After a puzzling absence from the Windows Phone 8 Store, Whatsapp is finally out for the young operating system. While it is available, it seems to lack many features that were already present in its Windows Phone 7 counterpart. The app can be downloaded for free from the Whatsapp download page.
One of the more glaring omissions from the Windows Phone 8 version of the app are the emoticons that Whatsapp has become famous for. The app also seems to lack fast resume from the live tile, among other features that are usually present in Windows Phone 8 apps.
Earlier this month, the developers of Whatsapp had said that the app would be six times faster than the previous version. Apart from this, they stated that there will also be new emoji included in the upcoming version, but it looks like this is yet to be delivered.
Recently, Microsoft had revealed on its Windows blog that app submissions to the Windows Phone Store have gone up by 40 percent since the launch of the software giant's mobile operating system.
Microsoft also announced that app certification will remain open for most of the month, including what is usually counted as holiday season. The only days apps will not be tested are December 24, 25 and January 1. As the app certification process takes five days, developers are advised to submit their apps on December 17 or December 21.
While the Windows Phone 8 platform is picking up, it is in serious need of apps. Although the applications on the platform seem to be of a higher standard compared to Android, the OS lacks popular games and even social networking options like Instagram. We were told recently by Windows Phone representatives that the apps will be hitting significantly higher numbers very soon.
Earlier this month, Microsoft announced that the Windows Phone Store now covers 113 countries. In a blog post, the company also revealed that it would be rolling out an update for the Windows Phone Dev Centre and the Windows Phone Store.
The update contains fixes to issues identified by users, feature enhancements and reflection of new country-specific policies. “On tap for this wave of updates are several behind-the-scenes changes designed to help improve the reliability and performance of the Dev Centre, in addition to the app submission process,” read the blog.
Microsoft is also urging developers to go for worldwide distribution of their apps by working with the Dev Centre in order to maximise the reach of new markets, where a variety of new Windows Phones have or will soon be released.
Many Windows Phone users have complained about the quality of the app for their devices and claim that it is not up to par as its version is available on other platforms such as iOS and Android. Hopefully, some of the issues will be taken care of in an update.
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