s Videos app.

Rent and Buy Movies, Films and Television Shows

If you missed a movie or an episode of your favorite show then you can choose to rent or buy from the Videos app. Simply click or tap on an image within the Videos app to see a synopsis, its running time and some other details. Simply click back to see other options.

Store and View Your Personal Videos

All of the videos that are saved in your Windows 8 machine appears in the Videos app. If you want to view it, all you need to do is click or tap on it and it will be played right away. You can also have access to other videos even if they are not in your library, just select the one that you want to watch and click or tap on to play it.

Videos on other Apps

There are other video providers that also has their own app compatible with Windows 8. All you need to do is download their app and install it on your machine so you can start watching the videos that they offer.

Play Movies on Xbox

When you click on a movie that you want to watch, you will see an option that says “Play on Xbox”. If you have an Xbox console connected to your TV, you can send the stuff that you want to watch directly to it and start watching it on a wider screen.

Games

To younger users, one of the stuff that easily erases boredom are games and in Windows 8, there is an app entirely dedicated to your favorite games which you can play on Xbox or on your Windows 8 machine. Here are some information that will help you learn more about it.

Games Galore

The Xbox Live games serves as the home for gaming in your Windows 8 machine but there are other places in the Windows Store where you can find games to buy or download. These places offer the best of everything and you download the games you want from the big-budget releases down to the small time-wasters  and all of them works whether you are using a keyboard and a mouse or you’re on a touchscreen device.

What’s in Xbox?

Xbox Live Games app contains Xbox Windows games and as well as the Xbox Games Marketplace. This simply means that the games offered here are not only for your Xbox console but also for your Windows 8 machine.

Keep Track of Your Gamerscore

When you open the Xbox Live Games app, it automatically signs you in to your Microsoft or your Xbox Live account. This helps sync some information and integrates everything to increase your Gamerscore. You can also boost your Gamerscore even by playing simple games such as Mahjong or Minesweeper from your PC.

Take Advantage of Your Avatar

As part of the features of Xbox Live. All of your achievements, scores and even your saved games are automatically integrated to your profile of Avatar if you already created one. Now, all your information and even your saved games can be accessed in different computers and devices as long as you open your profile in it.

Entertainment Straight at Your Fingertips

As you can see, all the new features introduced in Windows 8 really improves the way you stay entertained. Microsoft has really made a great leap in terms of improving the Windows operating system but of course, you could meet some problems while exploring your machine. If this happens to you, please don’t hesitate to ask us for help by using the comments section.