We spend much time around here posting about app updates for Windows Phone and today, it is our turn. The official WPCentral app for Windows Phone 8 today is going to version 4.5.4 and with it, a significant amount of fixes, new features and improvements are in store for you. Many of these additions have been in the making for awhile, and we are positive that if you use our app, you are going to like what is new.
Let us take a look at the full changelog and then you can go grab the update, which is now live in the Store!
WPCentral v4.5.4 (Windows Phone 8.x only)
- Implementation of the Mobile Nations passport system for forums and comments - now possible to sign in with Microsoft Account, etc.
- Pull to refresh added to the main news list
- 1080p high-definition support on all pages (note that landscape support has now been removed to allow for this scaling - apart from on the image viewer)
- Custom notification sound for notifications from WPCentral (requires WP8 update 3 or higher)
- Improved scrolling performance of article listings
- Fixed an issue where images would not load in the WPCentral forums
- Swiping through forums pages starts at either the top or the bottom now depending on the direction of the swipe
- Cleaned up some unrequired code to optimise performance
- Fixed a bug where loading from toasts would fail
Although bug fixes and scrolling improvement are excellent additions for everyday usage, I'm excited about the 1080P support and custom notification sound. For the HD support, those on a Lumia 1520 now have a better experience, with the section Tiles and the fonts for articles being proportional.
Regarding the custom notification, note that the term refers to it being custom for us, not the user (though Windows Phone 8.1 users can obviously do their own in the OS Settings). In short, our default sound now for new articles with push notifications is the chime taken from our video bumper. It is our own sound and if you have seen our videos before, instantly recognizable. If you are on Update 3 or higher, there is nothing to do except to enable notifications.
The ability to login through your Microsoft Account (via our Mobile Nations Passport) goes a long way to answer that frequently asked question. Finally, the pull-to-refresh is a familiar gesture in apps these days, and we are glad finally to support it now too.
More to come
Besides this app update, Jay Bennett (@jaytbennett) is hard at work on our Windows 8 app, which is available for free in the Store. Plans for that app update include:
- Passport integration for the Windows 8 app for Microsoft Account
- Custom colors
- And more…
After that, Jay is taking on the big task of making our app a real Universal app. Although to you, this may seem like a trivial undertaking, it is a big job as the app for Phone is basically being re-written, as it overlaps in code from our Modern app. This project is still some months out, so please have some patience!
Finally, you can expect an actual site redesign starting in the near future as well for you web experience. Now go grab those apps! (Editor's note: The WPCentral 4.5.4 update is very new, so if you do not see it yet, try back at a later time)
- Download WPCentral app for Windows Phone v4.5.4 here in the Store; Free (99 cents to remove ads)
- Download WPCentral app for Windows 8.1 here in the Windows Store
Do you have a feature request or are you having issues with our app? Don't forget to jump into our WPCentral app support forum, where Jay takes his time to read your posts.
