File this as another thing that should have been done a long time ago, even from the start. But Microsoft has finally given the web based version of its Windows Store a much needed uplift.
The Windows Store website lacked in comparison to the web versions of the Apple App Store, Google Play, even the Windows Phone Store — all three of which offered power features to quickly check out, search for and downloads apps.
But things finally got a bit better for the Windows Store sometime late yesterday.
Redmond got around to implementing app searches on its website, and even the individual app pages have received a great new look that actually reminds of the one available in Windows 8.1.
This new design fully embraces the Metro design philosophy of Microsoft’s modern platforms, with a minimalistic design style that brings the app details smack in the spotlight. Users can quickly find out about the license type, category, approximate file size, age rating, etc. of a particular app.
A handy option also displays other apps that have been developed by the same developer, along with related tools and other details like supported processors, system requirements, language and all that. Thumbnails of screenshots are also displayed beneath the main image.
Unfortunately, while the app pages look much better, the search features, on the other hand are rather basic. There are no options to search by genre, game type, publisher and other such bells and whistles that make finding apps a breezy experience.
But at the very least, the company is working on updating its flagship apps repository, and chances are that many new features will become part of the Windows Store later down the road.
